Young Fathers, Django Django vie for Scottish Album of the Year

YOUNG Fathers and Django Django will be among the Edinburgh acts vying for the the Scottish music industry's most prestigious honour.

Young Fathers. Picture: John Devlin

Singer-songwriter Steve Mason, experimental composer Anna Meredith, classical ensemble Dunedin Consort and folk trio Lau will also fly the flag for the city at the Scottish Album of the Year Award ceremony.

They will be up against leading bands like Primal Scream, Chvrches, Admiral Fallow and Franz Ferdinand for the prize, which is now in its fifth year.

Iain Morrison, Emma Pollock and Rachel Sermanni were also named as contenders today for the Scottish Album of the Year Award.

Organisers announced a 20-strong longlist for the £20,000 award, which will be presented next month. The ceremony, which has been staged in Glasgow in previous years, will be moving this year and next to Paisley Town Hall to help raise the profile of its UK City of Culture bid.

Other nominees include hip hop outfit Hector Bizerk, and the DJ and producer Hudson Mohawke, who has previously worked with Kanye West and Drake. The 2014 Mercury Prize winners Young Fathers are among the former winners of the “SAY Award”, along with Kathryn Joseph, RM Hubbert, and Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat.

They will be up against one of last year’s Mercury Prize nominees, musician and composer C Duncan, for the award, which is organised by the Scottish Music Industry Association (SMIA). Music fans will be able to stream one of the 20 nominated albums each day from the award website from Monday.

Caroline Cooper, manager of the SMIA, said: “Now established as one of the most significant music prizes in the UK, the SAY Award highlights the exceptional breadth of music being produced in Scotland.”

Leonie Bell, director of arts at Creative Scotland, one of the backers of the SAY Award, said: “For the fifth year, this longlist once again proves the outstanding quality and range of music produced in Scotland from electronic and indie to hip-hop and piping.

“Having firmly established itself as one of the most important events in the Scottish music industry calendar, the award is a fantastic way of supporting and raising the profile of these talented musicians in Scotland.”

Paisley is hoping a rich musical heritage will bolster its UK City of Culture bid, with Gerry Rafferty and Paolo Nutini among the big names to emerge from the town.

Jean Cameron, director of Paisley’s bid, said: “Paisley has earned itself a reputation as a hub of creativity over the centuries, having produced so much great music.”