Polaris short list has an electro-leaning sound
Ten finalists named for $30,000 prize
The Polaris Music Prize, which is awarded to the Canadian artist who makes the album of the year, announced its 10 short-list nominees on Tuesday in toronto. these artists include such well-known, top-selling performers as rapper Drake and singer-songwriter Leslie Feist, and some less-established acts, such as Cold Specks, a goth-soul singer from Brampton, Ont., and Yamantaka//sonic Titan, a kabuki-clad metal act with members from Montreal, Toronto and Alberta.
“Thirty-grand will help us out – we want to tour Canada and it’s far, a lot of driving and that’s a lot of gas,” said Ruby Kato Attwood, the 32-year-old lead singer of the Yamantaka//sonic Titan art collective, who earned a nomination for her band’s debut record.
“The nomination’s a little surprising because we just cooked the album up in the basement, but to be nominat- ed with artists who’ve made such deserving records – not to mention who have careers I respect as a fledgling musician – it’s a big deal to us, for sure.”
Started in 2006, the award, which comes with a $30,000 cash prize, aims to ignore popularity and sales figures, and has previously honoured such disparate musicians as Caribou, F--ked Up, Patrick Watson and last year’s winner, Arcade Fire.
Chosen by a Canada-wide jury made up of 150 music critics and writers, the short list of 10 albums was whittled down after the long list of 40 records was announced in June. Other acts to have survived this second round of voting include Kathleen Edwards, for her personal indie rock record Voyageur; recently disbanded Montreal duo Handsome Furs, for the dance-punk album Sound Kapital, and cadence weapon, a rapper from Edmonton now based in Montreal, recognized for his arty third record, Hope in Dirt City.
“I was on the short list in 2006 and at that time I felt like an alien,” says Cadence Weapon, the 26-year-old born Rollie Pemberton, who recently wrapped a tour with fellow short-list nominees Japandroids and who also frequently collaborates with the Montreal-based artist Grimes, who also appears on the electro-leaning 2012 list.
“I’ve always felt like an outsider in terms of what I’ve been doing, but now – thanks to the Internet and cross-pollination of genres – that sound is coming into the mainstream.”
The winner will be announced Sept. 24 at a gala in Toronto, where it’s become tradition for all of the finalists to perform. (The final nominee on the 2012 short-list is F--ked Up, winner of the prize in 2009). While it’s still early to predict a favourite, artists we spoke to feel the momentum gathering for Grimes, a.k.a. Claire Boucher.
“I love all the nominees, but we’re probably most proud of Grimes,” Attwood said. “The way she works and the style of her music, I think she’s had a really cool year.”
Cadence Weapon, who used to live a few blocks from Grimes and remembers trading demos with her, concedes that she seems to be all the rage. “Right now Claire feels very of the moment,” he said. “I’ve been looking at Twitter and that seems to be what people are saying, but there’s also some chatter saying this is my year. Either way, I couldn’t be more stoked.”