The 2007 ARIAs

Being a huge music lover and also residing in Australia means that this time of the year brings something of a highlight. I am talking about the Australian Record Industry Awards (ARIAs) which were held on October 28^th.

This year was a little special for me as I was added to the voting panel and had the chance to make some sort of impact on who would find themselves nominated. I also planned on heading to the awards but long story short; I will have to wait till next year to walk the red carpet.

The final nominees for Best Urban Release were Bliss N Eso (Day of The Dog Phazed Out), Foreign Heights (Get Yours Remix), Jackson Jackson (The Fire Is On The Bird), Hilltop Hoods (The Hard Road Restrung) and Justice & Kaos (Turn It Up). I was very happy to see Bliss N Eso in there as well as fellow Melbourne hip hoppers Justice Kaos. I am not sure how Jackson Jackson made in into this category especially with the very unfair omission of Kid Confucious, but I guess that is the flaw with the genre ‘urban’.

Naturally The Hilltop Hoods came away with the award. I was not surprised as the release was something very different that added a new dimension to the already stellar LP. The team at Obese Records capitalized well on the already huge success of both the album and the Hoods as a group and local force. The guys have amassed a huge pile of awards in recent years and I think there comes a time when limits should be put on how many awards you can win. I mean c’mon, how do you think it makes everyone else feel.. like rotten cow poop, that’s what!

Damn you Hoods! Ah well I guess you can’t blame the guys for being so good. In other ARIA news, Silverchair took home five ARIAs with wins in the most sought-after categories: single of the year, album of the year, highest-selling single of the year, best band and best rock album. And for the real music fans, The Wiggles took home Best Children’s Album for Pop Go The Wiggles besting among others Hi-5 and The Fairies.. I hate the Fairies!

I didn’t actually watch the awards telecast as I felt if I wasn’t going to be there, I could not hope to emulate the experience in any other way. Next year I vow to attend these prestigious awards and use the experience to impress random chicks in bars across Melbourne.