Polaris pointing west
MUSIC: Several Vancouver-area artists up for award
WHITEHORSE, Yukon — Vancouver art-rocker Destroyer’s Poison Season, rising pop superstar Grimes’ Art Angels, heavy rockers Black Mountain’s IV, Mission-raised pop singer Carly Rae Jepsen’s Emotion and punk legend Art Bergmann’s The Apostate are among the albums on the long list for the 2016 Polaris Music Prize.
Rapper Drake and pop stars Justin Bieber and The Weeknd also had albums nominated alongside lesser-known artists like Montreal pianist Jean-Michel Blais.
Vancouver indie singersongwriter Veda Hille’s latest release Love Waves also garnered a spot on the long list of 40 albums, as did punk trio White Lung with their album Paradise.
The list was revealed Wednesday at Yukon Transportation Museum in Whitehorse.
The Polaris Music Prize, now in its 11th year, awards $50,000 to the best Canadian album regardless of sales or genre. Music writers, bloggers and broadcasters across the country help select the long list. This year, 183 albums were in the running, suggested by 192 jurors.
A short list of 10 albums, determined by another round of voting, will be announced July 14 at The Carlu in Toronto. The venue will also host the Polaris Music Prize Gala on Sept. 19, during which 11 jurors will decide on the winner. The event, featuring performances by shortlisted artists, will be streamed on CBC Music and aux.tv.
Blais, who performed a few songs at Wednesday’s announcement, was surprised his debut II made the long list.
“It’s unexpected,” he said. “It was just this simple album that we created. Having this on the long list is beautiful. I hope it will help more people discover the album.”
Each year, the Polaris Music Prize announces its long list from a different city. Whitehorse follows in the footsteps of such previous hosts as Halifax, Calgary, Montreal and Vancouver.
For details and the full list, visit polarismusicprize.ca.