With our DOMA ballot online and ripe for your votin', we figured we'd give you some help: a daily breakdown of each category's nominees.
Best Cover/Tribute Act - Hard Night's Day - The King Bucks - Holy Diver - Black and Blue - Boys Named Sue
Like the Best Song nominees we broke down yesterday, the winner for this category's gonna be more telling of the kind of music local listeners are into more than anything else. Each act can certainly play--one even on kids instruments--but the votes are likely to be determined by whether you're a Stones fan, a Beatles fan, an old-school country fan or a classic rock fan. Let's check 'em out.
Hard Night's Day They're not quite John, Paul, George and Ringo, but Hard Night's Day's been around town, ripping off the Beatles for years now. It's in the name, even, a re-working of the classic tune "A Hard Day's Night." Not surprisingly, at shows of theirs, you're likely to, hear this:
The King Bucks The King Bucks have turned into something of a force this year--so much so that our own Merritt Martin featured them for a story in our print publication a few months back. With a flair for country and roots rock from the '70s, you're likely to hear songs like this beauty at their Adairs residency:
Holy Diver Holy Diver's just funny, really. Three guys hamming it up and acting like the biggest rock stars on the planet no matter the audience. Oh, and they play kids instruments, which makes it all even more comical. And considering they play big--and surprisingly loud--classic rock tunes, yep, this is one of their staples:
Black and Blue
The Stones to Hard Night's Day's Beatles, Black and Blue cribs the Rolling Stones like no other band in town, and though they've been around for some time, as well, they continue to be a big draw around town --especially Firewater, where they seem to play more than anywhere else. They sound kind of like this (or try to--which is the idea):
Boys Named Sue Perhaps the biggest draw in this bunch, the Boys Named Sue won this very award last year. So, yeah, they're probably the ones to beat. With a flair for older country classics--and a few originals--you're likely to hear stuff like this at their gigs (obviously):
Now go vote already. --Pete Freedman