One of the biggest moments on the Canadian music calendar has arrived, as the Polaris Music Prize has unveiled the long list of 40 nominees who are vying for the 2015 instalment of the prestigious annual award.
As always, the Polaris Music Prize honours the year's best Canadian album. The records up for the 2015 award were all released between June 2014 and May 2015, and they were selected by a national jury of journalists, broadcasters and bloggers. The nominees were chosen based solely on artistic merit.
Without further ado, this year's nominees are:
Absolutely Free - Absolutely Free.
The Acorn - Vieux Loup
Lydia Ainsworth - Right From Real
Alvvays - Alvvays
Arkells - High Noon
Rich Aucoin - Ephemeral
BADBADNOTGOOD & Ghostface Killah - Sour Soul
Bahamas - Bahamas Is Afie
The Barr Brothers - Sleeping Operator
Braids - Deep in the Iris
Steph Cameron - Sad-Eyed Lonesome Lady
Caribou - Our Love
Jazz Cartier - Marauding in Paradise
Jennifer Castle - Pink City
Cold Specks - Neuroplasticity
Louis-Jean Cormier - Les grandes artères
Death From Above 1979 - The Physical World
Drake - If You're Reading This It's Too Late
Frazey Ford - Indian Ocean
Tobias Jesso Jr. - Goon
B.A. Johnston - Shit Sucks
Pierre Kwenders - Le dernier empereur Bantou
Lee Harvey Osmond - Beautiful Scars
Jean Leloup - À Paradis City
METZ - II
Milk & Bone - Little Mourning
Tre Mission - Stigmata
The New Pornographers - Brill Bruisers
Joel Plaskett - The Park Avenue Sobriety Test
Buffy Sainte-Marie - Power in the Blood
Elizabeth Shepherd - The Signal
Siskiyou - Nervous
Colin Stetson and Sarah Neufeld - Never Were the Way She Was
Various Artists - Native North America (Vol. 1): Aboriginal Folk, Rock and Country, 1966-1985
Viet Cong - Viet Cong
Patrick Watson - Love Songs for Robots
The Weather Station - Loyalty
White Lung - Deep Fantasy
Whitehorse - Leave No Bridge Unburned
Young Guv - Ripe 4 Luv
These names were unveiled today (June 16) at the Carleton in Halifax. After this, the jury will vote again, and the short list of 10 finalists will be revealed on July 16 at the Carlu in Toronto. It will all culminate in a gala at the Calu on September 21, when the ultimate winner will be named.
This year's winner take home a grand prize of $50,000 (up from the previous prize of $30,000). The nine runners up will each get $3,000.
Past winners of the Polaris Music Prize are Final Fantasy (2006), Patrick Watson (2007), Caribou (2008), Fucked Up (2009), Karkwa (2010), Arcade Fire (2011), Feist (2012), Godspeed You! Black Emperor (2013) and Tanya Tagaq (2014).
Polaris is also planning to launch the Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, honouring Canadian albums released in the decades prior to the prize's inaugural instalment in 2006.
As always, the Polaris Music Prize honours the year's best Canadian album. The records up for the 2015 award were all released between June 2014 and May 2015, and they were selected by a national jury of journalists, broadcasters and bloggers. The nominees were chosen based solely on artistic merit.
Without further ado, this year's nominees are:
Absolutely Free - Absolutely Free.
The Acorn - Vieux Loup
Lydia Ainsworth - Right From Real
Alvvays - Alvvays
Arkells - High Noon
Rich Aucoin - Ephemeral
BADBADNOTGOOD & Ghostface Killah - Sour Soul
Bahamas - Bahamas Is Afie
The Barr Brothers - Sleeping Operator
Braids - Deep in the Iris
Steph Cameron - Sad-Eyed Lonesome Lady
Caribou - Our Love
Jazz Cartier - Marauding in Paradise
Jennifer Castle - Pink City
Cold Specks - Neuroplasticity
Louis-Jean Cormier - Les grandes artères
Death From Above 1979 - The Physical World
Drake - If You're Reading This It's Too Late
Frazey Ford - Indian Ocean
Tobias Jesso Jr. - Goon
B.A. Johnston - Shit Sucks
Pierre Kwenders - Le dernier empereur Bantou
Lee Harvey Osmond - Beautiful Scars
Jean Leloup - À Paradis City
METZ - II
Milk & Bone - Little Mourning
Tre Mission - Stigmata
The New Pornographers - Brill Bruisers
Joel Plaskett - The Park Avenue Sobriety Test
Buffy Sainte-Marie - Power in the Blood
Elizabeth Shepherd - The Signal
Siskiyou - Nervous
Colin Stetson and Sarah Neufeld - Never Were the Way She Was
Various Artists - Native North America (Vol. 1): Aboriginal Folk, Rock and Country, 1966-1985
Viet Cong - Viet Cong
Patrick Watson - Love Songs for Robots
The Weather Station - Loyalty
White Lung - Deep Fantasy
Whitehorse - Leave No Bridge Unburned
Young Guv - Ripe 4 Luv
These names were unveiled today (June 16) at the Carleton in Halifax. After this, the jury will vote again, and the short list of 10 finalists will be revealed on July 16 at the Carlu in Toronto. It will all culminate in a gala at the Calu on September 21, when the ultimate winner will be named.
This year's winner take home a grand prize of $50,000 (up from the previous prize of $30,000). The nine runners up will each get $3,000.
Past winners of the Polaris Music Prize are Final Fantasy (2006), Patrick Watson (2007), Caribou (2008), Fucked Up (2009), Karkwa (2010), Arcade Fire (2011), Feist (2012), Godspeed You! Black Emperor (2013) and Tanya Tagaq (2014).
Polaris is also planning to launch the Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize, honouring Canadian albums released in the decades prior to the prize's inaugural instalment in 2006.
