The Bureau of Audiovisual and Music Industry Development of the Ministry of Culture announced the nominations for the 4th Golden Indie Music Awards on Sept. 25. Hsu Chung-hsien (徐崇憲), founder of Li Feng Recording Studio, will receive the Outstanding Contribution Award, and singer Lin Sheng-xiang (林生祥) has won the Judges' Award for his "I-Village” album.
After having devoted himself to pop music recording for more than four decades, Hsu remains a pioneer and a perennial figure in Taiwan's pop music scene, the judging panel said in a statement.
Lin's album is described as exhibiting profound care for humanity, while simultaneously introducing Taiwan's rural lifestyle to mainstream society, using beautiful melodies to fully portray the essence of life, according to the judges.
The nominations for 21 categories are selected from 1,548 submissions after three stages of review. Metal rock band Chthonic (閃靈樂團) garnered six nominations - the most of all nominees, followed by Lin, who earned five nominations. The awards are highly anticipated because of the fierce competition between these two nominees in five categories, including Best Album, Best Band, and Best Player.
Also nominated are many indie bands of the newer generation such as Bowz Tiger (包子虎), The Murky Crows (昏鴉), Burning Island (火燒島), IGU Band (那我懂你意思了) and Elephant Gym (大象體操). These bands are all recognized for showing the diversity and strength of the new generation of musicians in Taiwan.
The judges' panel also agreed to increase the number of nominations in several categories, including Best Album, Best Singer, Best New Performer, Best Player and Best Rock Album, due to the quality of the entries.
The awards ceremony, which will be televised live, is scheduled to take place at the National Taiwan University Sports Center on Oct. 26.
