My personal Polaris 2020 long list part 4

Day four!

Recap: I cast my ballot for the Polaris Prize this week. Jurors only get five slots. Almost 200 albums were suggested by fellow jury members. A long list of 40 will be published next week. As always, there’s no shortage of excellent Canadian music. But this year there’s no one album—or even three—that I feel so obviously tower above the rest. Which makes the winnowing even more difficult.

I’m not going to tell you what’s on my ballot, but these are the 40 records I considered (10 in each post). Most of these have been discussed by the Polaris jury at some point, but this is a very personal list that no one should read into deeply. Many of these will likely not make the long list, and many not mentioned here most definitely will.

Final caveat: I’m a 48yo anglo white dad who lives in Toronto with all the obvious blind spots that entails, so prepare yourself with as many grains of salt you feel are required.

Part 4/4: 

Owen Pallett – Island: This long-delayed album came out two weeks before the Polaris deadline, and yet I wouldn’t at all be surprised to see it become one of the most-discussed albums this year. And not just because the first single (with its excellent accompanying video) contains this lyric: "Do not be scared / Surely some disaster will descend and equalize us / a crisis / Will unify the godless and the fearless and the righteous.” Though as lushly orchestrated as much of his work, these songs are centred around acoustic guitar, marking a new(ish) direction for Pallett: very little evidence of his violin-virtuoso past, few of the electronics that shaped 2014’s In Conflict, the orchestration never draws attention to itself, the music rich with subtleties and no concessions at all to pop audiences (usually Pallett would throw a bone or two). This sounds like Pallett’s most musically personal album; it also features the loveliest vocals he’s ever put to tape. For day-one fans, it’s as much a mature, one-man version of Les Mouches as it is a Final Fantasy record. Bandcamp link here.

Pantayo – s/t: Now here’s something you haven’t heard before: a group of Filipinas integrating traditional percussion (kulintang) with R&B and pop that lies somewhere between ESG, Massive Attack and Solange. Yes, the novelty is part of the appeal, and that will help this land on the long list and go possibly much further this Polaris season. But, like Tagaq or Jeremy Dutcher’s work, this is far from mere novelty: it’s an incredibly strong record: the grooves, the vocals, the songs, the sonic textures, the production by Alaska B (Yamantaka // Sonic Titan). Pantayo didn’t start out like this; when I saw them perform at a Long Winter event several years ago, it was definitely more on the traditional side. Now, “V V V (They Lie)” and “Desire” are total radio summer jams, uptempo and down, respectively. There’s even, it seems, some ’80s new wave in the mix here, but that could just the Scarborough boy in me being brought back to a time when I would have first heard traditional Filipino music at high school talent shows 30 years ago and now I’m weirdly conflating a bunch of my own memories in what is apparently a record review. Anyway, this is going to be the record that will make the list and have industry veterans wondering, “Where the hell did this come from?” Bandcamp link here.

Lido Pimienta – Miss Colombia: Is it okay to say now that I didn’t like Pimienta’s 2017 Polaris winner La Papessa? That was a milestone win for many reasons (first allophone winner, entirely indie release), but I still heard a nascent artist who had yet to fully bloom. The conversation around the win—and the way Pimienta dealt with an onslaught of hateful criticism—was more worthy than the album itself, in this random white guy’s opinion, FWIW (not much). The Toronto artist took a lot of time and care following it up, and now we can talk about the music again. Everything has stepped up, starting with Pimienta’s own vocals: they’re stronger, express more dynamics and inflection, and generally more emotionally resonant. That’s true of the electronics as well; she’s said part of her challenge here was to make the technology sound beautiful, and she succeeded. The brass arrangements throughout are also a nice touch. Prince Nifty, a.k.a. Owen Pallett collaborator Matt Smith, co-produces here (check out his lovely new solo release), and guests include Colombian palenque group Sexteto Tabala (the collab here will sound familiar to any fans of Caribbean-Colombian legend Toto La Momposina) and South American superstar Li Saumet of electro-cumbia-pop band Bomba Estereo. One could argue that Pimienta won the Polaris prematurely, but if she hadn’t, then this superior record would likely not be getting an international release; its ambition might not even have been possible. Bandcamp link here.

