Junos will feature local acts

This Sunday, Canada will celebrate its best in music at the Juno Awards in Winnipeg. And with a number of local acts nominated, the Hamilton and Burlington area are well represented.

Some of the musicians who are making the trip to Winnipeg include Ryan Marshall from Walk Off the Earth who will be leaving Friday. The Burlington based band is nominated for three awards and they will be performing as well — and as is their trademark, it will be one to watch.

When Walk Off the Earth performs at the Juno’s this Sunday, they plan on making a unique impression, but singer Ryan Marshall won’t say much more: “It’s one of those things you can’t really give away.”

He says that they try to bring the experience from their YouTube channel to the stage. And the national stage is much bigger so they will bring more: “I can say we’re going to play two songs molded into one, maybe I can’t say that, well I did.  Ya, we’ll say that.”

Off the success of their album Revo, the band is nominated three times — for best group, fan choice and album of the year. But they are one of a number of local acts who are being considered: “It’s something about the Burlington bubble, and the whole Hamilton music scene — I don’t know what it is.”

Fresh off a win last year, Hamilton band Monster Truck has been nominated for rock album of the year. Other local nominees include Harrison Kennedy for blues album of the year. Lee Harvey Osmond for roots and traditional album of the year. And The City Harmonic for contemporary christian/gospel album of the year.

And as much fun as the bands are planning to have this year in Winnipeg, they say they’re waiting for next year when the party will be brought here to Hamilton.”

It has been 13 years since the Juno’s were held here so a large delegation from the city is headed to Winnipeg. Susan Monarch is Manager of Tourism and Creative Industries:
“Global Spectrum are heading out, Carmen’s are heading out, as well as staff from Liuna Station, so we’re going out there — it’s a fact finding mission. We want to be the best we can possibly be when the events held here in Hamilton.”

And the delegation from Hamilton will be hosting an event in Winnipeg just before this years show in the hope of building anticipation for 2015 which they are hoping to knock it out of the park.