Two North Vancouver-raised solo musicians and a local band have been nominated for Juno Awards.
Singer Laila Biali and bassist Brandi Disterheft, both Handsworth Secondary grads, are nominees for the 50th annual awards, along with indie pop band Peach Pit, it was announced yesterday by the Canadian Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences.
Biali, who now resides in Toronto, is up for Vocal Jazz Album of the Year for last year’s Out of Dust.
When the North Shore News interviewed Biali about the release of her new record last year, she had just set up an online album release event due to the COVID-19 concerns that had just emerged in Canada.
“My hope is that these songs will still reach people,” she said at the time. “My hope is that when people engage with the material they too will experience something cathartic and uplifting.”
She’ll face off against other vocal jazz nominees Diana Krall, Matt Dusk, Sammy Jackson and Sophie Day in the category.
The New York City-based Brandi Disterheft Trio with George Coleman have been nominated for Jazz Album of the Year: Group for last year’s Surfboard, a Brazilian jazz album that showcases her “inventive writing, power-socket bass playing, and sweet ethereal vocals,” according to the Juno Awards.
Peach Pit, an indie pop comprised of four North Van high school buddies, has been nominated for Breakthrough Group of the Year. The band is comprised of Neil Smith, Chris Vanderkooy, Peter Wilton, and Mikey Pascuzzi.
The band first achieved notoriety in 2016 with the release of their self-titled viral hit, which eventually surpassed 25 million streams on Spotify.
They released their debut album in 2017. A music video, “Black Licorice,” from the band’s sophomore release from last year was filmed in North Vancouver.
This year’s event features 225 nominations. The virtual presentation can be stream lived at CBC Music on Sunday, May 16 at 5 p.m. PST.
