Sunday, June 17, 2012

San Diego Music Award Nominees Announced

Last week, the San Diego Music Academy was called upon to submit nominations for the 2012 San Diego Music Awards. I know that the process seems mysterious, but the truth is that the Academy members basically get a blank ballot and a list of albums released in the designated calendar year (June 16, 2011-June 15, 2012) and are asked to nominate. I cannot tell you how difficult this process is- imagine having to reach into the rolodex in your brain to think about all of these categories and local bands and where they belong. It personally took me three hours to go through the full nominations, and I still feel like I forgot some bands. I don't know if there is a better way to do it to be honest, and I don't know how all of these get compiled, but every year there are certainly worthy bands who unfortunately get forgotten, there are bands and albums that fall into the wrong categories, and there are categories that I personally just think should be deleted altogether (tribute bands). Voting will start this week. The general public will vote on the genre-based categories and the Academy votes on the albums and songs. I'll add the link when it's live. Congratulations to all of the nominees, and to all of the  performers, artists, and bands that make our scene so vibrant that it makes this such a difficult process. I'd say that is a good problem to have. See the full list after the jump.



2012 San Diego Music Awards Nominees

Best Acoustic
Josh Damigo
Colin Clyne
Gayle Skidmore
Robert Bondurant
Jeffrey Joe Morin
Lee Coulter
Tom Griesgraber
Vanja James

Best Pop
The Silent Comedy
Maren Parusel
AJ Croce
Hills Like Elephants
Kevin Martin
321 Stereo
Chris Carpenter
James Morris

Best Alternative
The Heavy Guilt
Dead Feather Moon
New Mexico
Little Hurricane
Cuckoo Chaos
Republic of Letters
The Burning of Rome
Chairs Missing

Best Rock
Transfer
The Donkeys
Grand Tarantula
Black Hondo
Rafter
The Kabbs
The Nervous Wreckords
Hocus

Best Blues
Low Volts
Tomcat Courtney
Lady Dottie & the Diamonds
Billy Watson
Black Market III
Len Rainey & the Midnight Players
Mercedes Moore Band
Robin Henkel

Best Tribute Band
Thunder Road
Beta Maxx
Cash'd Out
Detroit Underground
The PettyBreakers
Rising Star
Rockola
Stepping Feet

Best Jazz
Ian Tordella
Erika Davies
Gilbert Castellanos
Mattson 2
Rob Thorsen
Steph Johnson
Peter Sprague
The Trunks

Best World Music
Cumbia Machin
Todo Mundo
B-Side Players
Bad Neighborz
Patric Petrie
Spilt Finger
Stranger
Zimbeat

Best Americana or Country
The Tree Ring
Nena Anderson
Bill Cardinal and The Canyon Band
Billy Joe & the Roosters
Folding Mr. Lincoln
Nancarrow
Sara Petite
The Farmers

Best Hip Hop
theBREAX
Parker & The Numberman
Blame One
Black Mikey
El Gun Legro
Odessa Kane
Orko Eloheim
Vokab Kompany

Best Hard Rock
Archons
The Long and the Short of It
Lord Howler
Fates Demise
Griever
Retox
Revenge Death Ball
Ruines Ov Abaddon

Best Club DJ
Gabe Vega
Junior the Disco Punk
Artistic
Adam Salter
Chris Cutz
Fresh One
Mike Czech
DJ Jason Foss

Best Electronic
Jamuel Saxon
Dudes
Beat Panther
Hyena
Illuminauts
Inspired Flight
Mystery Cave
Room E

Best New Artist
The Black Sands
Mrs Magician
Wild Wild Wets
Hills Like Elephants
Tropical Popsicle
Ko Ko
Bunny Gang
The Lonesome Georges

Best Pop Album
Mrs. Magician - Strange Heaven
Maren Parusel - Tightrope Walker
TV Girl - The Wild, The Innocent, The TV Shuffle
Kevin Martin - Throwback Pop
Wendy Bailey - String Theory
Neon Cough - Dracula's Mixtape
Seaholm Macintosh - Monarchs
Scott Mathiason – Lost Along the Way

