Null Device is up for three – THREE! – Madison Area Music Awards this year. Best Album – Electronic (for Recursions), Best Song – Electronic (Travelogue 09), and Electronic Performer of the Year.
The way it works is this – tracks and albums are submitted for consideration by the artists, and then people from all over the place log in, listen and vote. Round one determines the nominees, round two determines the winners.
There’s a nominal fee for voting.
Normally I’m opposed to nominal fees, but I heartily endorse dropping a few bucks to become a MAMAs voter for a few reasons. One, our huge egos and fragile self esteem rely on the constant praise that a MAMAs win would bring, two, it’s a fantastic way to hear a whole bunch of exceptionally talented local acts in a variety of genres and three – all proceeds support music programs in local schools.
That last one is a big deal. I’m talking 100% of the money that comes in goes to helping school music programs buy and repair instruments, keep teachers, and keep programs going. The MAMAs organization has done a stellar job of this over the past several years – donating thousands of dollars worth of band and orchestra instruments to area schools, showcasing unique school performing groups, and raising awareness of the good works done by many of these teachers and students. I have a really soft spot for school music programs, since it was a succession of really fantastic school music programs in elementary and secondary school that kept my own love of music alive, refined it, taught me a lot of skills, and generally gave me a much brighter outlook on the world than I’d probably otherwise have had.
The awards show in May is also a good time. Like most awards shows, it runs long and there’s always a bit of overblown speechifying, but there’s also a ton of really great performances.
So it’s a good cause, and could help us win something. Head over to www.themamas.org, register, listen, and vote!