Music >>

• Best Concert of the Past 12 Months
  Sonic Youth
  When it was announced that NYC underground rock legends Sonic Youth were going to play Live on the Levee — the free concert series on the Arch grounds mainly known for booking mainstream-leaning acts — reactions ranged from "Is this a joke?" to "Holy fucking shit." But the May show... More >>
• Best Rock Band
  The Incurables
  The seeming ease with which Jimmy Griffin delivers the no-frills rock of the Incurables is somewhat surprising, at least when you consider his background as a flamboyant and technical guitar wielder. But on the band's album, Songs for a Blackout, Griffin's smoky rasp and jangly guitar stand... More >>
• Best Indie Band
  Gentleman Auction House
  Of all the indie bands in St. Louis, none is as grandiose and weirdly charming as Gentleman Auction House. The six-member outfit led by Eric Enger creates rhythmically robust and unconventionally ecstatic pop music reminiscent of a more composed Architecture in Helsinki, complete with dual drum... More >>
• Best Country Band (Alternative)
  Theodore
  Lots of bands play loud. Playing loud is easy. Just crank up your Marshall stack and hammer out undistinguished barre chords in varying patterns of D, A and G and you've mastered half the songbook of modern rock & roll. It's playing quietly that's the tricky part, allowing every alcove of a... More >>
• Best Country Band (Traditional) (1 Comment)
  Trigger 5
  In 2009 this honky-tonk and rockabilly ensemble released its first album, Heartbreak and Regret, a concept album about the two sides to every "sorry story," with a bonus track called "Cinder Dick." The jokes mostly stop there, however, and the sound of seriously swinging, smooth shuffling and... More >>
• Best Bluegrass Band
  Cumberland Gap
  The young upstarts are cagey veterans now, heading into their tenth year of playing bluegrass — real bluegrass with Scruggs-style banjo, jaw-dropping mandolin breaks and taut and lonesome harmonies — the kind you expect from the founding generation of the style but rarely hear from... More >>
• Best Punk Band
  The Humanoids
  As trying as the past year has been on the local punk scene — what with venue closings, shows pushed down to basements and bands breaking up — the Humanoids have been among the few bright spots in our ever-loosening collective of bands and scenesters. In the past year, the band has... More >>
• Best Metal Band
  Head On Collision
  Many say metal is a genre that just didn't age well (or at worst, devolved into a sad sack of feelings and tears blanketed over chugging hardcore riffs). Head On Collision is our city's best argument to the contrary. Combining the right amount of raging adolescent terror, hard liquor and... More >>
• Best Noise Band
  The Lonely Procession
  As a genre, "noise" is often thought of as anti-music — both for its rejection of the harmonic scale and for the often alienating sounds that result — but the Lonely Procession's Kevin Schlueter and Chris Muether have found a way to use orchestral instruments in their atonal dirges.... More >>
• Best Jam Band (5 Comments)
  Vitamen A
  Long before there was anything like a jam band scene or the cult of Trey, the heavy-rock veterans of Vitamin A (now spelled Vitamen A) were exploring the outer limits of the Zappa-Floyd-Dead psychedelic nexus, a style that's as brainy as it is blasted by mushroom flashbacks and King Crimson... More >>
• Best Pop Band
  The Blind Eyes
  The Blind Eyes' bouncing rhythm-section romp, jangly guitar and irresistible vocal melodies can add a spring to just about anyone's step. In fact, frolicking pop numbers such as "Pages" and "Find the Time" draw from all things catchy — including power pop's melodies, punk rock's abandon... More >>
• Best Local Album of the Past 12 Months
  The Loud Wars
  Recorded more than two years ago in various places around the United States — including San Francisco's Tiny Telephone studios and producer Chris Walla's home studio in Portland, Oregon — The Loud Wars marks So Many Dynamos' Vagrant Records (www.vagrant.com) debut. The pedigree of a... More >>
• Best Garage Band
  Radical Sons
  Once upon a time, all rock was garage rock — or warehouse rock, or barn rock. Big, dirty spaces served big, dirty dreams. But with the diminished aspirations — of scoring an opening slot for the Decemberists or a 128 kbps download on Stereogum — come diluted exercises in form... More >>
• Best Tribute Band
  El Monstero
  The term "tribute band" is thrown around pretty loosely these days. But as the guys from El Monstero know, it takes a lot more than donning a wig and learning eighteen Pearl Jam songs to pull off the essence of another band's craft. Since formed in 1999 by Kevin Gagnepain (former bassist of '90s... More >>
• Best Cover Band (5 Comments)
  Asbury Park
  What's the point of a cover band? Have a good time, hold the room past last call and, above all else, get paid. But as St. Louis' only Bruce Springsteen cover band, Asbury Park never comes across as mercenary, never phones it in, unless it's to dial up the socially conscious joy and sing-along... More >>
• Best Side Project
  Pangea
