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Sydney-based duo Space Invadas [pictured right] are nominated for Best Dance / Electronica Album at this year's Jagermeister Independent Music Awards for their debut album, Soul:Fi. The music video for their song 'Done It Again' is embedded above.

Ahead of this year's awards night - more details on that at the bottom of this post - we briefly caught up with Katalyst, one half of Space Invadas, to talk independent music.

What's your favourite song of 2010 so far by an Australian artist, Katalyst?

'Sweet Disposition' by The Temper Trap, because we covered it! Haha. [footage of their 'Like A Version' cover for triple j embedded below]

What does being independent mean to you?

It means actually being independent. Not pretending to be because it the cool think to say. We are TRULY independent. I run the label we release on.

What's the biggest challenge you face as an independent musician?

The age of torrent downloads, which kinda makes it hard to make music full time if no one buys it. So I've felt the last two years it has really made it more difficult. They [torrents] are really socially acceptable now.

Conversely, what's the best thing about being independent?

You have total control over all parts of the release. But there's no one to blame if it doesn't go according to plan. Ha!

As a musician, what would you ultimately like to be known and remembered for?

Quality music I guess. Thats all we set out to do. Be true to ourselves and make good music.

Favourite musical moment of 2010 so far?

Playing Splendour In The Grass, because it was our best set of the year so far and the crowd really got into it [live footage of Space Invadas at Splendour embedded below]

What's the best thing about being associated with AIR and the Jagermeister Independent Music Awards?

I guess people noticed your record and recognise you as being independent. I guess its recognition of all the hard work you put in and not just about the size of your budget spend.

Finally, who do you think is going to win your category this year? Who deserves runner-up?

I don't think it will be us cause Im not sure were even in the right category. My money is on the Midnight Juggs. Surely we deserve runner up! Haha.

Thanks for your time, Katalyst! For more info on Space Invadas, visit their MySpace.

The 5th Annual Jagermeister Independent Music Awards are held at The Forum Theatre, Melbourne on Friday October 1st, 2010, featuring live performances from British India, Cloud Control, The Amity Affliction, M-Phazes, Sally Seltmann and Joe Chindamo. Doors open at 8:00pm; tickets are $29+BF and available now via Ticketmaster.

For more info on AIR and Australian independent music, visit http://www.ausindies.com.au/

Sydney-based hip hop duo Horrorshow [pictured right] are nominated for Best Hip Hop/Urban Album at this year's Jagermeister Independent Music Awards; the music video for their song 'Thoughtcrime' is embedded above.

Ahead of this year's awards night - more details on that at the bottom of this post - we briefly caught up with Horrorshow's MC Solo.

What's your favourite musical moment of 2010 so far, Solo?

Playing in London with Hilltop Hoods on the same night as our labelmates Urthboy and Hermitude. What seemed like an unbelievably unfortunate clash of tour dates ended up being the best thing ever. Both shows were sold out and we all partied together afterwards... being in a room full of so many Australian hip hoppers repping our music on the other side of the world was an amazing feeling. Growing up as a fan of hip hop in this country even a few years ago, playing overseas always seemed like a fairly unobtainable goal - so for so many of us to be over there doing our thing felt pretty special.

What's the biggest challenge you face as an independent musician?

It seems obvious, but $$$$$$! Whenever we're putting together albums or tours or whatever, we're limited in the scope of the promotion and things we can do for it as we have to be very mindful of having smaller budgets and smaller profit margins to keep the whole thing afloat and successful. Luckily we have a very capable and experienced label in the form of Elefant Traks who look after this stuff and know how to make it work. 

Conversely, what's the best thing about being independent?

There's loads of good things about being independent. But for me, it's probably just the people who I get to work around. By that I mean our label, the other artists on there, artists we tour with, our distributors, and also our listeners and supporters... I think that being focused on independent music, they tend to not really be concerned with the glitz and glam of being on TV, having posters everywhere, on the idea of being 'famous', some of the more pretentious or flashy things that can be associated with making music on a big commercial level, and more so simply with the music itself. Which suits us just fine... 

What's the best thing about being associated with AIR and the Jagermeister Independent Music Awards?

It's always nice to be nominated for an award like this, to be recognised for the hard work you've put into your music. I guess it's extra cool in this instance as the AIR charts are about the closest thing we have in Australia to a music chart that's relevant to our little sub-genre or corner of the music industry. It's also dope to be in a category with such a solid list of nominees - big ups M-Phazes and Lowrider - and of course our labelmates Urthboy and Ozi Batla. I think Australian hip hop is in a good place, there have been some awesome records coming out over the least year and it's dope to be included as a part of that.

Which Australian independent act deserves to be the 'next big thing'?

I'm gonna have to say The Jezabels, who are up for a few categories at this year's awards. Being an MC, hip hop is the main genre of music that I listen to, but every now and then I stumble across a release from other genres that really blows me away.

The Jezabels EP 'She's So Hard' is one such release. It's only a few tracks long but it really took me and I couldn't stop listening to it... I reckon the song writing is really original and I love their sound, it's dope to see such a high standard of music coming out of Sydney. Plus I've met a couple of them and they're dope people... I reckon they deserve to go far, and will do so. [Music video for The Jezabels track 'Easy To Love' embedded below]

Thanks for your time, Solo! For more info on Horrorshow, visit their MySpace.

The 5th Annual Jagermeister Independent Music Awards are held at The Forum Theatre, Melbourne on Friday October 1st, 2010, featuring live performances from British India, Cloud Control, The Amity Affliction, M-Phazes, Sally Seltmann and Joe Chindamo. Doors open at 8:00pm; tickets are $29+BF and available now via Ticketmaster.

For more info on AIR and Australian independent music, visit http://www.ausindies.com/

Hip Hop music was conspicuously absent from the line-up of this year's Splendour In The Grass festival but I remember laying back on the expanse of the Woodfordia Ampitheatre as the sun was shining gloriously the 35,000 inhabitants of the festival when we got an uninvited visit from Australian Hip Hop's biggest act. Flying 3000 feet above us was a plane, dragging behind it a massive banner advertising the impending release of Bliss N Eso's new album Running On Air. It was awe inspiring in its audacity. Balls-out, old-school marketing done with a swagger worthy of a band that a week later would debut at number 1 in the ARIA charts. Just the second Australian Hip Hop group ever to do so.

I wondered at the time whether it was a little too brazen. Expensive marketing strategies like that with no guarantee of a tangible result frighten me. But that's why I'm not in an ARIA number 1 band.

Any Australian act that releases an album featuring members of WuTang, Jehst and Xzibit is intent on taking Australian Hip Hop to another level. Along with The Hilltop Hoods, these guys are taking a genre that was relatively marginalised in this country just 10 years ago, smack bang into the mainstream.

So now, with a groundbreaking number 1 ARIA chart debut, (outselling Eminem and Birds Of Tokyo), sold out shows at large halls in front of 3-4000 people in every city of Australia and aerial marketing campaigns they stand on top of Australia's music industry Bliss N Eso are this counties biggest independent act full stop. Amazing stuff.