The Pros
A few things I love about the Plug Awards:
1. Their mission.
2. Their choice of Terminal 5 as a venue. Nothing says "independent" more than the city's newest venue floating on its own as the lone outpost of hipster street cred in the dead calm of Midtown West Manhattan. I mean, seriously, the only other venues remotely nearby are Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center! Opera buffs would be scandalized if they only knew what lurked past 11th Ave.
3. The upstairs VIP area. A-buzz with excitement, lush without being too luxe, lots of famous-face photo ops, and free drinks. Oh, and a kick-ass view from above for when your feet just couldn't stand the floor anymore.
4. Their inclusion of best music site, best music blog, and best music zine in the nomination categories. It's like a crib sheet for any new scenester worth their salt. Get thee to Google and set up your RSS's today, my friend. You'll have all the music news you can handle from these three lists alone.
5. They understand the power of the indie online radio station. KCRW and KEXP are among the brightest stars in that firmament, and despite the public's rapid movement away from terrestrial radio, these online radio stars show no signs of dimming.
6. Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. Jose Gonzales. Michael Showalter's Mixtapes. Dizzee Rascal. That first duo that opened up the whole show. (Who were they, anyway? I must know!)
L to R: Nick Cave, recipient of the Plug Impact Award, performing with his legendary band the Bad Seeds
The Cons
While certainly deserving of our attention, admiration, and ceaseless celeblogtion, there were a few spots where this year's installment fell flat:
1. This year's lineup of live performers left a little to be desired. I mean compare this year to last year's lineup. Um hello, what are we? Chopped liva? Don't we deserve the same kind of stellar lineup as last year's crowd?
2. Nobody showed up to accept their awards. I take that back. Only St. Vincent, The National and Nick Cave showed up to accept their awards. Even the Battles took the stage only to hand out an award -- not to accept their own for Best Video. What's up with that?!
3. Ok so you couldn't be there in the flesh, but why was it that only Justice bothered to do a video acceptance of their award? You other winners too lazy? Or did you somehow know in the backs of your minds that a video acceptance would be just as awkward as no acceptance at all?
4. Technical difficulties. Poor, poor White Denim and their unlucky bassist. And that's all I have to say about that.
5. Bad band branding. I still have no idea who the very first band (twosome) was,and they were among my favorite performances of the whole evening. So if you're here to spread the word about unknown artists, then by all means, spread the word. In print. In big lights. Over the stage. And leave it up there the whole time they're playing. Or somewhere. Or at least put a list of the performers on your official website. Not just the
highlights you thought newsworthy enough. The Plug Awards are just as much about the little guy as the bloggable behemoth, remember?
6. What do all of the previous 5 Cons have in common? Do they speak to a larger problem? Maybe the industry wasn't ready to embrace an awards show that is all about embracing the unknown. But if that's the case, how come last year's lineup was so strong? I know there's a message in there somewhere. I just haven't quite figured out what it is.
L to R: Dizzee Rascal, Jose Gonzales, Fred Armisen presenting Plug Award to Annie of St. Vincent, Ian of the Battles
Pros and cons aside, the 2008 Plug Awards are like a one-stop-shopping list for all your indie needs. So open a new browser window, pull up their nominees/winners list, and settle in for a Spring that really sings.
Thanks, Plug Awards! Can't wait to see what (or who) is happening in the scene next year...
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