Slow Leaves – Shelf Life: It’s not like critics are stumbling over themselves in a hunt for the new Lightfoot in 2020. But hey, FWIW, Slow Leaves is likely the new Lightfoot, or at least the most worthy contender since Doug Paisley dropped the 2011 classic Constant Companion. Davidson sings with a gentle lilt and affecting tremolo, his breezy folk rock designed to be played on crackly vinyl or around a campfire. Davidson sounds like a middle-aged dad, which he is, and this is an ideal midlife rainy day record when accompanied by coffee and/or scotch. It’s not new or dark or sexy; it’s just life. Hard to make that sound exciting in a record review. But hey, if the likes of Leif Vollebekk can crack the shortlist, surely Slow Leaves can. Bandcamp link here.

Rae Spoon – Mental Health: This artist has had quite a rollercoaster two years: they continue to run the best truly indie label in Canada (Coax Records) and they released two of the best albums of their career (including this one). But shortly after cancelling a tour due to the pandemic the non-binary artist announced they were diagnosed with cancer before even turning 40. Rae Spoon’s music has always been about resilience, which means in 2020 an album like Mental Health strikes particularly potent chords. As a former folk country artist who now makes what could be called electro-tinged indie rock, Spoon is first and foremost a classic pop songwriter: their songs are full of earworms, no matter the arrangements underneath. Lyrically, this record taps into the anxiety age with precision, which makes it essential listening. Bandcamp link here.

Storry – CH III: The Come Up: The back story behind this record is fascinating, terrifying, tragic, and a whole other tale unto itself (read Nick Krewen’s profile here). But the short on Storry is that this debut album (don’t let the CH III title fool you) is about her past life as a sex worker after an opera career went astray. She turns her classically trained voice to gutsy and jazzy R&B with some ace players behind her. The slick veneer might be suited to upscale jazz clubs, but the narratives pull no punches. Even if there wasn’t a back-Storry here (sorry), the woman’s voice is enough of a draw on its own. Ain’t no AutoTune here, she belongs on a stage. Won’t even need a microphone.

US Girls – Heavy Light: It’s weird to think of Meg Remy as a Polaris veteran, but this is likely to be her third appearance on a shortlist and another likely winner—I thought she’d take it for 2018’s In a Poem Unlimited, my favourite record that year. Heavy Light picks up where that record left off, and, inspired by her 2018 Polaris performance, features a strong vocal presence from backing singers including arranger Kritty Uranowksi, James Baley (remember that name), and Basia Bulat. E Street saxophonist Jake Clemons also shows up, as do members of Arcade Fire and Ice Cream. The album was recorded largely live in Montreal by Howard Bilerman, and the electric energy is evident. Hard to go wrong with that many all-stars on board, and Remy rises to every challenge: she’s one of the most astute and fascinating lyricists working today, set to beautiful melodies steeped in the history of pop music. Part of this album’s success is due to Remy’s generous and collaborative spirit: she’s not precious about empowering her collaborators, working with co-writers (including Bulat), or even revisiting earlier material from her lo-fi solo days (“Overtime” and “Red Ford Radio” are highlights here). Everything about this exudes empathy and community, which is exactly what we need right now.  

Whoop-Szo – Warrior Down: I’m a lightweight when it comes to heavy music, which makes Whoop-Szo all the more surprising. This is stoner sludgy grunge that packs a wallop, even more so when Adam Sturgeon sings about his family’s experience in residential schools or a cousin being shot by cops in Saskatchewan (The chorus “Warrior down in a Saskatchewan town” says so much with six words, a Neil Young-esque simplicity all political songwriters should study). But this isn’t just a Sabbathian sonic anvil; this band started out as a considerably more experimental project, and there are more delicate moments here and prog diversions and deliciously dirty synth interludes and piano instrumentals. I don’t know who London, Ontario engineer Kyle Ashbourne is, but he’s heavy as fuck when he wants to be, with a Blurtonian touch that serves this material extremely well. Watch out for Whoop-Szo: at least one more record like this and they could turn into the most important rock band in Canada. Bandcamp link here.

