We'll announce the 2014 Westword Music Award winners tonight at Casselman's

The votes have been tallied for this year's Westword Music Awards, and the trophies are almost ready. We won't blow the surprise, but suffice it to say they will not bludgeon as effectively as last year's. Find out what they look like tonight: Thursday, June 26 at Cassleman's. An Awards'...

By Kiernan Maletsky

June 26, 2014

Audio By Carbonatix

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The votes have been tallied for this year's Westword Music Awards, and the trophies are almost ready. We won't blow the surprise, but suffice it to say they will not bludgeon as effectively as last year's. Find out what they look like tonight: Thursday, June 26 at Cassleman's. An Awards' ceremony open only to the nominated artists will take place prior to an open party for the public -- you're welcome any time after 8:30 p.m.

We have not chosen to lead this announcement with a photo from last weekend's Westword Music Showcase just because it looks cool. The Showcase and Awards are parallel projects: All of the more than 150 Denver bands that played this year's festival are nominees for an award. So are some 150 more -- in total, there are forty categories in this year's Westword Music Awards. Bands made their way onto the ballot via a nominating committee of local experts, and winners were chosen by a public vote.

All of which is to say that this awards ceremony is much less about who actually won than a chance for Westword to thank Denver musicians -- those who played last weekend and those who didn't -- for the incredible amount of work and creativity they apply to their projects. If you were one of the more than 11,000 people who attended this year's Showcase, you know their efforts have been exceedingly fruitful.

So indulge Backbeat this navel-gazing for one more day and head to Cassleman's. If you're in one of the more than 300 bands nominated for a Westword Music Award, you should have heard from us already with an invitation and RSVP details. If you haven't, email our marketing coordinator Jennifer Homan at jennifer.homan AT westword.com and she'll tell you what you need to know.

If you aren't in a band nominated for an Award, come to Casselman's at 8:30 and help us tell the musicians of this city how much we appreciate them.

Westword Music Awards Ceremony Thursday, June 26 Cassleman's, 2620 Walnut St 8:30 p.m. Free admission DJ sets by the Shining Wires, the Inactivists and Planes!

Follow @Westword_Music

Kiernan Maletsky is a former Westword intern.

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