It’s that time of year again. Large men with bushy beards in red clobber who are not hipsters abseiling down your roof. Giddy delinquent reindeers with red hooters ignoring the rules of the road. Eejits in festive jumpers wrecking your buzz in every pub and club in the land. Credit-card bills matching the GDP of a small European country. It can only be Christmas.
On the Record believes in traditions and one of these is to round up the winners and losers of the previous 12 months and reward them with a special OTR gong in the final issue of the year’s Ticket. We do this because we believe in generosity, diplomacy, peace on Earth, playing nice, karma and doing what everyone else is doing.
But while the end of the year means round-ups of every kind – and the award season is just around the corner too for good measure – the OTR Gongs have become the awards many of the recipients don’t want to see on their mantelpiece for various reasons.
So, before you resume last night’s assault on that box of biscuits or lace into that bottle of liquor, here are this year’s recipients.
Promoter of the Year
Darryl Downey for the Killarney Festival of Music and Food.
Frank Sinatra of the Year
Adele. She really did do it her way.
Limerickman of the Year
Aphex Twin, who came good about his Treaty City connections on the back of a Choice Music Prize nomination.
Blue Arse Fly of the Year
Hozier. We estimate that he must have played at least 250 shows last year. Bet he can't wait to check out his current account balance over the Christmas on the back of all those gigs.
Nicky Rackard of the Year
Ed Sheeran. That's the first appearance by a lad in a Wexford GAA jersey in front of a full house at Croke Park in quite some time.
The Johannes Gutenberg Gong for Services to the Printing Industry
Imro for The Socio-Economic Contribution of Music to the Irish Economy, the latest report into the Irish music industry. Now it's up to Imro to actually do something on the back of it.
ROFLOL of the Year
The all-star press conference to launch the Tidal streaming service.
Dude of the Year
Tony Fenton. We miss you, bud.
Gobshite of the Year Ten Walls for that homophobic outburst over the summer.
Irish Festival of the Year
Metropolis - for showing that you don't need fields or the summer or tents to put on a musical bash.
Irish Festival of Other Years
It was 25 years since Féile landed in Thurles and the various bits and pieces to mark the occasion reminded you of another world and a time far, far away.
Irish Festival of Next Year
Will 2016 be the year when the music festival bubble finally bursts or starts to deflate? A lot of people will be hoping the mania continues for the sake of their P&L spreadsheets.
Music Film of the Year
Amy. A superb, pointed and desperately sad profile of an amazing talent.
'You're Still Here?' Gong of the Year
NME, which became a freesheet in 2015 to little effect.
M&A Gong of the Year
Condé Nast, for buying Pitchfork to get closer to the online magazine's millennial males and Jet fans.