Witch Prophet – DNA Activation: I certainly didn’t hear any other Canadian record like this in the last year: Habesha hip-hop beats with an Afrofuturist bent and jazzy saxophone (Karen Ng) throughout. Fans of Erykah Badu’s work with Georgia Anne Muldrow will find a lot to love here. This is hypnotic, healing music for humid days, during days when these lyrics strike deep: “Where do we go from here / When the whole world is falling / Through darkness / And we cannot see the light.” The woman known as Witch Prophet brings that light. Bandcamp link here.

Wolf Parade – Thin Mind: All great bands who feel like they’re hitting a wall should take a seven-year break. It did wonders for Wolf Parade. Both 2017’s Cry Cry Cry and now Thin Mind take everything that was ever intriguing about this group of musicians—as players and songwriters—and amplify all their strengths. Rare is the rock band that actually gets better with age, but this new chapter of Wolf Parade is the prime of their career, and Pacific Northwest star producer John Goodmanson captures it perfectly. Other than the obvious strengths of frontmen Dan Boeckner and Spencer Krug, the MVP here is drummer Arlen Thompson, who gives the material a real swing and swagger. Fuck nostalgia, forge the future. Bandcamp link here.

I’ll feel extremely lucky if even half of those 40 records make the longlist.

These next ones are not my bag, but here are 15 artists whose albums are likely to be longlisted, so give them a listen if you haven't already: 

Marie-Pierre Arthur

Backxwash

Daniel Caesar

Dvsn 

Grimes

Flore Laurentienne

Men I Trust

Nap Eyes

Nehiyawak

William Prince

Jessie Reyez

Andy Shauf

Super Duty Tough Work 

Wares

The Weeknd

The official long list will be announced on Monday June 15.

Jurors will then have a chance to submit their shortlist ballot; the shortlist will be announced July 15, and the winner on Sept. 21.

Happy listening! Buy the music you love! 

 

My personal Polaris 2020 longlist part 3

Day three!

Recap: I cast my ballot for the Polaris Prize this week. Jurors only get five slots. Almost 200 albums were suggested by fellow jury members. A long list of 40 will be published next week. As always, there’s no shortage of excellent Canadian music. But this year there’s no one album—or even three—that I feel so obviously tower above the rest. Which makes the winnowing even more difficult.

I’m not going to tell you what’s on my ballot, but these are the 40 records I considered (10 in each post). Most of these have been discussed by the Polaris jury at some point, but this is a very personal list that no one should read into deeply. Many of these will likely not make the long list, and many not mentioned here most definitely will.

Final caveat: I’m a 48yo anglo white dad who lives in Toronto with all the obvious blind spots that entails, so take all this with as many grains of salt you feel are required.

Part 3/4: 

Kacy & Clayton – Carrying On: This duo are second cousins from south Saskatchewan who have now made two records with producer Jeff Tweedy in Chicago, but you’d be forgiven if you thought this was a lost Laurel Canyon classic. Kacy Anderson takes most of the lead vocals, and, along with Jennifer Castle, she may well be the most compelling female voice in Canadian folk music since Frazey Ford showed up in the Be Good Tanyas. This duo’s take on countrified folk is lazy, hazy and fairly sparse. In other words, it’s perfect. Yet another act I wish I was seeing at a folk festival this summer. Bandcamp link here.

Kaytranada – Bubba: This album dropped in the dying days of December, after a lot of publications assembled their year-end lists, and so got somewhat lost in the shuffle. It was also an album that, though I loved Kaytranada’s Polaris-winning debut, I didn’t want to listen to in the dead of winter. This is summer music! Maybe it was big in Australia five months ago?! Giving it a proper listen now, in warmer climes, it’s a winning follow-up to 99.9%. The worst thing I can say about it is that it doesn’t expand on what the artist has already accomplished, and the guests are less inspiring this time around (especially, perhaps oddly, Pharrell Williams). But it’s head and shoulders above everyone in this genre not named Anderson.Paak. And the hotter it gets, the better it sounds. 

