The surprises (some pleasant, some not so) of the recent nominees announcement.

After a shameful few years of mediocrity, the Grammys fought back last year, and offered a hint of breaking the mold with the underground band Arcade Fire claiming some big prizes. This caused people of all ages and backgrounds to proclaim their love or ignorance of the platinum-selling band, which was probably more attention than the Grammys had received for some time.

Fast forward to this year, and perhaps they are looking to rock the boat again? Folk rockers Mumford & Sons have more nominations than Lady Gaga. Teen-raver-sensation/dubstep hero Skrillex got more nods than Katy Perry. Other multiple nominees acts include Adele and Kanye West, naturally, but at least we can still say that many of the artists this year have been pursuing their own ideals and not the talentless flash-in-the-pans that have been molded by a pop factory.

Two major individual snubs; My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy wasn’t included for Album of the Year, nor previous Grammy dahling Taylor Swift‘s latest LP, both of which are unusual choices to leave out, given their impact on the sales charts, streaming channels and general music headlines.

Another annoying recent pattern of previous Grammy nominees, until now, was that they really liked… how to put this… ‘the oldies’. No offence, classic albums are great, but to say that the latest Paul Simon or Eagles work is more artistically interesting than their younger counterparts is often outrageous. This too, seems to have been addressed in the 2012 votes.

Whether this is all a ploy to stir up more interest or a genuine shift in voter tastes, we will have to wait and see, but the idea of a more diverse base of artists to reflect a truly diverse year is a nice thought. Not only that, but the way that folk and dubstep can both push artists into the ‘big four’ categories (Record of the Year, Album of the Year, Song of the Year and Best New Artist) is an inspiring thought for independent artists everywhere.

I’ll sign off with one of the nominees for Record of the Year, and definitely one that has a wide appeal, and was only slightly overplayed Adele’s Rolling in the Deep.

The 54th Grammy Awards will be presented on February 12th, 2012. For a full list of all nominees, check out grammy.com/nominees/

by Lee Jarvis.

So, the Grammys, whom I’ve often been critical of, make a credible, relevant decision and award album of the year to Arcade Fire for The Suburbs (which, unlike previous years’ winners, probably was one of the best albums of the year.), and then… they get slammed for it! People are going crazy that an indie band could beat the factory-produced ultimately-forgettable commercial pop music of Gaga et al. Assumptions of bribery, corruption, ineligibility and incompetence are afoot on the social networks (Hypebot posted a few Twitter examples here).

The fact is, this indie band have won a bunch of awards over the last seven years, and The Suburbs is their third Long Player. I was a late-comer myself, picking up Neon Bible in late 2009. That album, released in March 2007, reached # 2 in the US and UK charts, saw them grace Saturday Night Live, earn a nomination for the Polaris Music award, and spawned a tour of 122 shows (including 33 festivals) in 75 cities and 19 countries. The band have also performed at events for Barack Obama, alongside Jay-Z, have been booked to play Lollapalooza 2010, as well as headline Reading and Leeds Festivals in 2010 and Coachella 2011. In a year of yet-further-declining-sales, The Suburbs debuted at #1 on the Billboard Top 200 charts with 156,000 sales in it’s first week.

Essentially, an indie band doesn’t come out of nowhere and pick up a Grammy – they have put in a lot of work over the years, and have both critical acclaim and public appeal. Perhaps, what some of the Twitter pop rebels don’t realize, is that while Beiber does have a lot of Twilight-loving tween fans who buy his mp3s, the rest of the music loving population is also out there, going to festivals, buying vinyl albums (yes, really!) and supporting fresh, emotive musicians and songwriters. Indie bands that are able to play multiple instruments, write lasting music and have their shit together when it comes to marketing, videos, licensing and touring are a powerful force. Another couple who spring to mind are Vampire Weekend and The Black Keys. Independently distributed albums may not be in your Wal-mart shopping basket, but that doesn’t mean you should write the process off altogether.

The Suburbs won the Grammy for Best Album deservedly. I’d even recommend listening it before you start knocking Arcade Fire. In a case where genuine musicianship outclassed manufactured chaff, perhaps we should celebrate that the music industry is still alive and well?

by Lee Jarvis.

I’ve often had my gripes with the Grammys. 2010 was an interesting year for music, and threw some interesting selections into the mix. We thought we’d select some of the key nominees and make a poll for our Music Jobs members and blog readers to participate in. Let’s hear your opinions in the poll and also the comments below.

1. Record of the Year
Award to the Artist(s) and to the Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s) and/or Mixer(s), if other than the artist.

2. Album Of The Year
Award to the Artist(s) and to the Album Producer(s), Recording Engineer(s)/Mixer(s) & Mastering Engineer(s), if other than the artist.

3. Song Of The Year
A Songwriter(s) Award. A song is eligible if it was first released or if it first achieved prominence during the Eligibility Year. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

4. Best New Artist
For a new artist who releases, during the Eligibility Year, the first recording which establishes the public identity of that artist.

