D.D. Dumbo, Tash Sultana and King Gizzard are among the many winners at the 2016 J Awards, the crown jewel of triple j’s Ausmusic Month.

The 12th annual collaboration between triple j, triple j Unearthed, Double J and Rage just wrapped up this afternoon, with plenty of nods for great local acts.

Joining recent winners including Courtney Barnett, Tame Impala and Gotye, D.D. Dumbo deservedly took out the award for triple j Australian Album of the Year for his debut LP Utopia Defeated,  beating out strong competition from heavyweights like Flume and Violent Soho.

“When D.D Dumbo arrived in 2013, we immediately loved his song ‘Tropical Oceans’,” says triple j music director Richard Kingsmill. “But after that, he went very quiet. Behind the scenes, we now know what he was working up. He’s been steering his sound along a very different path to most players on the scene today.

“Drawing from ‘70s icons like Captain Beefheart and Joni Mitchell, he’s also fed a lot off African guitar players for inspiration. He’s created a sound that is incredibly striking. It’s strong in both its vision and quality, and in a huge year for Australian releases, it also stood out for its inventiveness.”

Following on from their three-gong sweep of last night’s The Age Music Victoria Awards, King Gizzard picked up multiple nods ‘Double J Australian Artist of the Year’, and ‘Australian Music Video of the Year’ for the brilliant ‘People Vultures’, directed by Danny Cohen & Jason Galea.

Finally, former busker Tash Sultana’s meteoric rise and incredible raw talent saw her beating out some strong competition to nab the ‘Unearthed Artist of the Year’ award – see the full list below.

The 2016 J Award Nominees:

triple j Australian Album of the Year

The Avalanches, Wildflower
Big Scary, Animal
Camp Cope, Camp Cope
D.D Dumbo, Utopia Defeated
Flume, Skin
Julia Jacklin, Don’t Let The Kids Win
Montaigne, Glorious Heights
SAFIA, Internal
Sticky Fingers, Westway (The Glitter & the Slums)
Violent Soho, WACO

Unearthed Artist of the Year

Alex Lahey
Gretta Ray
Julia Jacklin
Kuren
Tash Sultana

Double J Australian Artist of the Year

Jordan Rakei
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard
Ngaiire
Teeth & Tongue
The Drones

Australian Music Video of the Year nominees, co-presented by Rage 

Courtney Barnett, ‘Elevator Operator’ (Director: Sunny Leunig)
D.D Dumbo, ‘Satan’ (Director: Jim Elson)
King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard, ‘People Vultures’ (Director: Danny Cohen & Jason Galea)
Olympia, ‘Smoke Signals’ (Director: Alex Smith)
Tigerilla Ft. Gill Bates, ‘Tulips’ (Director: Tom Noakes)

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