Lightning Dust – Spectre: Josh Wells and Amber Webber left Black Mountain a few years ago; they’d been in that band since the beginning and even before, in its predecessor Jerk With a Bomb. Over the years they put out three duo albums as Lightning Dust; all were great, none of them got much traction. Now that this is their full-time project (when Wells isn’t drumming for Destroyer’s live band), they’ve returned with a whopper. Webber is still one of the most distinctive and compelling voices in Canada, her witchy tremolo perfectly suited to the minor-key psychedelic folk songs she writes with Wells, which sound like they came out between in the years between ’70s soft rock and the birth of new wave (“Run Away” sounds like Patti Smith covering Springsteen’s “The River” in 1981). Honestly, I could listen to Webber sing just about anything, but this is the strongest material she’s ever delivered, while drummer/producer/keyboardist Wells retains his rep as one of the MVPs on the West Coast. This side project now has their full attention, and it shows. Now it deserves yours. Bandcamp link here.

Lil Andy – All the Love Songs Lied To Us: "All the Love Songs Lied to Us"—the title sounds like something Stephen Merritt would have penned for 69 Love Songs. And that's the league Andy is aiming for here, albeit within a specific sonic space, and tied specifically to country music. Not an urban hipster ironic take on country music, either. Andy is a songwriter in love with the literary side of country music: the clichés that ring true, the wordplay, the storytelling. While the instrumentation doesn't stray from the traditional, the lyrics are resolutely set in the modern world. But about that instrumentation: he's got Montreal MVP Joe Grass at his side here. His guitar playing here is downright magical, like Nels Cline playing straight-up country. Andy's love of Leonard Cohen shows in the ornamental use of female backing vocals, notably on "The Lives of Others." But longtime collaborator Katie Moore—another Montreal MVP—also provides gorgeous, straight-up Emmylou-ish harmonies underneath Andy's rich baritone. This is a country record, but one that transcends genre. Most important, it's a songwriter's record, brilliantly illustrated by top-notch arrangements, sparse and gorgeous production, and lovely vocal performances all around. For years now, Lil Andy has been working somewhat quietly within the confines of a certain Montreal neighbourhood. This record deserves to be heard around the world. Bandcamp link here.

Little Scream – Speed Queen: This is richly produced, textural pop music that sounds like Fleetwood Mac made by art school students: soft rock with real bite, as oxymoronic as that may sound. Lyrically, she's a poetic force, at times Joni-esque, an acute observer with a razor-sharp pen: "I don't mind burning bridges to gated houses I don't want to live in." First single "Dear Leader" is an absolutely essential song for these times (by which I mean at least the last decade, not just the last month). There's some songwriting collaborations here from Mike Feuerstack (Snailhouse, Wooden Stars), Mike Dubue (Hilotrons), Pietro Amato (Bell Orchestre, Luyas) and Richard Reed Parry (Arcade Fire); all of them bring their top game here, resulting in what is easily Sprengelmeyer's best album so far. The songwriting, the production (Marcus Paquin: Arcade Fire, Stars, Begonia, Sarah Harmer, etc.), the arrangements, the playing and her inviting vocals are all top-notch. This one took some time to grow on me, and then it hit me hard. Real hard. Bandcamp link here.

Loving – If I Am Only My Thoughts: I don’t have a lot to say about this Victoria band’s second release except that I never liked Mac DeMarco but I love this and listening to it makes me feel too drunk and sun-baked to actually say anything intelligent. Tune in, turn on, drop out and all that. Bandcamp link here.

Jon Mckiel – Bobby Joe Hope: There’s a fascinating backstory to this record, involving an old reel-to-reel tape machine Mckiel purchased, which included tape with instrumental snippets recorded likely decades ago. The Sackville, N.B.-based Mckiel collaborated with Joyfultalk’s Jay Crocker in rural Nova Scotia to “collaborate” with this found material to create hazy folk songs for a psychedelic breakfast. In the lineage of Atlantic Canadian weirdness, this is very much an extension of Eric’s Trip, though obviously its own thing, creating modern magic with vintage tools in a dialogue with the past. Bandcamp link here.

