FOR PETE'S SAKE: Sam's money is on Kilpatrick to repeat as Best Act. |
Questions about this year’s Best Music Poll Awards show start with the three biggies: 1) Who will win Best Act? 2) How will the Asylum suit the show, now that the Pavilion has shut its doors? 3) What will Shannon Moss do with her hair?
That’s right, this year’s eighth annual Best Music Poll Awards show will not be at the Pavilion, where it really came to life in 2004, and treated people more than right the next two years with its checkerboard floor and view-blocking pillars. Instead, Portland’s biggest gathering of local musicians in 2007 moves to the Asylum, with a better sound system and cleaner sight lines for enjoying the most ridonkulous outfits you’ll see on Portland’s fabbest all year.
For instance, when celeb presenter JESSICA TOMLINSON gets up on stage, you’ll have a perfect view of her purple beret and scarlet glasses.
If 207’s resident style maven is in the house, you know already it’s a big deal, but politically savvy music fans will also spy mayor NICK MAVODONES up on the big stage (I’m sure he’s current on all the newest local albums), along with the Greens who put the ill in city councilor, DAVE MARSHALL and KEVIN DONOGHUE. Cuz, you know, Portland’s political establishment totally supports local music.
Just like local musicians totally support the voting process. There is a political aspect to the BiMPies, clearly, as awards can sometimes go to the best campaigners over the most popular, the bands with the most college-age fans over those with the best critical appreciation. In the race for the coveted Best Act award, it’s hard not to pick PETE KILPATRICK as the winner (and, believe me, I have no clue who the leading vote getter is — Phoenix management doesn’t even let me in the front door of the office, nowadays). Not only is he totally dreamy and the defending champion, his fans are online warriors, jamming the Phoenix servers with online votes (the only kind there are, anymore).
SPARKS THE RESCUE’s fans might be five years younger and five times more likely to visit a MySpace page, though, so those young upstarts are definitely dangerous. PHANTOM BUFFALO are likely the most critically acclaimed of the bunch, which also includes LOVERLESS, MOSES ATWOOD, and CULT MAZE, but their fans are way too cool to vote in some foolish local awards thingy. I’d be surprised if Phantom Buffalo even find their way to the show, truthfully.
The best bet to find their way to the show in some rockin’ kicks would be SHANE AND MICHELLE MCGARVEY, big supporters of the local hip-hop scene and owners of Cream Apparel, the sneaker shop, who’ll be celeb presenting. Will SONTIAGO & MOSHE join them onstage to take home their eighth collective BiMPy? Or will LABSEVEN parlay their party disc of the year, North Winds, into an upset? Or will a brand-new contender like SAYLOVE or KENMOR pull a quickie on everyone?
Picking a favorite in the glam rock category isn’t half as easy. 6gig used to take home hardware every year, and now last year’s new act winner LOST ON LIFTOFF pit their 6gig vet (WALT CRAVEN) against RULER OF THE RAGING MAIN’s (WEAVE). Might they both fall to chick pick the HOT TARTS? Will PIGBOAT submarine the field?
