U2 ARE expected to dominate the Meteor Ireland Music Awards, having been nominated in three categories, including best Irish band.
The 11-time winners are also nominated for best Irish album for
No Line on the Horizon
, although it has not had the commercial success of its predecessors.
They were also nominated for best live performance for their three shows at Croke Park last year.
Bell X1, who had a stellar year in 2009, have also been nominated in the same three categories. Their album Blue Lights on the Runwaywent to No 1 in the Irish charts and spawned their most successful single to date in The Great Defector.
The Coronas were nominated in the best Irish band category and for their album Tony was an Ex-Con.
Guitarist and vocalist Danny O’Reilly said the nomination was a reward for the effort they put into their new album. The band have just completed a tour of Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia.
“We spent a lot of time on the record and put everything into it. It’s nice to be nominated alongside bands that you grew up listening to like U2 and Snow Patrol,” he said.
There were few surprises among the nominations, except the inclusion of the relatively unknown Dublin singer Valerie Francis ahead of last years winner Imelda May in the best Irish female category.
The awards ceremony take place on February 19th at the RDS in Dublin.
PUBLIC VOTING CATEGORIES:
BEST IRISH BAND
Bell X1
The Coronas
Delorentos
Snow Patrol
U2
BEST IRISH MALE
Colin Devlin
Jerry Fish
Jack L
Christy Moore
Mundy
BEST IRISH FEMALE
Wallis Bird
Julie Feeney
Valerie Francis
Laura Izibor
Dolores O’Riordan
BEST IRISH POP ACT
Delorentos
Laura Izibor
The Blizzards
The Script
Westlife
BEST IRISH ALBUM
Blue Lights On The Runway- Bell X1
Tony Was An Ex-Con- The Coronas
The Duckworth Lewis Method- The Duckworth Lewis Method
Up To Now- Snow Patrol
No Line On The Horizon- U2
BEST IRISH LIVE PERFORMANCE
Bell X1
Christy Moore
The Script
Snow Patrol
U2