Marleana Moore – Pay Attention, Be Amazed!: This is another of my favourite discoveries from fellow jurors. This Edmonton songwriter is bound to appeal to anyone raised on 90s indie rock or more recent purveyors like Angel Olsen or this album’s producer, Chad Van Gaalen. Moore has an inviting voice with a wide range, the songwriting is incredibly strong, and the players (including members of Calgary’s Preoccupations) provide perfect colour. I’m at an age where twentysomething indie rock usually either bores me to tears or drives me bananas; this record easily rises far above her peers (i.e. the Boygenius crowd). Extra points for the beautiful cover art and the entirely apt title. Bandcamp link here.

New Pornographers – In the Morse Code of the Brake Lights: It’s more than easy to take this band for granted: this is their eighth album, Dan Bejar is long gone, and 2017’s Whiteout Conditions was incredibly disappointing—even more so because it followed the late-career highlight Brill Bruisers in 2014. Morse Code finds the band back on track, playing to all their strengths: lush, inventive, intricate power-pop rock with plenty of left turns and massive harmonies. Just because they’re now celebrating their 20th year together doesn’t mean we should appreciate them any less; this album, like Brill Bruisers, guarantees they won’t remain a nostalgia act. 

Obuxum – Re-Birth: “Take up SPACE!!” is the title of one track here; the emphasis is hers, not mine. It’s a reference to the fact that this young beatmaker from Toronto’s Rexdale neighbourhood doesn’t see a lot of support for people like her: i.e. a Somali-Canadian woman making electronic music. She travels interstellar paths similar to those of fellow Habesha-Canadian Witch Prophet or L.A.’s Flying Lotus: dreamy, discombobulated, rich with texture. She got some spotlight when she produced “In Women Colour” for Haviah Mighty’s Polaris-winning album last year, but she’s not the type to normally work with MCs. She’s much better off left untethered in her travels, where she can take up as much space as she needs. Bandcamp link here.

My personal Polaris longlist 2020 part 2

Day Two!

Recap: I cast my ballot for the Polaris Prize this week. Jurors only get five slots. Almost 200 albums were suggested by fellow jury members. A long list of 40 will be published next week. As always, there’s no shortage of excellent Canadian music. But this year there’s no one album—or even three—that I feel so obviously tower above the rest. Which makes the winnowing even more difficult.

I’m not going to tell you what’s on my ballot, but these are the 40 records I considered. Most of these have been discussed by the Polaris jury at some point, but this is a very personal list that no one should read into deeply. Many of these will likely not make the long list, and many not mentioned here most definitely will.

Final caveat: I’m a 48yo anglo white dad who lives in Toronto with all the obvious blind spots that entails, so take all this with as many grains of salt you feel are required.

Part 2/4:

The Dears – Lovers Rock: This band has been making anxiety-ridden apocalyptic prog-rock for 20 years now, so the fact they’re releasing their best record in years right now is sheer coincidence. Older, wiser, and with their grand ambitions tempered with humility and grace, the Dears easily conjure the fireworks of their finest hours—“The Worst in Us” is vintage Dears, and would be a highlight on any earlier record—while balancing the bombast with breezier fare like “Play Dead” and “Is This What You Really Want,” both of which wouldn’t have been out of place on singer Murray Lightburn’s excellent 2019 solo album. Bandcamp link here.

Frazey Ford – U Kin B the Sun: Words will always fail to describe Frazey Ford’s voice, probably because she fails to enunciate most of her words in the first place. Such is the magic and mystery that this soulful singer brings to everything she does, whether it was the folk revivalism of the Be Good Tanyas 20 years ago or the soul music she immerses herself in here. This is not exactly retro R&B, but it is a solid live band with a Hammond organ (or imitation) hovering over the bass-heavy grooves and gospel-tinged backing vocals. She’s a devoted D’Angelo fan, and her last record used the same band Cat Power did on The Greatest; Ford brings her own hippie B.C. vibe to the genre. She’s not in this game to win; she can take or leave the music business, as she’s proved over the years while moving at her own pace. The music she makes is for healing, for uplift, for the spirit. Which is all well and good and inspiring, but the songs she brings to the table this time, and the players she gathered to perform it, that elevate this far beyond mere good intentions. It’s the balm. Bandcamp link here.

