acts announced for the Irish Choice Music Prize

Tickets have gone on sale for the annual Irish Choice Music Prize which takes place on the 28th February at Vicar Street, Dublin.

The contest is Ireland’s equivalent of the Mercury Music Award, and seeks to recognise an album by an artist which best sums up the year for Irish music.

The prize is for quality and individuality, not necessarily an album that’s been successful in terms of commercial sales. The Choice Music Prize for 2005, its inaugural year, was won by Julie Feeney for her "13 Songs" album.

The shortlist is decided by a panel of 12 judges, drawn from different areas of the Irish media and the nominees for the 2006 prize are:

• Director – ‘We Thrive On Big Cities’
• The Divine Comedy – ‘Victory for the Comic Muse’
• Duke Special – ‘Songs From the Deep Forest’
• The Immediate – ‘In Towers & Clouds’
• David Kitt – ‘Not Fade Away’
• Messiah J & The Expert – ‘Now This I Have To Hear’
• Fionn Regan – ‘The End Of History’
• Republic of Loose – ‘Aaagh!’
• Si Schroeder – ‘Coping Mechanisms’
• Snow Patrol – ‘Eyes Open’

At the time of writing, the favourites are Snow Patrol, The Immediate and Si Schroeder, and the outsider is Messiah J & The Expert.

The following short-listed acts are scheduled to perform on the night of the awards ceremony:

Director
The Divine Comedy
Duke Special
The Immediate
David Kitt
Messiah J & The Expert
Republic Of Loose
Si Schroeder

Snow Patrol are unable to appear as they are in the middle of a sell-out American tour, and Fionn Regan is also absent as he is currently on a tour of Australia.

To buy tickets for the event click here.

The winner of the Choice Music Prize for Irish Album of the Year 2006 will be announced at the end of the evening and will receive a cheque for €10,000 and a commemorative trophy.

The event will be broadcast live by Pet Sounds on Today FM.

Further information can be found at www.choicemusicprize.com.

FUTURE GIGS

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