Glad you guys could join us for this, the presentation of the 25th annual Gummy Awards! We promise we'll keep this thing under three hours (har). It's time for us to honor those characters in the indie rock world that drew our heartfelt admiration and tapped our deepest snark; these are the albums that rocked our worlds, the bands that wouldn't go the fuck away, and the rockers that we thought about inappropriately and at inappropriate times. But of course, when we say "us," we mean you! Y'all hit the poll booths hard, and you (mostly) showed your good taste. We're proud of ya! And we're psyched to finally have someone to talk about the Gummy results with. So without further ado ...
 | 30 COLD WAR KIDS Stream: Cold War Kids - "Hospital Beds" (Hype Machine) | |
|---|---|---|
 | 29 FINAL FANTASY Stream: Final Fantasy - "The Arctic Circle" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 28 BOB DYLAN Stream: Bob Dylan - "Thunder On The Mountain" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 27 CLIPSE Stream: Clipse - "Ride Around Shining" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 26 THE KILLERS Stream: The Killers - "When You Were Young" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 25 LIARS Stream: Liars - "The Other Side Of Mt. Heart Attack" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 24 THE THERMALS Download: The Thermals - "A Pillar Of Salt" (MP3) | |
 | 23 YEAH YEAH YEAHS Stream: Yeah Yeah Yeahs - "Cheated Hearts" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 22 TAPES 'N TAPES Download: Tapes 'N Tapes - "Insistor" (MP3) | |
 | 21 GIRL TALK Download: Girl Talk - "Hold Up" (MP3) | |
 | 20 REGINA SPEKTOR Stream: Regina Spektor - "Fidelity" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 19 MIDLAKE Stream: Midlake - "Roscoe" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 18 SUNSET RUBDOWN Download: Sunset Rubdown - "Stadiums And Shrines II" (MP3) | |
 | 17 GNARLS BARKLEY Stream: Gnarls Barkley - "Crazy" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 16 THOM YORKE Stream: Thom Yorke - "Harrowdown Hill" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 15 HOT CHIP Stream: Hot Chip - "Over And Over" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 14 BELLE & SEBASTIAN Download: Belle & Sebastian - "Another Sunny Day" (MP3 | |
 | 13 BEIRUT Download: Beirut - "Postcards From Italy" (MP3) | |
 | 12 CAT POWER | |
 | 11 JENNY LEWIS WITH THE WATSON TWINS Download: Jenny Lewis - Rabbit Fur Coat LP (MP3s) | |
 | 10 M. WARD Stream: M. Ward - "Magic Trick" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 09 THE KNIFE Stream: The Knife - "We Share Our Mother's Health" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 08 BAND OF HORSES Download: Band Of Horses - "The Funeral" (MP3) | |
 | 07 DESTROYER Stream: Destroyer - "European Oils" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 06 NEKO CASE Download: Neko Case - "Star Witness" (MP3) | |
 | 05 THE DECEMBERISTS Stream: The Decemberists - "The Crane Wife 1 And 2" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 04 JOANNA NEWSOM Stream: Joanna Newsom - "Emily" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 03 GRIZZLY BEAR Download: Grizzly Bear - "On A Neck, On A Spit" (MP3) | |
 | 02 TV ON THE RADIO Stream: TV On The Radio - "Wolf Like Me" (Hype Machine) | |
 | 01 THE HOLD STEADY Download: The Hold Steady - "Chips Ahoy" (MP3) |
Love 'em or hate 'em, the Holdy Steady bring out the vote. Also, they're the most polarizing act in indie rock (see below). Sufjan was last year's big winner with Illinoise, but the outtakes and Xmas boxed set didn't make a dent this year. Way to not forget about Destroyer, y'all. We're curious to see if you guys are as prescient as you were last December; in addition to Soof, the Top 5 included Wolf Parade, Bloc Party, Clap Your Hands, and Spoon. Even if you don't agree with the picks, gotta admit those records are still hot-buttons, getting loved and lambasted all the way through '06. Joanna Newsom still inspiring high praise and hatred in '07? It's a good bet.
Oh, but there's so much more.
After the jump, Mr. and Miss Indie Rock '06, Most Overblogged Act, Best Music Blog (Aside From The 'Gum), and The "What Do We Do With Ryan Adams?" Award.
