As likely intended, "definitive" lists posted by too many music publications are just magnets for controversy, inviting arguments and comment wars.
Well, the folks over at Spin have recently joined in, listing what they simply call the "Top 10 Canadian Musicians". And perhaps the most offensive part of the list is the fact that it's so damn inoffensive, playing it safe with indie-friendly choices like Stars and Broken Social Scene, alongside no-brainers like Sloan and the Guess Who.
As a country that has produced acts as dangerous as Fucked Up, as mysterious as Godspeed You! Black Emperor, as influential as D.O.A., or even as universally reviled as Nickelback, this list seems so effortless that it almost hurts.
At least they got one thing right: there are few, if any, valid arguments to prove why Neil Young shouldn't be sitting at the top of the heap.
Here's the full list:
1. Neil Young
2. Rush
3. The Band
4. The Guess Who
5. Joni Mitchell
6. Sloan
7. Metric
8. Sam Roberts
9. Broken Social Scene
10. Stars
Well, the folks over at Spin have recently joined in, listing what they simply call the "Top 10 Canadian Musicians". And perhaps the most offensive part of the list is the fact that it's so damn inoffensive, playing it safe with indie-friendly choices like Stars and Broken Social Scene, alongside no-brainers like Sloan and the Guess Who.
As a country that has produced acts as dangerous as Fucked Up, as mysterious as Godspeed You! Black Emperor, as influential as D.O.A., or even as universally reviled as Nickelback, this list seems so effortless that it almost hurts.
At least they got one thing right: there are few, if any, valid arguments to prove why Neil Young shouldn't be sitting at the top of the heap.
Here's the full list:
1. Neil Young
2. Rush
3. The Band
4. The Guess Who
5. Joni Mitchell
6. Sloan
7. Metric
8. Sam Roberts
9. Broken Social Scene
10. Stars
