New category this year includes three N.B. nominees.

A5

Matt Carter

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The nominees for the 2009 East Coast Music Awards have been announced and New Brunswick musicians have made an incredible showing. A total of 27 artists and groups from across the province have received nominations in 20 categories ranging everywhere from Children's Recording of the Year to Rap/Hip-hop Single of the Year.

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David Myles has been nominated for three ECMAs this year.

With several regular faces and many newcomers receiving nominations, one thing is clear; New Brunswick has definitely made its mark on the East Coast music scene.

In the category of Blues Recording of the Year, N.B. musicians swept every possible nomination. Hot Toddy, Keith Hallet, Matt Andersen, and Terry Whalen each received nominations for the award, marking possibly the first-ever clean sweep of a category by N.B. artists.

"There's a significant amount of New Brunswick representation in this year's nomination field," said Hot Toddy guitarist, Joel LeBlanc. "This shows me that New Brunswick applicants are producing good writing, good performances, good recordings, all the things you need to do to grab somebody's attention."

Blues has a long history in New Brunswick with Fredericton and Saint John each producing several great acts over the years.

"There's always been a core group of players around," said LeBlanc. "Blues and rhythm and blues have always been really popular. Fredericton and Saint John have always had a real strong representation. Take the Hill Brothers for example. Those guys were like an institution. Whenever they played, people would get out to listen and to dance. I think blues is almost ingrained in our culture," he said. "If you go to a jam session, it's blues, rhythm and blues, or something close to it."

In a similar turn of events, the category for Loud Recording of the Year welcomed three N.B. groups, claiming three out of four nominations. Gallactus, Iron Giant, and Holophonic Porno all received nominations in the category alongside the Halifax group, Shelter with Theives.

"It's good to see the East Coast Music Association recognizing heavier music," said James Gauthier, guitarist for the band, Holophonic Porno. "It's nice that people are starting to notice that not only are there a lot of acts playing heavier styled music but that there's also a demand for it too.

"It's always been a more underground style of music and for a long time, it was frowned upon by commercial radio, but slowly, heavy music has been starting to make a place for itself on the commercial market," he said.

Several other categories also welcomed more than one N.B. nomination this year adding to the significance of the province's overall 2009 ECMA showing.

The annual awards and conference will be held in Cornerbrook, Newfoundland this year during the last week of February. Despite the remote location of this year's event, a number of New Brunswick musicians, groups, and industry personnel are expected to attend.