And The Nominees Are...
By: Pamela Hodder
From electro-pop to the funky blues, traditional and jazz too! We cover all kinds of sounds here at Rock Eden, and so does the Newfoundland East Coast Music Award nominee roster. In total Newfoundland artists bring 20 award nominations to the island this year. So please take a moment to experience some of your local talent, use the inspiration to create your own masterpieces and keep the talent growing!
Alex Byrne has spun his way to two nominations in the category Dance Recording of the Year. The nominations include songs New Life ft. TIM3BOMB and Turn Me Up. If you’re looking to have the party of the year then here’s some local talent that will put you on the radar. Tell your friends to skip the gym because they’re about to spend hours on your dance floor! This DJ and music engineer knows how to frequencize a room and keep it pulsating all night long.
Beauwater – Nominated for Blues Recording of the Year you’ll find this three-man rock/blues band hitting up the airways at the ECMA’s Blues Stage on April 29th. Released their debut album in 2011, and raising rooftops all over the local music scene ever since. Releasing their second studio album Lovers, Fools, and Kings in 2016, and after five years in the making, these songs have evolved into masterpieces that are simply musically fulfilling! Now if you can’t make it to see their performance at the ECMA’s do check out their website for upcoming local shows. You’ll be happy you did!
Doug Dorward is nominated for Traditional Instrumental Recording of the Year for the album Waves. Arriving from Scotland to St. John’s in 2014, it wasn’t long before this inspiring fiddle player seized the acoustic sounds of the Rock and made them a part of his own repertoire. The journey has lead to the creation of his debut album including both tunes of Scotland and Newfoundland, and features some of Newfoundland’s own traditional musicians.
Duane Andrews is nominated for Classical Composition of the Year for his song Gigues (pronounced Jiggs). This accomplished musical renegade is no stranger to the ECMA’s. His list of achievements and awards are astounding, and well deserved. He has been very active in his career and since 2005 has been playing in jazz and folk festivals not only across the nation, but also internationally such as Australia, Iceland, France and the U.S.
Earle & Coffin – Nominated for Blues Recording of the Year are two super talents. The nominated album Nick Earle & Joe Coffin Live at Citadel House was released one year ago, and less than a year later they have released their second album! Nick Earle and Joe Coffin are national award winning blues artists who are apparently “emerging”… just have a listen and you’ll sense the underlying sarcasm here. Yes, they are young, but the skill and zeal of these two musical magicians will blow your hippocampus. Now that’s a part of your brain that can’t be replaced so maybe stay away!?!? They’ll be playing at the Breakout Stage and the Blues Stage at the Awards on April 29th, so actually, you should catch them while you can!