Summer Blanket

Best Local Songwriter
Keith Michaud

It's sort of embarrassing to admit you actually liked Dashboard Confessional (anyone remember Chris Carrabba?) or the misbegotten emo genre. But for better or worse, all those heart-emblazoned-on-sleeve songs made folks start to pay attention to lyrics again, and when it comes to Keith Michaud, the rewards are nearly endless. With his genteel band Maypop and now with the equally genteel Summer Blanket, this Boca Ratonian has gradually unveiled a literate, thoughtful, and increasingly complex style. "I douse myself in alcohol to cover up the smell of funerals," like most of his best lines, doesn't come from the happiest of places, and his voice (think a slightly less-ragged Jeff Tweedy of Wilco) carefully ekes pleasure from the pain. The primarily acoustic Charm Wrestling (2003) and its more energetic follow-up, the aptly named Whisper Louder (2005), show that, even when he's annoyingly self-referential and more than a little hard on himself, he somehow forces the rank of legendary singer-songwriters to make room for a new South Florida sad sack. - New Times - Broward / Palm Beach

Best Album of the Past 12 Months
Charm Wrestling by Summer Blanket

There might soon be a pill, if it's approved, and it probably will be, that would wipe out negative memories from the human brain permanently. Regret. Heartbreak. Failure. Your significant other throwing a pair of scissors at you. Anything your brain encodes as distressing. Before we all turn into Stepford wives, listen to Charm Wrestling, the debut album from Summer Blanket, and soak up the regret and heartbreak of Keith Michaud's voice as it glides over the dystopia of South Florida with achingly beautiful, blissful rock and the pastoral hues of something straining to break out of this water-logged state. - New Times - Broward / Palm Beach