Final Fantasy Takes the Polaris Music Prize

Final Fantasy’s Owen Pallett was awarded the inaugural Polaris Music Prize for his second album, He Poos Clouds on September 18. The one-man avant-orchestra sealed the deal with a two-song performance that brought the house down. Regarding his victory, Pallett said, "I always feel like Canadian critics, especially, have for a long time, been hesitant to get behind something and say, ‘Hey this is really great.’ It’s just part of the Canadian mentality. I think the best thing about the Polaris prize is it’s maybe going to set a precedent for people to actually get behind our artists.” The musician said he’ll use the $20,000 award to pay off his boyfriend’s student loan and help fund more records for the Blocks Recording Club label.