Best Rock Album
The Black Sands - 1977
Italian Japanese - Two Islands
The Beautiful View - Life Is Beautiful
A Scribe Amidst The Lions - The Lidless Kind
Astra - The Black Chord
Coda Reactor - Parasite
Death on Mars - These Feelings
Taz Taylor Band - Straight Up

Best Alternative Album
Dead Feather Moon – Dark Sun
Cuckoo Chaos - Woman
The Bloody Hollies - Yours Until The Bitter End
Wavves – Life Sux
Crocodiles - Endless Flowers
The New Kinetics - Contact
Hills Like Elephants – Endless Charade
Children of Nova - Impossible Landscape

Best Hard Rock Album
Retox - Ugly Animals
As I Lay Dying - Decas
Cage - Supremacy of Steel
Carnifex – Until I feel Nothing
Cattle Decapitation - Monolith of Inhumanity
Deep Sea Thunder Beast - Self Titled
Griever - Inferior
Heretic – Blue Fires Away

Best Hip Hop Album
TheBreax - I Never Arrive
Parker & The Numberman - Clockwork Slang
Bully Blinders - Moon Under Eyelids
Autopsy - 21 Bodies
Black Mikey - Premeditated Music
Don Diego - All Red Everythang
Left Handed Scientists - Kill Your Present Future
Dubble-O-Beez & Young Sau – Monkey Beezness

Best Blues Album
Candye Kane - Sister Vagabond
Nathan James & the Rhythm Scratchers – What You Make of It
Stoney B Blues band - Sho Nuff Blues
The Fremonts - Live at the Woodpit
145th Street – Where the Blues Lie
Hugh Gaskins & the G String Daddies – Workin’ at the Booby Trap

Best Jazz Album
Gregory Page - Shine Shine Shine
Ian Tordella - Tragic Comedy
Leonard Patton - Expressions
Montalban Quintet – s/t
Nena Anderson - Beyond The Lights
Kevyn Lettau – Drawn to You
Mike Woffard & Holly Hofmann Quartet – Turn Signal
Teagan Taylor - Wonderland

Best Americana or Country Album
Jesse LaMonaca & the Dime Novels – The Lament of Tumbleweed Hawk
John Meeks and Joanie Mendenhall – From My Grave
The Howls - Rocky Ground
Nena Anderson - Beyond The Lights
Euphoria Brass Band - Coast to Coast
Eve Selis - Family Tree
Blaze / Eisner – American Spirit
Roy Rapid and the Rhythm Rock Trio - One Last Chance

Best World Music Album
The Amalgamated – Boss Universal
Omar Lopez - Profundo Amor
Stick Figure – Burial Ground
Stranger - World Underground
The Devastators - Lights of Tomorrow
The Dread Crew of Odd Wood - Heavy Mahogany
Reef Bound Sol – Under the Sun
Sunny Rude - Rudimentary

Best Local Recording
Blackout Party – Closed Mouth Don’t Get Fed
The Styletones - s/t
Stephen Rey and The Slicks – Old Fashioned Future
Beaters - Fishage
Nicey Nicey World – s/t
The Comeuppance – s/t
Wayne Riker - Guitar Decathlon
The Lovebirds - Nutsy Pants

Song of the Year
Delta Spirit - California
Jason Mraz - I Won't Give Up
Low Volts – Blame it on the Break Up
Crocodiles - Sunday (Psychic Conversation #9)
Switchfoot - Afterlife
Blink 182 - After Midnight
Angels & Airwaves - Surrender
P.O.D. - Lost In Forever

Album of the Year
Steve Poltz - Noineen Noiny Noin
Rob Crow – He Thinks He’s People
Delta Spirit - S/T
Crocodiles - Endless Flowers
Jason Mraz - Love is a Four Letter Word
Gregory Page - Shine Shine Shine
Blink 182 - Neighborhoods
Cattle Decapitation - Monolith of Inhumanity

Artist of the Year
The Silent Comedy
Little Hurricane
Crocodiles
Sara Watkins
Gilbert Castellanos
Switchfoot
Unwritten Law
Slightly Stoopid

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