Fountain – Laughing Through Traffic: Holy shit, this came out of nowhere (look ’em up, and you’ll find next to no press at all, so shout out to CJLO’s Francella Fiallos for tipping the jury to this). This is a Beefheartian Montreal band with incredible chemistry despite sounding like they’re being pulled in at least three different directions at once. There are elements here of everyone from Television to Old Time Relijun to recent Polaris faves Fet.Nat, with a singer possessed of the necessary sardonicism to sell the sizzle (“On an art deco gecko all I drink is prosecco / that’s not healthy!”). One of many contenders this year that I wish I could see live, though this recording has raw energy to burn. Bandcamp link here.

Dana Gavanski – Yesterday is Gone: No wonder this odd little record is so fascinating: it was born in Vancouver, Montreal, the Laurentians, Banff, Toronto, and Serbia. Gavanski packs a lot of work, discipline and experience into her debut album, which fits into a lineage that spans Nico to Aldous Harding (and FWIW I’m not a fan of the latter). It’s unassuming at first, with subtle arrangements and Gavanski’s deadpan voice somewhat off-putting. But the intimacy and delicacy of the instrumentation ultimately draw you in; every tiny production decision here is very particular and deliberate, creating a world you want to inhabit on a lazy afternoon. Fans of Jennifer Castle should be paying attention. Bandcamp link here.

Golden Seals – Something Isn’t Happening: Dave Merritt lives outside Ottawa and puts out new music of an old-fashioned vein about every six years or so, which means this record had zero push behind it other than Merritt’s always entertaining online presence. He’s the kind of 50-year-old guy with Beatles deep in his blood and a whole lotta Nick Lowe and Aimee Mann on his shelf, and has likely had a Mojo subscription for the last 20 years. All that pop scholarship pays off here, which not only has Sexsmithian melodies and jazz chords, but the production here is much more vivid than one would ever expect from a home recording—even the track he recorded as a phone memo sparkles. (Local Ontario heroes Andy Magoffin and Philip Shaw Bova shared mixing duties; both do great work, as always.) There’s tightly wound nuggets of pop perfection on tracks like “Independence Day,” “Idiot Kid” and “The Opposite End of the Country,” but he gets pleasantly unspooled on the closer “The Takeaway.” This is old fart music par excellence. Don’t hold that against him. Bandcamp link here. Zunior link here.

Jacques Greene – Dawn Chorus: I’ll admit that full-length techno records are not my bag, but Greene’s 2017 release Feel Infinite was intriguing, as was his work on Cadence Weapon’s excellent 2018 self-titled album. That rapper turns up to return a favour here, joining electronic artist Julianna Barwick, film composer Brian Reitzell, hip-hop producer Clams Casino, and underrated Toronto singer Rochelle Jordan. The result is a late-night cinematic journey with character and depth, recalling early 90s rave (yes, Moby) records in the best possible ways. Does that musical era sound retro now? I have no idea. But this record sounds great today, illuminating empty urban landscapes with memories of what once was. Bandcamp link here.

Sarah Harmer – Are You Gone: The master is back. It’s been 10 years since we last heard from her, and she’ll tell you this is her best record yet. Strong words: it’s hard to top the untouchable You Were Here or I’m a Mountain. But this comeback is full of timeless gems, not the least of which is “Just Get Here” and “St. Peter’s Bay.” And dammit, “New Low” is exactly the political pop song we needed in 2020; I only wish she turned up the guitars on that one in order to match the lyrical bite. Ah well, maybe Billy Talent will cover it. Bandcamp link here.

Kevin Hearn – Calm and Cents: He’s one of this country’s MVPs (Barenaked Ladies, Lou Reed, Gord Downie, Rheostatics) but Hearn’s solo records are criminally underappreciated (see: 2014’s Days in Frames). This one is largely instrumental and absolutely lovely. Featuring longtime bassist Chris Gartner, drummer Gavin Brown and violinist Hugh Marsh, this is a meditative and melodic record about environmental decay, in which Hearn’s delicate piano is balanced with ambient electronics, Vocoders, and very subtle reggae influences underneath the sci-fi surface.

