Each year the New Zealand music award recognises its best in two big award ceremonies. The Silver Scrolls are the song-writing awards, while the New Zealand Music Awards, or Tuis, are the mainstream industry awards. In 2006 The Beach, a volunteer radio station on Waiheke Island launched our own New Zealand music awards, the Alternatuis. These differ from the other awards in two ways. Firstly they are a way of recognising great New Zealand artists and songs that aren't in the mainstream and aren't getting the recognition we believe they deserve. Secondly there is no pretence of democracy or objectivity in these awards. You get an Alternatui simply because we like what you do.
This recording is of the 2nd annual Alternatuis, originally broadcast on Counting The Beat, a specialist New Zealand music show on The Beach in October 2007.