Sammies for your ears, not your belly

Twenty years of Sacramento Area Music Awards: You have 25 days to let SN&R know who you think should be nominated for this year’s Sammies.

That’s right: This year, again, we’re actually letting the readers have a say. Visit www.sammies.com and type your favorite local band or artist’s name into a digital box. Do this and your feedback shows up on a printed piece of paper on my desk—magically, somehow—and then we tally the top vote getters, who then are officially 20th-anniversary Sammies nominees, who will be revealed in the August 25 issue.

You can nominate without ever putting down your PS3 controller or hitting pause on your LMFAO CD, so there’s really no excuse.

This is the same way SN&R has done things for the past couple years—but there will be a few new categories in 2011, including “Best Local Music Video,” “Best Local Recording Studio,” “Best New Artist” and others that I forgot.

Nominations kicked off just days ago, on July 18, and we’ve been inundated with nods and emails. There are even bands that’ve made event pages on Facebook to rally the troops. Or sent requests: Some demanded that I add a rock-rap category for artists such as Nam Classic. I bet we had a rock-rap category in, like, 1997. But then, you know, it vanished. I wonder why?

Anyway, don’t hesitate to shoot off questions, missives and the occasional unintelligible blathering to <script type="text/javascript" language="javascript">{ document.write(String.fromCharCode(60,97,32,104,114,101,102,61,34,109,97,105,108,116,111,58,109,117,115,105,99,64,110,101,119,115,114,101,118,105,101,119,46,99,111,109,34,62,109,117,115,105,99,64,110,101,119,115,114,101,118,105,101,119,46,99,111,109,60,47,97,62)) } </script>. Your enthusiasm is most appreciated. Spread the word: www.sammies.com.

The other Launch:
So, you thought there was only one Launch festival this weekend?

Wrong, buddy. This weekend, Conscious Vibes is putting on the other Launch, two nights of local jams and beats (see page 26 for info on the Launch music, fashion, architecture, art and design festival on Del Paso Boulevard). Friday is the hip-hop night, featuring performances by Addict Merchants, A.R.A.B., Blee, C Plus, J Gibb, Mahtie Bush, Mic Jordan, Npire Da Great, Peta Parka, Riz, Skurge, Task1ne, the CUF. Saturday is the R&B night: Aaron Young, Carla Fleming, Cutty Dre, Garrett Perkins, Tessa Evans, Tone Malone.

Both nights are hosted by Big Al. All of this goes down at Harlow’s, 2708 J Street; doors at 7 p.m., show at 8 p.m.; call for cover.

Let’s give Autumn Sky some cash:
Local chanteuse Autumn Sky is about to disappear on tour and then hibernate in the studio. But first, she needs you to attend her album-fundraiser gig this Saturday, July 23, at Ace of Spades (1417 R Street). She’ll be playing with a full band, in addition to performances by Method Echo, and this all-ages gig will set you back 10 bucks. Yet the fruit of your donation will be a new Autumn Sky album, and when have you put your hard-earned cheese to such a worthy, innocent cause? So much more noble than $10 for a Jameson and a pint, right? Right?

Pregnant video premiere:
The local music-video quotient is through the roof, which is good for us folk who like to waste at least 2.12 hours of the work day on YouTube. Add another vid—this time from nearby Placerville—to the rotation this Friday, July 22, when folk-electronic artist Pregnant debuts a Shane Skogberg-directed short for a song off of his forthcoming MythLab-release at Bows and Arrows (1815 19th Street, 8 p.m., no cover).