Polaris Music Prize narrows list to 10
An array of mainstream artists, Indigenous acts and rising stars comprise this year’s slate of Polaris Music Prize nominees. Among the 10 contenders revealed Thursday for the $50,000 award are Gord Downie’s Secret Path project, Leonard Cohen’s final studio effort You Want It Darker and Feist’s Pleasure.
The Polaris winner will be announced on Sept. 18 in Toronto.
INDIGENOUS VOICES
Fresh conversations were sparked in the past year over Canada’s historic mistreatment of Indigenous people and the Polaris short list includes an eclectic group of artists giving voice to the issues. Downie’s Secret Path interprets the true story of Chanie Wenjack, a young boy who died while trying to escape a residential school, while A Tribe Called Red’s pulsing We Are the Halluci Nation carries a vibrant political edge from the moment it gets underway.
TAGAQ’S RETURN
Then there’s Tanya Tagaq, the outspoken throat singer from Nunavut who wound up taking home the 2014 Polaris accolade for Animism. Among the standout tracks on Retribution is album closer Rape Me, a cover of the Nirvana song with a haunting tension set against the context of the abuse and murder of Indigenous women.
DIVERSE WOMEN
While the Juno Awards ran into criticism over the lack of female voices among its nominees earlier this year, the Polaris jury has covered a lot of territory with its selections. Lisa LeBlanc is a singer-songwriter who uses her banjo as the centrepiece on Why You Wanna Leave, Runaway Queen? while Colombian immigrant Lido Pimienta uses her Spanish album La Papessa — or high priestess — as a soapbox for issues like the global water crisis and patriarchy. Female-led indie pop band Weaves strives for esthetic originality on its self-titled debut.
NEW AWARENESS
Win or lose, several lesserknown musicians are likely to get a boost from the Polaris clout. Electronic-jazz quartet Badbadnotgood (also shortlisted in 2015 for Sour Soul, a collaboration with rapper Ghostface Killah) is in consideration for their fourth album, IV, which features a track with last year’s Polaris winner Kaytranada. Leif Vollebekk’s Twin Solitude is also due to get a second wind as new listeners are introduced the album’s folksy isolation that channels Nick Drake and the softest side of Van Morrison.
MARQUEE MISSES
Albums from global superstars Drake and The Weeknd were both selected for the long list unveiled last month, but neither made the final cut. Other prominent acts whose albums were left off the final list include Arkells, Carly Rae Jepsen, Japandroids, Mac DeMarco, the New Pornographers and the Tragically Hip.