-
-
Wet Leg will win Alternative categories although i want Florence to win one of them. Rock categories are weird, they can show respect to Ozzy or they can go with newer acts like Turnstile.
I don’t know why you guys are so certain about Wet Leg, I bet they will pull out a Japanese Breakfest
ReplyCopy URLI don’t know why you guys are so certain about Wet Leg, I bet they will pull out a Japanese Breakfast
I honestly think she has some good odds on her side this time. I am quite sure that Big Thief and Wet Leg will share voters, as will some of the YYY voters. Arcade Fire is the big question here. I can see them splitting votes amongst those other rock bands, but I can also see them getting the trophy on lobby solely. It will depends on whether the Academy wants the Win Butler scandal to blow at them too. But why do you think so? I also can’t picture neither Atopos nor Ovule as potential winners. Perhaps she would get a nom for being a household name and getting the alphabetical advantage on the ballots, but that’s it. I also can’t picture The Smile in there for the love of dear God unless they submitted the project like “A Light for Attracting Attention – The Smile (Radiohead members Thom Yorke and Johnny Greenwood’s new group)”.
First of all, I’d say that comparing Japanese Breakfast’s situation to Wet Leg’s is a little complicated. “Wet Leg” is literally on the bottom of the ballot and they still got not just a Best New Artist nomination, but also Best Alternative Music Performance, Alternative Music Album, Best Remixed Recording and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Also, this is their first album.
I’m sure Wet Leg and Big Thief will split some votes, but for Björk to come up with a victory, at this point on her career… it would be very odd. Not impossible, but I’m not counting on it.
Also, I have no idea if Atopos or Ovule are winning. They’re fantastic songs to me, but it’s early to say that. I just think they have a big shot on being nominated, if submitted (and I guess Björk’s team thought about this possibility, as well).
Truly, I’d say the majority of Radiohead fans heard of Thom’s new band. Even if they didn’t, A Light For Attracting Attention was stunning. It deserved a nomination!
ReplyCopy URLI’m trying to figure out FATM placement in the alt performance category I thought previously that she got the nom because Björk didn’t submit anything, so she could grab those pop enthusiast voters, but on second thought, it’s odd that she didn’t get a nomination at the album category while Arcade Fire didn’t get one in the performance category. If Arctic Monkeys had released an album in time for submission, then I believe they would have the spot AF currently upholds.
I can’t figure it out either, I wonder if Florence and AF were splitting votes in both categories? and Florence just got a few more in Performance and AF got a few more in album? Or maybe voters felt like DF was too poppy for the category but that King the song fit in Alternative?
In any case, I’d love her to win but I’d imagine that since she only got into one of two categories she doesn’t have much of a chance. Though I do wonder how much her being an older but never awarded act will factor in, since people seeing her on the ballot might be tempted to vote for her to make up for past snubs or something.
ReplyCopy URLFirst of all, I’d say that comparing Japanese Breakfast’s situation to Wet Leg’s is a little complicated. “Wet Leg” is literally on the bottom of the ballot and they still got not just a Best New Artist nomination, but also Best Alternative Music Performance, Alternative Music Album, Best Remixed Recording and Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical. Also, this is their first album. I’m sure Wet Leg and Big Thief will split some votes, but for Björk to come up with a victory, at this point on her career… it would be very odd. Not impossible, but I’m not counting on it. Also, I have no idea if Atopos or Ovule are winning. They’re fantastic songs to me, but it’s early to say that. I just think they have a big shot on being nominated, if submitted (and I guess Björk’s team thought about this possibility, as well). Truly, I’d say the majority of Radiohead fans heard of Thom’s new band. Even if they didn’t, A Light For Attracting Attention was stunning. It deserved a nomination!
Bottom of the ballot for bottom of ballot, YYYs are even lower and they scored two noms. BNA has one representative from basically each field this year and none of those other nominees in Alt were eligible for that one – it seemed to me that it was the same case with the BNA and Best Alternative Album noms Japanese Breakfest got. Best Engineered Album seems to be a little bit off with the other categories lately – alas Beck winning that category and losing to St. Vincent in Alt Album or Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga’s album winning it this year but only having traction to win one of the other 5 noms it received – and Alternative has.itself a history for occasional odd results – Arcade Fire losing this category back in 2010 but getting AOTY
Besides that, judging by the new category and the range of the nominees, this field probably got some new voters in its panel.
As for Björk, I think she has way more chances of getting an album award than a song one, and I guess that’s why OLI decided to submit her only for Alt Album. She gets a lot of hype and media coverage before releasing an album and she’s way more of an “full-body-of-work artist” than a “song” one. In this particular category, I think this is the best chance she has to win a Grammy since Medúlla for a number of reasons – everyone in the category splitting besides her, this making her the most nominated artist in the category, her being a now well stablished name and perhaps a “safer option” for some voters, the fact the voters panel might have changed, recent online popularity peaks, etc. Anyways, I think she can’t submit Atopos or Ovule anymore, perhaps another song in the album if it becomes a working single.
btw, I agree, the Smile album should be in this category, but as we know, many voters just go for lobby. As a huge Radiohead fan, I truly believe Anima was nominated in this category simply because voters saw Thom Yorke’s name in it.
