Two Whanganui bands up for Waiata Awards

Whanganui band NLC with Jermaine Kawau (left), Baz Muir, Shaye Muir, Sunka Jnr and Marcel Martin are in the running to collect a waiata award for their new album.

August is Te Marama Pūoru Waiata Māori (Māori Music Month) and two Whanganui bands are finalists in the Waiata Māori Music Awards.

Auaha have made the finals in the Best Māori Traditional Album category for e Pari o Auahatanga, The Flood of Inspiration, inspired by the 2015 Whanganui floods, and NLC (No Limits Crew) are in the running to collect the award for Best Māori Urban Roots/Reggae Album with Love not War.

NLC founder and guitarist Baz Muir said it is an honour to be nominated and recognised for excellence in the genre.

"We formed five years ago and we have a few members who come and go from the band - doing their own projects.

"Our current line-up is me, Marcel Martin, Hoeta Maxwell, Peter Riley and my daughter Shaye.

"Shaye is a solo performer as well."

The themes of Love not War are about love - for whanau, lovers and friends with songs like I Won't Cry, With You and Stand Up.

Be Counted is a song that encourages everyone to stand up for land rights, the environment and social justice.

The Be Counted video has Muir delivering the message against backdrops of protest scenes from around the world, from Standing Rock in North Dakota to Aboriginal protests at Australia Day to a TPP protest in Auckland's Queen St.

"The message is that we all need to make our voices heard," says Muir.

The band will be showcasing songs from the album with support band Ripple Effect at the Red Lion Hotel Inn on Saturday, August 26.

Auaha's album is a collaboration recorded over eight days on and beside the Whanganui River.

Ariana Tikao, Alistair Fraser, Elise Goodge, Te Paerata Tichbon, Matiu Bartlett and Brad McMillan collaborated after the 2015 floods.

With a range of influences including fusions of te reo chant, rock, blues, soul and funk, Auhua released the album last month.

As fate would have it, the group had to leave Koriniti Marae where they were producing the album last June when the Whanganui River started flooding again and a state of emergency was delared.

The Waiata Māori Music Awards were established a decade ago by the late Ngāti Kahungungu leader and champion of the performing arts Tama Huata.

The awards will be presented at a ceremony in Hastings on September 15.