5. Best Female Pop Vocal Performance
For a solo vocal performance. Singles or Tracks only.

6. Best Male Pop Vocal Performance
For a solo vocal performance. Singles or Tracks only.

11. Best Pop Vocal Album
For albums containing 51% or more playing time of VOCAL tracks.

12. Best Dance Recording
For solo, duo, group or collaborative performances. Vocal or Instrumental. Singles or tracks only.

20. Best Rock Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. Includes Rock, Hard Rock & Metal songs. For Song Eligibility Guidelines see Category #3. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

28. Best R&B Song
A Songwriter(s) Award. For Song Eligibility Guidelines see Category #3. (Artist names appear in parentheses.) Singles or Tracks only.

82. Best Score Soundtrack Album For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
Award to Composer(s) for an original score created specifically for, or as a companion to, a current legitimate motion picture, television show or series or other visual media.

92. Producer Of The Year, Non-Classical
A Producer’s Award. (Artists names appear in parentheses.)

Who deserves to win? Who was missed? Share your thoughts below…

by Lee Jarvis.

Rihanna confessed that she still misses Chris Brown even after he beat her bloody in a violent Grammy night fight. “There are a lot of … places that we’ve been together, music, different things that come up that are reminders of your ex,” she told Atlanta radio station Q100 according to People.com. “When [his music] comes on the radio, I don’t … turn it off. I like his music.”

The starlet said she feels nostalgic for the relationship that dissolved into violence during a spat in February that left the pop princess bruised and bloody. Brown pleaded guilty to assault and was issued a restraining order and community service. Still, the singer said she misses the good times. “I’ve gotten over it, but there are definitely constant reminders … songs that were our favorite songs, or hit songs,” she told the radio station.

After Rihanna’s big TV appearance on Good Morning America, where she discussed the abusive relationship, she was heralded as a role model for women and young girls who have been or are being abused… Personally, as a woman, I hate to hear about any woman who is being physically abused. However, the above (and very recent) article, seems to me, to be nearly a complete 180 from her Good Morning America appearance. First she’s the heroine who escaped, and a role model for girls. Now she’s reverting to missing her “First Big Love” – as she refers to Brown. But has she seen a therapist to help her cope with the abuse and the mental repercussions? It definitely doesn’t seem like it. I don’t see how her reminiscing about the “good ole times” is something that she should be publicly talking about.

Every relationship has that period of sadness of “what could have been” after it ends, but if she has taken the standpoint to be a role model (which she appears to have actively decided to do), and spokeswoman so to speak, about domestic abuse in a relationship – this is not the way to go. The article is tinged with the feeling that she still has Chris Brown the loving boyfriend separated from Chris Brown the abusive boyfriend. She needs help in realizing that they are one in the same and that moving on is a necessity, otherwise she’s stepping into a pattern of abusive relationships for the rest of her life.

I hope she gets the help she needs – and either puts her hero status on the back burner or stops speaking out with sweet reminders of her relationship. Women in the music business are a growing number and a force to be reckoned with – hopefully Rihanna can take up that mantra and get back on track in her life and music.

T. Lynn

So, that time of year again, huh? The Grammys are a funny thing. On one hand, they are the GRAMMYS! The most infamous and high profile music award you can get – everyone wants one. Adele (kinda) wants one. I want one. Heck, I want three. But on the other hand, they have somehow managed to miss out on awarding some of the finest talent in recent years the titles they deserve. Chicago Tribune’s Kevin Johnson recently said about last year’s Album of the year award going to Herbie Hancock, “Hancock’s a legend, but ignoring the impact of [Kanye] West and [Amy] Winehouse felt like a mistake”. Ok, ss Winehouse did win five other categories, but his point is, as the LA Times puts it, “ The industry wants — more to the point, desperately needs — …innovators, but it decidedly prefers those who also find ways to acknowledge the old traditions”.

From my point of view, whether you love or their music or personalities, the artists mentioned are talented and made a massive impact on the music industry last year. If it were a nice-person contest judged by me, they certainly wouldn’t win, but it’s not. It’s the most significant award for musical talent. So what happened?

Well, again there are some solid and possibly surprising inclusions in the 2009 Grammy nominees, namely M.I.A and rapper Lil’ Wayne. I (and many) have been a fan of M.I.A. for some time via her work with artists such as Switch and Diplo, but her recent successes with Timbaland have been more noticeable and so may have earned her a real shot at Record of the Year. Wayne, despite his typically rap lyrical content, has lately been seen happily doing some ‘standard award-bating industry promotion’ (see Country Music Awards appearance)

Maybe their inclusion is part of the attempt to draw in new fans following a fall in viewers over recent years – something they tried to revive with a new prime-time concert full of stars at the announcement ceremony, and something that I hope works. People should be excited for the awards once again, like i said, it’s the GRAMMYS!

For a brief outline of some key categories, check out the US Music Jobs forum 2009 Grammy Nominees

…and here’s the official Grammy website.

Lee Jarvis.