MR. INDIE ROCK 2006
10. Thom Yorke
09. Zach Condon
08. Conor Oberst
07. Ed Droste
06. Beck
05. Spencer Krug
04. Ryan Adams
03. Colin Meloy
02. Craig Finn
01. Sufjan Stevens
For a second year running, the man you would let indie rock your boat any day is Mr. Sufjan Stevens. Just goes to show that you don't need a proper album release to be deemed dreamy. Craig at #2, that's giving hope to Kerouac-loving, bespectacled drunks worldwide. Some of you "unintentionally" placed ladies in the men's box, so we did some shifting; but the vote for "Imogen Heap (hot drag queen)" was logged as an official vote for Mr. Indie Rock. You guys are Frou funny. And hey thanks for those votes for "Scott" and "Amrit," but so few of you thought that was a cute idea that we came in dead last, behind Michael Richards. So, really, thanks. Well, guys and gals, we present you with your #1 stud for another 365.
MISS INDIE ROCK 2006
10. Lovefoxxx
09. Karen O
08. Regina Spektor
07. Feist
06. Emily Haines
05. Lily Allen
04. Neko Case
03. Joanna Newsom
02. Jenny Lewis
01. Chan Marshall
We figured this was gonna be a three-way race, but we weren't sure if Joanna or Chan had enough to take down last year's reigning Miss Indie Rock. But you guys have spoken: This was the year of the Cat. The Grammys may have snubbed you, Ms. Marshall, but the Gummys love ya. We still aren't sure what you're on about with that SNL nonsense, but it's your goodwill to burn; between The Greatest, the sobriety, and the Lagerfeld, looks like you are on fiyah. Just don't start dating K Fed. Or Britney. Placing in a notable #11 was El Perro Del Mar, which made us happy. Who wouldn't want some Swedish Assbring action in there? We're assuming the vote for "NOT armpit girl" was a vote against Lily (so noted). We're also assuming the vote for "girls are gross" came from a guy in dire need of a date (ladies?), who was narrowly defeated for maturity champion by the votes for "your mom."
MOST OVERBLOGGED ACT OF THE YEAR
10. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
09. Gnarls Barkley
08. Joanna Newsom
07. The Decemberists
06. Sufjan Stevens
05. The Killers
04. Cold War Kids
03. The Hold Steady
02. Tapes 'N Tapes
01. Arctic Monkeys
Welcome To Hatemonger's Ball. Dig that overlap with the top albums. Nothing is as polarizing as tapping The Boss for inspiration, it seems. Alex Turner already anticipated your verdict with his album title, but you guys still handed the A'Monks their collective ass on a platter. Dishonorable mentions go to CSS, Panic!, MCR and "all of them." And Pitchfork doesn't qualify as an "act" (arguable, we know), so we had to discount those votes.
BEST MUSIC BLOG (ASIDE FROM STEREOGUM)
10. I Guess I'm Floating
09. Idolator
08. Said The Gramophone
07. Fluxblog
06. My Old Kentucky Blog
05. Chromewaves
04. You Ain't No Picasso
03. Largehearted Boy
02. Gorilla Vs. Bear
01. Brooklyn Vegan
Again, a lot of you voted for that Pitchfork thing on this one, so we checked out the site and saw that it isn't really a "blog." So your votes have been duly noted, though not reflected on this list. We also set aside your (much appreciated) votes for Stereogum, but this is about our friends in blogging. So congrats to all that made the list! Better luck next year Gerard! And below is an official portrait of your winning vegan from Brooklyn. Handsome screenshot, isn't he?
HOW MANY ALBUMS SHOULD RYAN ADAMS RELEASE IN 2007?
Zero (42%)
Three Or More (28%)
One (20%)
Two (10%)
Guess you guys think Ry is due for a break. But how are we ever gonna find out who Anna Sarris is? And won't you miss his vintage t-shirt collection?
And there you have it. Thank you all for voting, even if it meant we endured endless red bulls and late-night ballot-counting sessions. It's a labor of love. Complaints about the results? Direct 'em all to YOU, 'cause YOU voted for 'em! But if the electoral process has left you feeling like a Blue stater, now's your chance to set the record straight with your Top Fives. Let's hear 'em...
