Best Vocalist Brittney Slayes in a mustard and ketchup sandwich. Photo courtesy Krystal None at Still Spark Studios
The inaugural edition of a new local awards ceremony took place last Friday, Feb. 12 at the WISE Hall (1882 Adanac St.) in East Vancouver. The Whammys have been established to recognize artistic achievements in Vancouver’s music scene. For the awards, both nominees and winners were selected and voted on by the public. Local “celebrities” hosted the awards ceremony, which also included live entertainment.
As one would expect from an independent awards event, the nominees skewed towards the underground. For example, the places named in the Best Local Venue category are all punk/metal/thrash bars (except perhaps for Studio Records, 919 Granville St.). Some of the categories are pretty interesting, too. Besides the usual “Best Vocalist”-type categories, you’ll also find Best Burlesque Group, Best Bouncer/Door Person, Best Bartender and Sh**iest Band.
So who won?
Here is a list of nominees and winners in each category.
BEST POP GROUP
Bodhi Jones
The Furniture
Mother Mother (WINNER)
Kieran Strange
BEST PUNK BAND
Selfist
Bishops Green
BRASS
Spree Killers (WINNER)
BEST HIP HOP GROUP
JDohe – Jesse Doherty
Bubzy B
The X Presidents (WINNER)
KIDS
BEST AVANTE GARDE BAND
My Mother The Carjacker (WINNER)
Key to Abyss
Seven Nines & Tens
Eric Campbell and the dirt
My Mother the Carjacker won for Best Avant Garde Band.
BEST METAL BAND
The Hallowed Catharsis
Unleash The Archers (WINNER)
Golers
West of Hell
Unleash the Archers came in tops in the Best Metal Band category at the 1st Annual Whammy Awards, held at the WISE Hall in East Vancouver.
BEST BLUEGRASS GROUP
Devil and the Wood Shack (WINNER)
Bottom Shelf Bourban Trio
Orchard Pinkish
Wasted Strays
BEST ROCK BAND
Black Wizard
La Chinga
88 Mile Trip (WINNER)
Kiss of the King
BEST BURLESQUE GROUP
Screaming Chicken
Bloody Betty (WINNER)
Kitty Burlesque
Lost Girls
BEST GUITARIST
Jared Smith
Matt Fiorito (WINNER)
Kris Schultz
Ross Albrecht
BEST DRUMMER
Ricardo Viana (WINNER)
Allan Heppner
Jesus Adrián Caballero Ramirez
Stephen Gunn
BEST VOCALIST
Ani Kyd
Bodhi Jones
Brittney Slayes of Unleash the Archers (WINNER)
Val (Lord Heathen)
BEST BASS PLAYER
Darin Wall (WINNER)
Nikko Whitworth
Bob Petterson
Drew Racijewski
BEST ILLUSTRATIVE ARTIST
Allan Heppner (WINNER)
Richard Katynski
Alison Lilly
Dena Lazarenko
SH**TIEST BAND
F**king Unicorns (WINNER)
BRASS
Archspire
BOG
BEST PHOTOGRAPHER
Karen Hansen
Cat Ashbee
Derek Carr
Trav Amena (WINNER)
BEST PRODUCER and ENGINEER
Michael Rogerson
Jesse Gander
Brian Else (WINNER)
Matt Roach
BEST SOUND TECH
Brian Else (WINNER)
Johnny Wildcat
Chris “Crud” Engleman
Cecil English
BEST BOUNCER/DOOR PERSON
Phil Metuzals (WINNER)
Kenny Lush
Chris McLean
Jamie Lee
BEST BARTENDER
Brandy Blue (WINNER)
Sheri Pohl
Egg
Clayton Holmes
BEST LOCAL VENUE
Rickshaw Theatre (WINNER)
Funky Winkerbeans
Studio Records
SBC
The evening featured live performances by Devil in the Wood Shack, Bottom Shelf Bourbon Trio, comedian Samantha Craig-De Boer and R.D. Cane. The Whammys was created by Rob Stewart (Suna Studios) and Johnny Matter (Apocalypse Sunrise). Stewart and Matter stress that the Whammys are meant to bring together musicians and performers from different genres who have at least one thing in common – the struggle to make art in an increasingly expensive city.
In a speech at the WISE Hall on Friday night, Stewart noted some of the problems faced by Vancouver musicians, including gentrification, and the resulting artistic exodus. “It is people like you – the artists, visionaries, supporters, the dreamers and the general crazy f**kers that keep the beating heart of art alive here in Vancouver,” he told the audience.
On March 5, a follow-up Whammys event, The Whammys/Night Out for Music Heals 2016, will feature the winners (or, if unavailable, one of the other nominees) of nine of the main categories, including Best Burlesque and Sh**iest Band. The show is at the Rickshaw Theatre (254 E. Hastings St.), $10 at the door. $1 from each ticket goes to the Music Heals Charitable Foundation, which helps raise awareness of the healing powers of music and fundraises to increase access to Music Therapy for patients in children’s hospitals, senior’s homes, palliative care, AIDS and HIV programs, bereavement, and more.
