Scottish Album of the Year 2012 shortlist announced

The ten albums on the shortlist of the Scottish Music Industry Association's inaugural Scottish Album of the Year (SAY) award were announced today. Honed down from a longlist of 20, the finalists were selected by a panel of ten industry experts as well as a public ballot that took place on Monday 14 May for 24 hours only, attracting over 9,000 votes. 

The Scottish Album of the Year Shortlist is (in alphabetical order):  

Bill Wells & Aidan Moffat - Everything’s Getting Older [reviewed here, Aidan Moffat's track by track guide here]
Conquering Animal Sound - Kammerspiel [reviewed here]
Happy Particles - Under Sleeping Waves [reviewed live here]
King Creosote & Jon Hopkins - Diamond Mine [reviewed here]
Mogwai - Hardcore Will Never Die, But You Will [reviewed here and interview with Stuart Braithwaite here]
Mungo’s Hi Fi - Forward Ever [Soundcloud]
Remember Remember - The Quickening [reviewed here and interview with Graeme Ronald here]
Rustie - Glass Swords [reviewed here and interview with Rustie here]
Tommy Smith - Karma [website]
Twin Atlantic - Free [public vote winners, website]

The ultimate victors will be announced in a glitzy ceremony in Glasgow's Film City on Tue 19 June, and rewarded with a £20,000 prize. Each of the the nine runners up will receive £1000 and a specially commissioned original artwork by a Glasgow School of Art graduate, a nod to the strong links that exist between the Scottish music and art scenes.

Remember Remember's Graeme Ronald was clearly very happy at making it to the final ten: "Regardless of who wins, I just hope that the award brings all of these great albums (short and longlisted) into the homes of people across the world who otherwise might not have ever heard of them.  This is so surreal, I feel like Susan Boyle.”

Fellow nominee King Creosote had this to add on the significance of the award to a Scottish musician: "Jon Hopkins and I are proud as punch to end up on the short list for the newest and coolest of prizes, the SAY Award. Of all the awards Diamond Mine has been nominated for and subsequently lost, losing this one will smart most."