Getting Serious For Coming Of Age Party

Sydney Morning Herald

Thursday September 20, 2007

Bernard Zuel

TEDDY TAHU RHODES kept his shirt on. Bindi Irwin faced off with the Wiggles. And the surprise packet was a pixieish Brisbane girl with operatic leanings.

Not exactly rock'n'roll is it?

You could blame the fact that it was mid-morning when the nominations for this year's Australian Recording Industry Association awards were announced and the bar was only serving soft drinks and coffee.

Or maybe it is a sign of (worrying?) maturity as the ARIAs celebrates its 21st anniversary.

Either way, Rhodes, the New Zealand opera singer whose bare form adorns posters and the backs of cabs around the city in a manner more befitting a young Robert Plant, was not out of place reading out a few nominations.

Nor, despite her newcomer status was Kate Miller-Heidke, a platinum-bobbed Queenslander who describes her music as having the storytelling element of folk and the theatricality of opera.

"I knew that for someone like me, who doesn't look like a traditional pop star or sound like a traditional pop star, I need a point of difference," explained Miller-Heidke after hearing that she had been nominated for four awards, including best female artist, on the back of her debut album Little Eve.

Miller-Heidke was not alone. In a year when some of the big names returned to the fray, there were impressive fresh faces among the nominations.

Dance outfit Sneaky Sound System (six nominations), singer/producer/visual artist Gotye (four nominations), Balmain-bred singer/songwriter Josh Pyke (three nominations) and even under-age popsters Operator Please (two nominations) may get a chance to shine when the pointy silver ARIAs are presented on October 28.

They will have to fight off the three behemoths of Powderfinger and Silverchair, both of whom returned after long breaks this year to secure four nominations, and the John Butler Trio who have five chances to win.

John Butler said via email from a tour bus driving between Glasgow and Liverpool that it was "an honour to be in such great company", generally spreading the love, as is his wont.

However, will it be less love and more guitars at dawn for Silverchair and Powderfinger?

The bands are sharing the stage around the country at the moment in a double-header show but with their nominations being in the same categories - best group, best rock album, album of the year and single of the year - there can be only one winner.

It could be bloody.