It’s a long way to go to play one song, but local hard rock band NSR (No Such Rules) can’t wait to play the 2009 Just Plain Folks Music Awards showcase, Aug. 28 in Nashville at BB Kings.
NSR’s song “Shaken Without Reason” from their 2006 CD “Far Removed From” was nominated out of 48 entrants in their category for best song in the alternative music category against bands from all over the world.
“I’m pretty stoked about it,” said singer Bridgette Yarwood, whose band mates include her brothers Richard and Brendon as well as bassist Colin Hart.
“My dad does a lot on internet work and promotion for us and he found out about it,” she enthused during a break from singing more lounge tinged and popular material on the Mocha Cabana patio with Joshua Fritz, Friday night.
Just Plain Folks is a non profit organization designed to support “the other 98 per cent” of independent music (some 35,000 albums released commercially in the U.S. alone each year) which is ignored by awards shows and mainstream radio.
The JPF Awards were started in 1999 as a simple way to recognize the best music submitted by members. JPF Founder Brian Austin Whitney felt the music made by the "other 98%" of the music world often ignored by the mainstream televised music awards shows deserved its own recognition. They are held every two years. NSR gets to showcase their song, Aug, 28 at the B.B King’s Blues Club.
“We were going to do a similar showcase in Las Vegas a couple years ago but we got stuck at the border because our former bass player had drug charges,” she said adding she has never been to Nashville before. If they go well on Aug. 28, they may get to play on Aug. 29 as well.
“This is a great opportunity. It definitely makes up for Las Vegas,” Yarwood said.
Just Plain Folks can be found online at http://jpfolks.com/
NSR also opened for Bif Naked when she played Coaldale last month.
“It was a blast to open for Bif Naked. I had to go home because I had a headache, but my brothers had a chance to hang out with her. She’s very professional,” Yarwood continued.
She and Joshua Fritz are also going on a five date tour with an African group called Noumoufassa and Manding Jata, which will hit the Yates Theatre, Sept. 21 and also play Medicine Hat, Calgary, Red Deer and Leduc. The event is a fund-raiser for the Bridges of Hope program which is a residential alcohol and drug rehabilitation program.
— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat