Lemon Bucket Orkestra among top folk award contenders

Scottish-Canadian carpenter-turned-songwriter David Francey, fiddler Jaron Freeman-Fox and Lemon Bucket Orkestra, the self-proclaimed balkan-klezmer-gypsy-party-punk band, have tied as lead nominees for the Canadian Folk Music Awards, announced today in Calgary.

Singer Francey, who lives in Ontario's Lanark Highlands township, earned nominations for his albumSo Say We Allin multiple categories, including producer of the year, solo artist, English-language songwriter and contemporary album.

Jaron Freeman-Fox & The Opposite of Everything's self-titled album is up for instrumental group, world group, producer of the year (David Travers-Smith) and the pushing the boundaries category. Freeman-Fox and company have been described as Tom Waits playing the fiddle, backed up by the Mahavishnu Orchestra."

The rambunctious, 15-piece Lemon Bucket Orkestra was nominated for its recordingLume, Lume, competing for instrumental group, world group artist, traditional album and new/emerging artist. The Toronto-based "orkestra made headlines last year when a viral video of the band showed the group performing for passengers aboard a delayed Air Canada flight.

• Delayed Air Canada flight gets a dose of Klezmer

Toronto's Justin Rutledge, a singer-songwriter with a notable literary bent (author Michael Ondaatje co-wrote songs on Rutledge's 2010 recording, The Early Widows), won three nominations for his latest album Valleyheart. He is up against Francey in two categories: English-language songwriter and contemporary album. Rutledge is also nominated for contemporary singer of the year.

Other nominees include:

• Instrumental group of the year: The Boxcar Boys, Jaron Freeman-Fox & The Opposite of Everything, Gordon Grdina's Haram, Lemon Bucket Orkestra, The Log Drivers.
• Solo artist of the year: Maria Dunn, Stephen Fearing, David Francey, Lynn Miles, John Wort Hannam.
• Ensemble of the year: Genticorum, Good Lovelies, Mary Jane Lammond and Wendy MacIsaac, Corin Raymond & The Sundowners, Vishtn.
• Contemporary singer of the year: Stephen Fearing, Old Man Luedecke, Justin Rutledge, Ian Sherwood, John Wort Hannam.
• French songwriter of the year: Chantal Archambault, Louis-Jean Cormier, Catherine Durand, Alexis Normand, Dany Placard.
• English songwriter of the year: David Francey, Old Man Luedecke, Lynn Miles, Justin Rutledge, John Wort Hannam.
• Traditional album of the year: Pharis Romero and Jason Romero, Lemon Bucket Orkestra, Vishtn, Mary Jane Lammond and Wendy MacIsaac, Erynn Marshall.

In addition to the main awards, two special honours will be announced prior to the gala: the unsung hero award and innovator of the year.

The 2013 Canadian Folk Music Awards will be handed out Nov. 10 in Calgary.