The Triffid ProfileThis November sees The Triffid Album Of The Year return for yet another outing.
Having first launched all the way back in 2016 as a way to celebrate the best emerging artists in Queensland by recognising the local album that resonated the most, there have been some rather stellar releases to have taken out the award – and subsequently immortalised on the Triffid's Hero Wall in the process.
First taken out by Halfway in 2016, the award has gone to acts as diverse as Busby Marou, Cub Sport, The Chats, Stepson, Mass Sky Raid, The Dreggs, and most recently, Full Flower Moon Band.
This year, it's a pretty strong competition, with the likes of 2charm, Clea, Platonic Sex, Radium Dolls, The Jungle Giants, and Tom Busby in contention to take out the award.
But what about some of those who have taken out the top honour previously? How do they look back upon the honour?
For Tia Gostelow, whose debut album Thick Skin was crowned the victor in 2019, it remains one of the "highlights of [her] career".
"When I first moved to Brisbane when I was 18, I worked at The Triffid as a glassie and the staff quickly became like family to me," she recalls. "So it was a really crazy, surreal moment to have my name up on that wall against so many other incredible albums.
"But also being able to see how far I'd come from working, cleaning up after people after they'd finished watching their favourite gigs, to having my name up on the wall. It's one of my favorite career moments for sure.
A few years later, the 2023 award went to Beddy Rays, whose self-titled debut album was voted as the strongest release of the year. Vocalist and guitarist Jackson 'Jacko' Van Issum remembers the win as an "incredible feeling".
"I remember celebrating with the boys pretty long and hard after that one," he smiles. "But seeing your name up on the wall when it gets revealed, and then it's right next to some of your favourite bands from Brisbane, it's like a sense of belonging.
"It feels like you've been accepted into the scene, into the community there. And that's what that whole venue has always been for us. They've always looked after us when we're there. We've played some of our best shows we've ever played at that venue, and the staff are incredible. Anyone who goes through that place is a legend."
Both albums were massive releases for their respective artists, and years since the win, it's hard to work out just what it was that managed to resonate with the voters.
For Gostelow, Thick Skin was the result of years of work and resulted in not just a Gold accreditation from ARIA (and a Platinum accreditation for the single Strangers), but nominations for Album Of The Year at both the National Indigenous Music Awards and Queensland Music Awards, too – winning the latter.
"I would like to think that maybe it was because I was so young and innocent," she muses on the record's secret sauce, "and I just was writing songs because I really loved how they were sounding, and then the momentum from what I was putting out was obviously really great.
"It kind of gave me that confidence to keep doing what I was doing," she adds. "I think there's a lot of innocence around this record and a lot of excitement about doing this for the first time that I think maybe carries through the album."
Jacko has a similar train of thought for Beddy Rays' debut. It charted within the national top ten, and like Gostelow, also nabbed a nomination for Album Of The Year at the NIMAs.
But it was the time in which it arrived (and was written and recorded) that he supposes resonated the most with listeners and voters.
"It was around that COVID sort of era where people weren't able to connect with their mates or hang out with their friends," he recalls. "And a lot of the tunes were sort of about looking out for your friends and, and being there for your mates and having good times together.
"I felt like people really resonated with it because they were like, 'Shit, wish we could be doing that right now,' and we couldn't."
Most winners would also agree that such a win is something of a highlight in their career.
After all, any sort of recognition for a body of work that you've created is welcomed, but to be deemed the Album Of The Year against a batch of contemporary artists after being voted by your peers and fans?
It's a somewhat overwhelming experience which can mean a lot of things to everyone who takes out that top honour.
"It sort of meant, to us, that the whole DIY process works," Jacko muses. "And enough heart that you put into a record, and effort by everyone, it pays off in the end.
"And we can't thank The Triffid enough for throwing us up on the wall there. It means a lot to us fellas, and we hope we can inspire some other young bands to have a crack."
Gostelow feels similar, labelling the experience a "whirlwind of emotions and gratitude".
"I think the win and the recognition that came with that from the industry and the public was really overwhelming," she explains. "It helped me feel like I'd cemented my place in the Queensland music industry and the Australian music industry.
"I think it also just felt really overwhelming that a record that I wrote from between 16 to 18 connected with people that much."
Neither Gostelow or the Beddy Rays are up for awards this year, though that's not for lack of activity.
While Gostelow has recently relocated to London, she's toured and written relentlessly against a backdrop of releasing two albums, 2020's Chrysalis and 2023's Head Noise. Currently, she's hard at work writing her next record.
Beddy Rays, meanwhile, have been busy bees. While their self-titled debut's lead single, Sobercoaster, went Platinum, they've done another Like A Version performance for triple j, while also playing the station's One Night Stand concert in New South Wales last month.
Of course, when they're not "going to the Triffid and having a beer," they too are hard at work on the next album.
Along the way, they both can't help but reflect on the impact that an award such as The Triffid Album Of The Year has had on both them, and the wider Queensland music scene
"I feel like it's an award that's made from musicians and writers and bands for musicians and writers and bands and producers," Gostelow muses. "It feels like a really genuine celebration of, I think, what the core music community in Queensland and Brisbane is.
"And every time I go into that beer garden, I feel like I'm always going to see somebody that I know in the industry no matter what. I think it's the best place to be celebrating what our state has to offer within the music community."
"Awards like this definitely bring the community together," Jacko agrees. "You make professional relationships after winning something like this or even being nominated for it. You might start tours, collaborations, whatnot, and the awesome thing about it is that it also brings people in from outside the music community to find bands.
"Like The Triffid, you go there for lunch and you're looking up on the wall, and you see these names there, and you're going, 'What are those names there for?'" he explains. "You look into it, find a new band, or whatever – this definitely brings communities together."
Undeniably, over the past decade, The Triffid Album Of The Year has managed to position itself as a vital celebration of the Queensland music, and venues such as The Triffid itself.
"I think Queensland produces some of the best music coming out of Australia, and I think that's because we have such a great sense of community in Queensland and in Brisbane," Gostelow notes.
"Being a North Queensland artist, it felt a little bit isolating when I first began, but I quickly learned that reaching out and asking questions and getting people to help me make connections was something that really helped me with my career, and I feel like that is what this sense of community is about in Brisbane and in Queensland."
Awards like this can also serve as something of a full-circle moment for the winning artists, especially for the likes of a former employee – and formative performer – such as Gostelow.
"Venues like The Triffid play such a huge role in developing artists and fostering artists," she enthuses. "I know for me it's played a massive role.
"I was 16 when I played in The Triffid beer garden for the first time. I ended up playing a headline show at The Triffid, and it was one of my favourite shows to date.
I've played so many other little shows there, have made so many friends there, and having my name up on the wall for this award was, as I said, one of the best and biggest highlights of my career because it's just such a meaningful place for music in Brisbane."
Of course, with voting open for another week, the question remains – who does a previous winner like Gostelow think deserves to win this year's award?
"If I had to choose a winner for the award this year, I would have to say Clea," she admits. "I feel like she is one of the best songwriters coming out of Australia. Everything she puts out is just so impeccable and beautiful, and I haven't heard songwriting like hers in a very long time.
"So fingers crossed for everyone. I'm sure it'll be an incredible night."
Voting for The Triffid's Album Of The Year is open until November 6th.
