SLAMMIES UPDATE

Around this time every year, like clockwork, The Riverfront Times has started preparing for the St. Louis Music Awards, the Slammies. First comes the ballot, asking readers to vote on their fave local musicians and so on, and then we throw a huge bash and hand out the awards. The event used to take place in early December.

Ahh, change. The Slammies are being moved to the spring, and the format is (gasp!) being altered. We'll still be publishing ballots, still asking you to vote on your favorite musicians, best bands, DJs, singers and so on. All that will stay the same. But we're adding a Slammies showcase, one long evening of performances by as many of the nominated bands as are interested in struttin' their stuff; one evening of club-hopping before the end of voting during which the adventurous among you can see all the bands live in one fell swoop. You can then vote on them and turn in the ballot right then and there, satisfied that you've seen what you're voting on. We'll then have the awards ceremony a week later.

Stay tuned. Expect to see ballots published in the paper in March, with the showcase in April.

Send all local tapes, tips, discs and detritus to "Radar Station," The Riverfront Times, 6358 Delmar Blvd., Suite 200, St. Louis, MO 63130; e-mail: radarstation@ rftstl.com.