Minnesotans Nominated for Grammys

The fiftieth Grammy Awards nomination list has been released, and I'm proud to say Minnesota has some representation. Prince nabbed two nominations and Osmo and the Minnesota Orchestra grabbed one:

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance
Prince's "Future Baby Mama," from Planet Earth

Best Song Written for Motion Picture, Television, or Other Visual Media
Prince's "The Song of the Heart," from Happy Feet

Best Orchestral Performance
Beethoven: Symphony No. 9, Osmo Vänskä, conductor (Minnesota Orchestra)

Watch the awards ceremony February 10 at 7 p.m. on CBS.

Electric Fetus's Local Best Sellers of 2007

The great thing about the Electric Fetus is its dedication to local artists. From running special promotions of new records by local musicians to hosting in-store performances, the iconic store is and always has been a passionate advocate for Twin Cities musicians.

The latest edition of the Fetus's newsletter, The Chord, included a two-page list of the store's best-selling albums in 2007 (January 1–October 26). The list includes the top twenty sellers in nine genres. Below, I've plucked out the local disks from the Fetus's full list (the only genre sans local artists was Reggae). Consider this the first draft of your holiday wish list.

Blues
13. Willie Walker & The Butanes, Memphisapolis

Country
1. Trampled by Turtles, Trouble
12. Trampled by Turtles, Songs from a Ghost Town
17. Pert' Near Sandstone, Up & Down the River
19. Trampled by Turtles, Blue Sky & The Devil

Folk
1. Charlie Parr, Jubilee
2. Storyhill, Storyhill
5. Roma di Luna, Face of My Friends
7. The Pines, Sparrows in the Bell
8. Haley Bonar, Lure the Fox
11. Roma di Luna, Find Your Way Home
14. The Sorry Muthas, Greatest Hits Vol. 3
15. The Get Up Johns, Trouble in Mind

World Music
19. Cafe Accordion Orchestra, Cinema

Soul/R&B
4. Prince, Planet Earth

Rap
1. Brother Ali, The Undisputed Truth
12. Atmosphere, Sad Clown Bad Summer
17. P.O.S., Audition

Jazz
1. The Bad Plus, Prog
13. Happy Apple, Happy Apple Back on Top

Rock
14. Dan Wilson, Free Life
17. Low, Drums and Guns

November R.I.P.

November's entertainment casualties, not all of whose obits are tarnish-free:

November 5: Cartoonist and DC Comics superhero Aquaman co-creator Paul Norris.

November 6: Country crooner Hank Thompson, who was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1989.

November 10: Pulitzer Prize¬–winning author Norman Mailer.

November 12: Rosemary's Baby and The Stepford Wives author Ira Levin.

November 13: Film editor Peter Zinner, who won an Academy Award for The Deer Hunter.

November 18: Paul Wasserman, rock publicist (Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan, Tom Petty) and convicted felon.

November 25: Quiet Riot lead singer Kevin DuBrow.

The Busy Season Is Here

Every spring, I'm invigorated by the plethora of concert announcements that start rolling in for summer dates. Then, before I know it, winter's here and another round of concert frenzy is upon us. Add to that an art crawl here and there and lo and behold, my calendar's full.

As I checked my schedule for this upcoming weekend, I realized the winter push is here.

Friday
Tapes 'n Tapes FREE show at the Triple Rock
Peter Lang at The Cedar
Chicago at the Orpheum

Saturday
Steven Bernstein's Millennial Territory Orchestra at the Walker
SMA showcase (Ol' Yeller, X-Ray Hip, Flamin Oh's, etc.) at the Turf Club
Caroline Smith and Humanboy at the 400 Bar

Plus, both the MCAD art sale and the No Coast Craft-o-Rama are Friday and Saturday. There are simply more temptations than I have time for.

As the weight of holiday stress increases with every trip to the mall, I find myself drawn more and more to the unparalleled relief of these winter events. When there's this much great stuff happening around town, though, choosing which awesome way to spend an evening can become just as overwhelming as picking which store is likely to have the shortest lines. The good news is the high caliber of the musical and visual artists in our Cities means that there's no wrong answer, and practically every night out is a guaranteed good time.

Ah, the holidays . . . .

P.S. On December 11, the Magnolias are releasing the aptly titled CD Better Late Than Never. The disk features songs recorded between 1990 and 1997.

Local CD-Release Shows

There's no camaraderie greater than that of the crowd that gathers to check out live music on a cold Minnesota night. Take a tip from me and keep your winter hot by checking out these performances by local bands, each of whom is celebrating the release of a new record on the date listed.

November 23: Pachyderm Studios CD-release show for Pachyderm: So Large We Ran Out of Room at the Cabooze, with performances by The New Congress, Down Lo, Kari Marie, Lucas Cates, and Shades A Gray.

November 23: Ed Ackerson's release show for his solo, self-titled CD at the Varsity. (In-store performance November 20 at the Electric Fetus.)

November 24: Pan-Metropolitan Trio CD-release show for Isolation at the Dakota.

November 30: Peter Lang's CD release for Live at Charlotte's Web at The Cedar.

December 1: Ben Glaros's debut-CD-release show for Lovesong Roulette at The Cedar.

December 7: Michael Monroe's CD-release show for Wintersong at The Cedar.

December 15: Dance Band CD-release show for Dance Band Returns from the Land After Tomorrow at the Varsity.