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Ridley Bent is among a diverse group of independent musicians named as a Finalist in the 8th Annual Independent Music Awards. 

IMAFinalists will now advance to the final round of judging by adistinguished group of influential artists and industry insiders.  TheJudges who will determine this year’s IMA Winners include PeterGabriel, Suzanne Vega, Roger Daltrey, George Jones, Buddy Guy, James“Blood” Ulmer, Paquito D’Rivera, Keith Urban, Clint Black, Kurtis Blow,and many others.

Help Ridley win the Vox Populi award!!  You can vote for Ridley in the categories of Best Country Song and Best Country Album - go to the IMA site NOW to vote!

Ridley Bent has been nominated for no less than nine British Columbia Country Music Awards:
Fans' Choice
Entertainer of the Year
Male Vocalist
Ray Mcauley Horizon Award
Single of the Year (Heartland Heartbreak)
Album of the Year (Buckles and Boots)
SOCAN Songwriter of the Year
Website of the Year
Roots/Canadiana Award
In addition, the producer of Buckles and Boots (John Ellis) and three of Ridley's band members (Rob Becker, Simon Kendal, and John Ellis) have been nominated for awards in their respective categories.The 32nd Annual BCCMA Awards Show will be held on Sunday, October 26, 2008 at the Red Robinson Theatre in Coquitlam, B.C.

Congratulations to Ridley, who won the Galaxie Rising Star Award's first prize at the Edmonton Folk Music Festival in August. Little Miss Higgins was runner up. The judges were Tom Coxworth (radio host of Folk Routes on CKUA), Aimee Hill (publicist) and Roddy Campbell (editor of Penguin Eggs).

We're very excited to announce that Ridley Bent and his album Buckles and Boots have received three nominations from the Canadian Country Music Association Awards:

- Top New Talent of the Year
- Roots Artist or Group of the Year
- Record Producer of the Year (John McArthur Ellis for Buckles And Boots)

Congratulations to Ridley, John, and all the other nominees.

The CCMA winners will be announced on Monday, September 8, 2008 at Country Music Week in Winnipeg, MB. If you'd like to attend, buy tickets at Ticketmaster. Or tune in to CBC at 8:00pm EST to watch!

BUCKLES & BOOTS - 4 ½ Stars
Reviewed By: Kindah Mardam Bey

Although my Country & Western days have come and gone (it was a thing!), I could quite easily get addicted again after listening to Ridley Bent's debut album Buckles & Boots. This is a mint collection of eleven tracks that are character driven tales of love, fun, and some rowdy cowboy lifestyle; that starts with a great rodeo intro for 'Slim Chance.' Buckles and Boots has a great tongue-in-cheek nature to the songs at times, but also are full of interesting stories, making this album easy to listen to.

Catchy storytelling set to lyrics may be Bent's style, but it is the melodies that are memorable and his delivery which is equally unique. It is true to say that Ridley Bent is a throwback to the music legends previous to the post-Chris Gaines-generation; artists like Johnny Cash, George Jones, Willie Nelson, and Dolly Parton. The music was a canvas for imagery and emotion before all these vague declarations of love and what it means to be a cowboy/girl that these present day country and western singers seem to sing about. Mind you, Bent's songs aren't just a repetition of the oldies and goodies, he has mixed the storytelling that made the legends…well the legends, with a bit of belting guitar and violin, with a knack for telling stories about people today and events today. Drug busts in schools or girlfriends with 'Faded Red Hoodies' are the subject matter of this well-shaped debut.

Easy hits are found in the title track 'Buckles and Boots,' 'Nine Inch Nails' (which was hilarious to hear WolfMother and Nine Inch Nails in a C&W track!) and 'Faded Red Hoodie.' But other tracks, perhaps not set for the top ten but 'gems' among a solid collection could be found in the poetic 'Arlington' and the quasi-rap track with a brilliant guitar solo 'Apache Hairlifter.'

Bent needs no introduction; when he makes his first music video, he'll hit the country and western world stage with a tidal wave force that will have a huge rippling after affect.

http://www.anevibe.com/music-reviews/ridley-bent-buckles-boots.html

Probably the closest thing Canada has to the beer-swilling, cowboy-hat-wearing country performers south of the border is Vancouver's Ridley Bent. Although Buckles And Boots, Bent's sophomore effort, was recorded in BC, it sounds straight out of Nashville, especially the title track, a perfect song for a night of line dancing.

Other tunes are a little more subdued. Nine Inch Nails is a twangy swing number filled with slide guitar and old-time piano, while Arlington is a passionate acoustic track that leans more toward Americana than hard-core country.

New country fans will love this disc, and Bent's sensitive Canadian roots make it a lot less cheesy than some of the million-copy sellers down south.

BRYAN BORZYKOWSKI

NOW Magazine

This is from today's Toronto Star, 3.5 out of 4!

RIDLEY BENT Buckles & Boots (Open Road) --------

Halifax-born, Alberta-raised, Vancouver-based Bent practises country music of the big-hat-and-high-boots variety, but adds to the formula a uniquely Canadian trait: a penchant for strong and compelling narratives that don't sound like greeting card content or plots for domestic melodramas. He's funny, incisive, witty and an exceptionally literate lyricist, and he knows how to rock out. There's not a wasted track – or a single sentimental waste of time – on this album, but "Nine Inch Nails," a caustic tale of love on the rocks, makes a good Top track.

Greg Quill

Some exciting Ridley Bent News:

Ridley's song "Nine Inch Nails" off the new record "Buckles and Boots" is the Free iTunes Download of the week. Please download this track even if you already have it and if you have time maybe write something nice in the comments. Theres a few unenlightened souls out there bagging on the country and its always nice to read something positive.

Also a reminder Ridley Bent at the VECC (Vancouver East Cultural Center) with a large country band and solo acoustic.. DEC 7th..doors @ 7:30 show @ 8.. The Venue is located at Victoria Ave and Venebles near the Wise Club..

Thanks a Million
Ridley

Ridley Bent is a Word-slinger, hip-hop rhymin, bonafide campfire storyteller. Dustin Bentall has the blue blood of a cowboy coursing through his veins and the musical talent of a legend to boot. Cameron Latimer is a tender-hearted songwriter with a mean sense of melody and a wicked sense of song.

Together Ridley Bent, Dustin Bentall, and Cameron Latimer form the Bottle and the Truth, a stampede of songwriters, storytellers and grade A musicians.

The Bottle and the Truth will be hitting the road this July on select dates in Western Canada!

Visit the Bottle and the Truth MySpace Page