ReplyCopy URLI can’t figure it out either, I wonder if Florence and AF were splitting votes in both categories? and Florence just got a few more in Performance and AF got a few more in album? Or maybe voters felt like DF was too poppy for the category but that King the song fit in Alternative? In any case, I’d love her to win but I’d imagine that since she only got into one of two categories she doesn’t have much of a chance. Though I do wonder how much her being an older but never awarded act will factor in, since people seeing her on the ballot might be tempted to vote for her to make up for past snubs or something.
I think that this is the biggest indicative that there was a change in the voters panel in this field. Both Arctic Monkeys and Arcade Fire split votes amongst themselves, I can see Florence splitting some with YYYs in this one, but they got in the Album category and she didn’t, which makes it even more odd. I think the rock leaning voters might have split between AF and AM in performance and since the latter is absent from the album submissions, that secured that WE entered the competition, that would maybe explain it.
If so, that’s somewhat good news for her, for those AF voters could go for either AM, Big Thief or Wet Leg, whilst she would have to split “only” between some of the YYYs voters. Jack Antonoff is on the producer category too, so maybe this would give her some traction.
But unfortunately the “oh, it’s been an overdue win” is not going to happen with her this time. I mean, look at Björk or Diana Ross lol.
I personally think King is the best thing in this category and that it should get the award with no further question tho. She should have gotten a nod in Rock Song too, and given how messy this field is this year, there is absolutely no excuse for her absence there.
ReplyCopy URLI’m coming around to a Big Thief win for Alt Album. They just passed Wet Leg on the Year End aggregate and sonically it’s kinda more in line with previous winners. Still, it’s definitely between the 2. IDK if I see it for Certainty though, Chaise Longue is kinda the obvious winner there. That Yeah Yeah Yeahs song is top 10 on the aggregate right now though so I’d watch out for it.
The Bjork hopedictions are getting out of control. Fossora is not her most acclaimed and it’s her least successful to date, and I highly doubt there’s a movement/narrative to give her a Grammy among voters. I guess she’s third but IDK if she’s going all the way.
ReplyCopy URLBottom of the ballot for bottom of ballot, YYYs are even lower and they scored two noms. BNA has one representative from basically each field this year and none of those other nominees in Alt were eligible for that one – it seemed to me that it was the same case with the BNA and Best Alternative Album noms Japanese Breakfest got. Best Engineered Album seems to be a little bit off with the other categories lately – alas Beck winning that category and losing to St. Vincent in Alt Album or Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga’s album winning it this year but only having traction to win one of the other 5 noms it received – and Alternative has.itself a history for occasional odd results – Arcade Fire losing this category back in 2010 but getting AOTY
Beck beat St. Vincent for Alt Album. I think you mean him winning Eng for Hyperspace and losing to Fiona Apple, but Fossora is not even close to Fetch the Bolt Cutters’ acclaim. Besides that Beck album, the last 10 engineered winners went on to win in their genre, IIRC.
That said, I agree Eng doesn’t seal the win for Wet Leg. But their album is easily the biggest in the bunch besides Arcade Fire and they do seem to have passion with the W placement. It’s also outperforming everyone’s album but Big Thief in the critics lists, and it’s pretty much neck and neck with them.
ReplyCopy URLBeck beat St. Vincent for Alt Album. I think you mean him winning Eng for Hyperspace and losing to Fiona Apple, but Fossora is not even close to Fetch the Bolt Cutters’ acclaim. Besides that Beck album, the last 10 engineered winners went on to win in their genre, IIRC. That said, I agree Eng doesn’t seal the win for Wet Leg. But their album is easily the biggest in the bunch besides Arcade Fire and they do seem to have passion with the W placement. It’s also outperforming everyone’s album but Big Thief in the critics lists, and it’s pretty much neck and neck with them.
Yup, Fiona Apple, my brain got mixed up lol.
To be fairly honest, I can’t see this category being influenced by critic’s decision. Were this the case, Björk would have gotten hers a long time ago and Beck wouldn’t have won anything for his recent projects. This category in particular is always very dissonant to YE lists everywhere, anyways.
I also think that TIW had the same level of critical acclaim FTBC had, but it wasn’t released amidst a pandemic and became the ultimate pandemic music. Besides being critically acclaimed, we have to account the fact that Fiona is a legend and that her comeback after 10 years absent prompted her public presence in pop culture a lot in 2020. Voters knew who she was and what she was doing at said moment, which I think it’s the most important thing for those awards at the end of the day.
To be fairly honest, taking in account lobby, critical acclaim, commercial success and presence in popular media, I’d say it is between Björk, YYYs (don’t count them out…) and Big Thief. I still believe this category will follow its pattern of awarding past winners and nominees over new acts, that is why while I don’t totally count them out, I think Wet Leg will not take this one. After the sexual misconduct allegations, I also can’t see AF taking this for dear life. As for Björk’s case, for reasons stated, I still think this is her best chance and I really hope she wins. This category needs a pop/electronic act winning for once, and who better to do so than the most nominated pop/electronic act in the alt field.
Also, this category tends to have some odd results anyways. Beck was the only Eng Album winner that lost in his field in 10 years as you said, and that was the first time he got a nomination in the alt field but no nominations in the rock or pop categories as far as I know, while Fiona won rock song that night. AF have never won this award, despite having AOTY. Since the field has expanded this year, I am still wondering if the voter panel changed too.
ReplyCopy URL
You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