  "Pangea" is the name of the ancient landmass formed before the seven continents drifted apart millions of years ago. It seems like it's been almost as long since the seven-emcee hip-hop supergroup of the same name formed in St. Louis. Like its prehistoric equivalent, the group drifted apart,... More >>
• Best Club DJ (2 Comments)
  Jim K
  If you've wearied of DJs who mash up one slick soulless pop song with another, head over to the Upstairs Lounge (see Best Dance Club in the Bars & Clubs section) on the second Saturday of the month for a prescription-strength dose of DJ Jim K's dubstep. Jim K's not a self-promoter, but he's... More >>
• Best Lounge Act
  The Charlie B Group
  Charlie Boehme's smooth, raspy vocals paired with the trumpeting acrobatics of local musician Jim Manley make for a lively, jazzy Wednesday evening at Jimmy's on the Park on DeMun Avenue in Clayton (see www.jimmyscafe.com). Lounge sentiment is there, and the quiet camaraderie of the band —... More >>
• Best Hip-Hop DJ
  DJ AJ
  In the big leagues of St. Louis hip-hop, the Derrty DJs reign supreme. A loosely affiliated group of DJs, producers and promoters, they are the mainstream tastemakers who often pick the hits. (Hence their motto: "We Run These Streets.") The unofficial leader of the crew is DJ AJ. An accomplished... More >>
• Best Hip-Hop Artist
  Black Spade
  What's left to say about Black Spade? In last year's edition, we named him Best Local Artist Gone National after his debut record, To Serve with Love, became one of the first underground hip-hop albums from St. Louis to draw praise from critics and bloggers across the nation. Locally his fans... More >>
• Best R&B Artist
  Teresajenee
  To call Teresajenee an R&B artist is somewhat of a misnomer — after all, the pint-size Walnut Park native is much more than a purveyor of honeyed slow jams, and she's worked with some of the city's best underground hip-hop artists. But like any good R&B singer, her sense of... More >>
• Best Gospel Artist
  Flame
  You won't hear Hammond organs or heavenly choirs on any of Flame's three albums. The rapper chooses to spread the gospel using the music of the streets. Flame favors a hard-edged, rapid-fire type of hip-hop to share his beliefs and preach the Word. In doing so he retains the power of the message... More >>
• Best Local Single of the Past 12 Months (1 Comment)
  "Electric Babies"
  An adrenaline shot of garage-punk sleaze, "Electric Babies" is a single in the grand tradition of crackling 45 rpm vinyl. Recorded in Detroit with noted garage-blues producer Jim Diamond (the White Stripes, the Dirtbombs), the two-minute song explodes like a bottle rocket streaking upward.... More >>
• Best Folk Artist
  Cassie Morgan
  If folk music is to remain vital, evolving and yet faithful to a timeless tradition, then it needs more artists like Cassie Morgan. Though she probably prefers to be backed by the percussion, banjo, bass and glockenspiel of the Lonely Pine (and would probably prefer not to be saddled with the... More >>
• Best Songwriter
  Chris Grabau
  Chris Grabau has led Magnolia Summer through three albums, each one further refining his vision of direct, heartfelt American music. But with this year's Lines From the Frame, Grabau and his bandmates have perfected the balance between plangent guitar rock and delicate introspection. On Lines,... More >>
• Best Vocalist (Male)
  Justin Kinkel-Schuster
  Few local bands share the all-for-one camaraderie of the experimental roots quartet Theodore (see Best Country Band [Alternative], in this very section). The bandmates swap instruments midsong and support each other onstage with an intuition that's equal parts musical skill and emotional... More >>
• Best Vocalist (Female)
  Maureen Sullivan
  Trying to compete with your siblings for approval or attention can put a strain on a family, and there're bound to be untold layers of resentment and hurt feelings. (What, after all, are families for?) So it's all the more remarkable that the Sullivan siblings have pulled a Partridge Family and... More >>
• Best Jazz Artist
  Hamiet Bluiett
  Fellow musicians, critics and knowledgeable fans all consider Hamiet Bluiett to be not only the preeminent baritone saxophonist of his generation, but one of the very best ever to play the instrument in jazz. With a powerful tone that spans the entire range of the big horn and the ability to... More >>
• Best Blues Artist
  Big George Brock
  From the top of his broad-brimmed hat to the tips of his gleaming shoes, Big George Brock is most definitely a man of style. The 77-year-old's eye-catching outfits, imposing physical stature and outsize personality make him the focus of attention wherever he goes, even if his showmanship and... More >>
• Best Local Label
  Big Muddy Records
  With the death of the major-label record industry just around the corner, and with many good independent labels struggling to stay solvent, why would anyone want to undertake the thankless task of running one? The MP3 revolution has made CD shelves veritable landfills, and this recession has... More >>
• Best Recording Studio (3 Comments)
  Sawhorse Recording Studio
