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Art by Zeke Barbaro Not throwing an epic wing-ding after the dreadful and disillusioning last 12 months remains a bitter pill to pop. This community deserves one. That said, not having an in-person Austin Music Awards is a no-brainer. No tradition s worth risking the health of people we care about – not even a homegrown legacy show. So instead of orchestrating a diminished version of something we ve done for 38 consecutive years, the Chronicle decided on something totally different: bringing the AMAs to the winners. Emcee Kevin Curtin behind the wheel (Photo by David Brendan Hall) In an homage to the Publishers Clearing House Prize television commercials from decades ago, we transformed a 1995 Dodge band van into a “Winners Wagon” and surprised the top vote-getters of the 2020/2021 Austin Music Poll at their homes. ....
Austin Music Awards, held at the Moody Theater on March 11, turned out to be the final show I attended in 2020. That also proved the last time I dressed up with a tiny purse, saw those friends you only run into at shows, and went out on the patio to talk shit about Austin music. While the 40th annual Austin Music Poll can t account for such nuances, it addresses the ongoing pandemic head-on. Detailed last week in The Austin Music Poll Got COVID-19, (Music, Jan. 8), the ballot winnowed down to 20 categories and the Hall of Fame as spearheaded by the coronavirus-specific new categories including Best Livestreaming Artist, Best 2020-Themed Song, and Musician Who Went Above & Beyond. As evidenced by passionate emails for broadening the Best Online Series category, the Poll and the Austin Music Awards they bestow still mean a lot locally after four long decades. A body of 600 homegrown music professionals helped determine the multiple-choice nominees, now online at ....