And the winners are ...

Album of the Year

In the closest readers poll in Mess+Noise history – all three years of it – Eddy Current Suppression Ring’s Primary Colours has been voted Album of the Year beating out The Drones’ Havilah by just two votes.

The accolade caps off a big year for Eddy Current, who were nominated for an ARIA Award, supported DEVO on their first tour of Australia in a decade and landed an AIR Award for best hard rock/punk release.

ECSR guitarist/keyboardist Mikey Young said he was “chuffed” by the response to the band’s sophomore release.

“It’s always nice to hear people say good things about something you've done. It's no ARIA though, so its not gonna impress my mum as much,” he joked. “I thought it [Primary Colours] was a bit more palatable than the first [self-titled release] and maybe a touch stronger all up. But some people reckon the first one’s better, so what do I know?”

Young added that the band’s plans for 2009 included a 7” release on Melbourne indie Nervous Jerk and a tour if they can “squeeze in some time”.

1. Eddy Current Suppression Ring
   Primary Colours (Album, AARGHT! Records)
2. Drones
   Havilah (Album, All Tomorrow's Parties)
3. Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
   Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!! (Album, Mute Records)
4. My Disco
   Paradise (Album, Stomp)
5. Beaches
   Beaches (Album, Mistletone)
6. Snowman
   The Horse, The Rat and The Swan (Album, Dot Dash)
7. Fabulous Diamonds
   Seven Songs (Album, Nervous Jerk)
8. Cut Copy
   In Ghost Colours (Album, Modular)
9. You Am I
   Dilettantes (Album, EMI)
10. Pivot
    O Soundtrack My Heart (Album, Warp / Inertia)
11. Kes Band
    Kes Band (Album, Mistletone)
12. Witch Hats
    Cellulite Soul (Album, In-Fidelity Recordings)
13. Die! Die! Die!
    Promises, Promises (Album, Etch N Sketch)
14. Augie March
    Watch Me Disappear (Album, Sony BMG)
15. Spod
    Superfrenz (Album, Valve Records)
16. theredsunband
    The Shiralee (Album, Enchanted Recordings)
17. Ooga Boogas
    Romance and Adventure (Album, AARGHT! Records)
18. ii
    Landlakes (Album, Feral Media)
19. Charge Group
    Escaping Mankind (Album, Inertia)
20. Ohana
    Dead Beat (Album, Imperative Residence)

Best Live Act

Eddy Current Suppression Ring also polled first in the Best Live Act category, ahead of You Am I, 2008 bridesmaids The Drones and My Disco. “There are so many different bands and solo people doing different things that to compare them against each other seems kinda silly,” said Young, humbly. “I think we do a decent job at what we do though, and we enjoy doing it. So if it's making some people happy, then that makes me happy.”

1. Eddy Current Suppression Ring
2. You Am I
3. The Drones
4. My Disco
5. Pivot
6. Snowman
7. Nick Cave
8. Aleks And The Ramps
9. Baseball
10. Witch Hats

Best New Act 2008

The result here was hardly surprising, with Beaches taking out the honours by an overwhelming margin ahead of Perth psychedelic upstarts Tame Impala, retro act Little Red and garage-rock “super group” The Ooga Boogas. The Melbourne quintet released their acclaimed self-titled debut on Mistletone this year, which was described by Mess+Noise as “the perfect soundtrack for this (and every other) summer”.

“As we all know, some really amazing and inspiring albums have been released in Australia this year,” guitarist Antonia Sellbach told M+N. “We are very humbled to be included, so thanks! Or for want of a better word: bitchin’.”

1. Beaches
2. Tame Impala
3. Little Red
4. Ooga Boogas
5. Ghoul
6. ii
7. Super Wild Horse
8. Deaf Wish
9. John Steel Singers
10. Charge Group

The Mess+Noise readers poll has been held annually since 2006. This year’s revamped format saw an unprecedented amount of votes counted, so bloody well done the lot of you!

Tomorrow, the critics respond ...

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