Saratoga owned the Eddies. At the inaugural Capital Region Thomas Edison Music Awards (Eddies) at Proctors on April 14—basically, a local version of the Grammy Awards—Saratoga Springs had a bountiful evening, bringing away multiple awards in a range of categories.
Big Saratoga-based winners included Caffè Lena, which took home “Best Small Venue” and “Local Music Venue of the Year” honors (the latter was part of the People’s Choice Awards portion of the awards show; Sawyer Fredericks’ three sold-out shows at the venue last May also took home “Local Music Concert of the Year” honors). Also, Garland Nelson, leader of band Soul Session, garnered “R&B/Soul Artist of the Year” himself, and with his band, “Party Cover Band of the Year.”
Other notable winners included DJ Trumaster (“DJ of the Year”), a staple at Putnam Place (owned by saratoga living‘s Chair), who also spun at numerous saratoga living parties last year; Rich Ortiz (“Solo or Duo Performer of the Year [Covers Category]”), who rocked saratoga living‘s 2018 Design Issue party at the Adelphi Hotel; and Candy Ambulance (“Punk/Metal/Hard Rock Artist of the Year”), who appeared on our top female artists list earlier this year. (Troy-based The Sea The Sea, who also appeared on our list, won for “Alt/Indie Artist of the Year.”) Two bands tied for “Album of the Year” honors: Saratoga’s Wild Adriatic (Feel) and Albany’s Elrod + MotherJudge (Cold Warrior), whose Caroline “MotherJudge” Isachsen died back in March.
The Eddies also honored a few artists that have broken the glass ceiling of the local music scene, garnering international fan bases for their musical output. These included Saratoga duo Phantogram, which won the “Outward Bound Artist of the Year”; and The Gibson Brothers, which has been getting national press from Rolling Stone and whose Leigh Gibson used to work at Saratoga Guitar, took home “Country/Bluegrass Artist of the Year.”
The biggest winner of the night was Troy-based solo artist Girl Blue (a.k.a. Arielle O’Keefe), who took home “Solo Artist of the Year,” “Record of the Year” (“Lolita“) and “Music Video of the Year” (a cover of Fleetwood Mac’s “Dreams“). She was also featured on saratoga living‘s top female artists list, along with fellow Eddies winners The Sea The Sea and Candy Ambulance.
Below, find the full list of winners from last night’s awards show:
Solo Artist of the Year
Girl Blue
Solo or Duo Performer of the Year (Covers Category)
Rich Ortiz
Alt/Indie Artist of the Year
The Sea The Sea
Hip Hop/Rap Artist of the Year (tie)
Johnny 2 Phones
KATANI
Party Cover Band of the Year
Garland Nelson and Soul Session
Jazz Artist of the Year
Brian Patneaude Quartet
DJ of the Year
DJ Trumastr
Country/Bluegrass Artist of the Year
The Gibson Brothers
Americana Artist of the Year
The North & South Dakotas
Rock/Pop Artist of the Year
Wild Adriatic
Punk/Metal/Hard Rock Artist of the Year
Candy Ambulance
Jam Band of the Year
Let’s Be Leonard
Blues Artist of the Year
Alana Wyld/Wyld Blu
R&B/Soul Artist of the Year
Garland Nelson
Electronica Artist of the Year
Sara Ayers
International/World Music Artist of the Year
Alex Torres & His Latin Orchestra
Classical Artist/Ensemble of the Year
Albany Symphony Orchestra
Folk/Traditional Artist of the Year
The McKrells
Music Video of the Year
Girl Blue—Dreams
Album of the Year (tie)
Elrod + MotherJudge—Cold Warrior
Wild Adriatic—Feel
Record of the Year
Girl Blue—Lolita
Outward Bound Artist of the Year
Phantogram
Promoter or Presenter of the Year
Mona Golub (Music Haven Concert Series)
Radio DJ of the Year
Chris Wienk WEXT
Concert Series of the Year
Music Haven Concert Series
Live Production Crew of the Year
High Peaks Sound
Arts Publication of the Year
nippertown.com
Music Journalist of the Year
Michael Hochanadel
Best Venue Small (up to 350 people)
Caffé Lena
Best Venue Medium (350-999 people)
The Egg
Best Venue Large (1,000 people and up)
Troy Savings Bank Music Hall
Best Live Festival Large Format
Old Songs Festival of Traditional Music & Dance
Best Live Festival Small Format
GottaGetGon Folk Festival
Photographer of the Year (tie)
Andre Pilarczyk
Kiki Vassilakis
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People’s Choice Awards
Local Music Artist of the Year
PJ Duo
Local Music Venue of the Year
Caffè Lena
Local Music Concert of the Year
Sawyer Fredericks
Caffè Lena
May 25-27, 2018
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Capital Region Music Hall of Fame Winners
Artist Lifetime Achievement
Kevin McKrell
Arts Educator or Contributions to the Area Music Scene
Ruth Pelham
