ok just kidding. and let’s be real: if anyone deserves “best blogger”, it should be CTNewsJunkie. anyways, every year Hartford Magazine / Hartford Courant puts together this much-too-big poll of the “best” things the Hartfordish area has to offer. i specify “Hartfordish” because, for example, the Space Ballroom is nominated for “Best Concert Venue”, when it is by most cartographical measures, not even close to Hartford.
so why am i bringing this up here? because i think traditional forms of media has a tendency to get ignored by our quadrant of connecticut culture. and yet, any time that i’ve (for example) gone on the radio, it brings new attention/traffic to the blog. last year, Portrait Party took home the “Best Indie Rock Band” prize, and that helped boost their audience, even without a formal LP/EP to their name yet! (we talk about this a little bit on the recent podcast). so hey, if you have just a few minutes, check out the link below to vote for some CT DIY people/events to bring in folks that might not otherwise hear about us! voting is open until feb 29. here are some key ballots:
https://courant.secondstreetapp.com/Best-of-Hartford-Magazine-2020-2/
(it sucks on mobile)
Musician or Band: this is a huge category, but you’ll see a few familiar names! there’s comparatively little representation of the DIY/indie community here, but there are a few folks carrying the banner: Kim Normal, Stampeter, Bonsai Trees, Ditch Boys, Daphne Lee Martin, Murderous Chanteuse, Pleasuremad, Seller, Them Airs, Tetramer, and more. in fact, there is a write-in category that seems to add bands to the category if they get enough votes (Them Airs and Pleasuremad weren’t there a few days ago).
Festival: i voted for WSAM Radio’s Live from the Lawn because, c’mon, you remember that lineup, right? there are some other incredible contenders like Sarah Golley’s album release festival, SWAN Day, and more.
Place for Live Music: lots of good options here, including the Space Ballroom, Noelke Gallery (which is not nominated for “Art Gallery” category, what the hell?), The Cellar, Space Ballroom, the Wherehouse, and more.
Concert Venue: not sure why this is different than the above category, but you can find the State House, College Street, Space Ballroom, and The Cellar there — all of which are not in Hartford, lol.
and you can find me under “Local People” in the “Best Blogger” category. even though i appreciate whoever nominated me, i will warn that if i somehow won this award, i would send someone else up to accept the award, pretending to be me.