  In the past couple of years, Jason McEntire's Sawhorse Recording Studio has become a destination for local acts looking to capture a very professional representation of their music. But it has doubtless become harder to book time, as McEntire's inviting space and expertise have been shanghaied... More >>
• Best Producer
  Phaseone
  The Internet's been the capital-lettered bogeyman of the music industry for years now — the fall guy record execs blame for plummeting sales of overpriced CDs and the impossible hurdle new musicians must clear if they hope to gain the attention of easily distracted fans in an oversaturated... More >>
• Best Live Sound Engineer (1 Comment)
  Ryan Adams
  For the true live-music connoisseur, quality sound might be the most important element of a concert experience — even the actual quality of a band's performance takes a back seat. Think about it: Shoddy sound can quickly and completely ruin a night out at a club and have you cursing the... More >>
• Best Homecoming
  Nelly and the St. Lunatics
  Nelly strode onto the Pageant's stage, gazed at the adoring crowd and smiled like a man who was king of all he surveyed. Then, aided by his crew the St. Lunatics, the man who put St. Louis hip-hop on the map proceeded to drop hit after hit, from "Shake Ya Tailfeather" to "Air Force Ones." When... More >>
• Best Remixer (1 Comment)
  André Anjos
  As a founder and principal of the Remix Artist Collective (RAC), André Anjos has had his music appear during the HBO series Entourage and on well-respected music blogs such as Stereogum.com. But as the RAC's reputation continues to grow, so has the caliber of gigs he's received: This year... More >>
• Best Rock Radio Program
  Emotional Rescue
  Monday morning, 7 a.m. Beeeep beeeep. Ugh, it's the alarm. Ugh, it's a Monday meeting looming. Ugh, it's Monday. Maybe the radio will help wake me up. Let's see — hey, it's Cat Pick's Emotional Rescue on KDHX. And ooh, she's playing mopey Brit rockers Elbow — right into country... More >>
• Best Jazz Radio Program
  Jazz Unlimited
  Tune into KWMU (90.7 FM) on any given Sunday night, and between the tracks selected from great jazz recordings spanning the past century, you'll get a steady stream of facts, anecdotes and trivia from Dennis Owsley, host of Jazz Unlimited. If Owsley seems somewhat professorial, there's a good... More >>
• Best Concert Poster Designer
  Jason Potter
  Jason Potter has designed T-shirts for bands and for the local 2010 census in between his gigs drumming for rock bands such as Left Arm and the Midtown Thieves. But his screen-printed concert posters — which he creates in the basement of his Edwardsville home — are some of the... More >>
• Best Concert Poster
  Tom Huck
  It's a vast understatement to say Tom Huck is a Motörhead fan. Dude has a tattoo honoring the UK metal legends on his neck. His love for the band is woven into the detail and care he took with the poster for its September 2008 show at the Pageant. Scenes of fire, military destruction and... More >>
• Best Band to Die in the Past 12 Months (1 Comment)
  Bad Folk
  Save for the occasional spurt of Mexican-jumping-bean stage moves, nearly everything about Bad Folk was understated. Vocalist Tim Rakel's gravelly monotone and strummy banjo, as well as plenty of noir-twang color fit the band's macabre-folk tales and desolate-road-trip revelries. It's not... More >>
• Third Best Band Name (1 Comment)
  Quief Quota
  More >>
• Second Best Band Name
  DinoFight!
  More >>
• Best Band Name
  Egg Chef
  More >>
• Best Music Festival
  Live on the Levee
  Live on the Levee isn't your traditional music festival in the sense of a consecutive-days event, but it has become a staple of St. Louis summers. This year's edition of the concert series raised the bar with a double-barreled shot of a diverse talent pool — including college-popsters... More >>
• Best Cover (1 Comment)
  "Crazy on You"
  Heart's dynamic performance at the Illinois State Fair in August proved that the act hasn't lost a vocal step, even after decades together. Equally, uh, heartening was a cameo cover performed by Shara Worden and Becky Stark during orchestral-indie-rockers the Decemberists' sold-out Pageant show... More >>
• Best Music Blog (1 Comment)
  Last Days of Man on Earth
  Music blogs are a dime a dozen nowadays, but well-informed, well-written ones are still an all-too-scarce commodity. It's precisely those two crucial qualities that make Last Days of Man on Earth a diamond in the Internet rough. Written by Joe Stumble, who lived in the underground music meccas... More >>
• Best Local Act Gone National
  Cavo
  Cavo's success is a long time in the making — the modern-rock band has existed in some form since 2001 and honed its chops for years at Blueberry Hill's Duck Room and at now-defunct clubs such as the Hi-Pointe and the Galaxy. But after its song "Champagne" experienced some regional radio... More >>
• Best New Band
  Old Lights
  St. Louis' local music scene was given a considerable boost a few months back when Old Lights started playing shows locally and regionally. The brainchild of David Beeman, Old Lights constructs rootsy and concise acoustic-driven songs dressed up in the guise of bouncy indie-pop in the vein of... More >>