Ice Cream – Fed Up: This record sounds like 1999. The year of Peaches and Le Tigre. The sound of Prince’s classic album 1999. But in 2020, Ice Cream are two Toronto women who deliver dual-lead electric guitar over electro beats and catchy pop songs (“Peanut Butter,” “Banana Split”). There’s plenty of darker material here, as well (the title track, “Dove’s Cry”). These women are killer singers and players—which is why they’ve been drawn into the U.S. Girls universe (Carlyn Bezic was playing in the current lineup; both she and fellow Ice Creamer Amanda Crist play with Meg Remy in the band Darlene Shrugg.) If Fifth Column were around today, they’d sound a lot like Ice Cream. Bandcamp link here.

Junia T – Studio Monk: This is a winner on so many levels. For starters, Junia T steps to the forefront after being Jessie Reyez’s tour DJ for the last few years to craft this masterful collection of grooves built from the bottom up with live musicians and engineer Slakah the Beatchild. It took him two years, a time during which the MC decided to put down the mic to focus on the music, and invite an array of mostly Toronto talent to shine in his stead. So not only is this a solid, jazzy hip-hop and R&B record with a rich vintage sound (and by vintage I mean not only 70s soul, but there’s a particular late 90s vibe here), it also functions as a mixtape with all-stars like Reyez, Sean Leon, and River Tiber, but relatively unknown singers Storry and Faiza, as well as highly underrated Toronto vet Adam Bomb. Sometimes this much talent on one record means a lot of compromise and mush, but every single artist here brings their A-game. (Well, maybe not Nate Husser.) If at least one hip-hop record makes the shortlist this year, this is going to be it. 

My personal Polaris longlist 2020 part 1

I cast my ballot for the Polaris Prize this week. Jurors only get five slots. Almost 200 albums were suggested by fellow jury members. A long list of 40 will be published next week. As always, there’s no shortage of excellent Canadian music. But this year there’s no one album—or even three—that I feel so obviously tower above the rest. Which makes the winnowing even more difficult.

I’m not going to tell you what’s on my ballot, but these are the 40 records I considered (10 in each post). Most of these have been discussed by the Polaris jury at some point, but this is a very personal list that no one should read into deeply. Many of these will likely not make the long list, and many not mentioned here most definitely will.

Final caveat: I’m a 48yo anglo white dad who lives in Toronto with all the obvious blind spots that entails, so take all this with as many grains of salt you feel are required.

Day One (of four):

Allie X – Cape God: This is a really smart, well-arranged pop record, in the realm of a more operatic Maggie Rogers. It pushes all the buttons for me that Carly Rae Jepsen should but never does. Allie X is a pop star without a radio audience of her own; she writes for BTS, Katy Perry’s a fan, and she’s been slogging it out for a while, to the point where she has more than a million streams (which is more than some Canadian acts who fill arenas). But this album is where Allie X’s classical training and craftsmanship really come to the fore. Ideally, she’d be a household name by now; in the days of Kate Bush, maybe she would have been.

Begonia – Fear: If you’ve ever seen this woman live, you know she’s a superstar. Her debut record catches most, though not all, the charisma she exudes on stage. Her voice is enormous, a powerful instrument that threatens to overshadow everything underneath it. But the production—by a team that includes her longtime collaborators in Royal Canoe—holds its own and provides some interesting twists to the modern pop/R&B universe. Bandcamp link here.

Geoff Berner – The Grand Hotel Cosmopolis: One of the greatest songwriters in Canada is a radical eco-socialist who plays accordion, sings increasingly in Yiddish, and gathers some of the finest modern klezmer players around him. So: not primarily Polaris bait, unfortunately. This timely record is largely about the plight of the displaced, though also features a scathing take on survivalists and a song that Berner had hoped to one day play at Bernie Sanders rallies: “Why Don’t We Take All the Billionaires’ Money Away?” If that’s not the song of the year, I don’t know what is. Bandcamp link here.

Bon Enfant – s/t: This is the single biggest surprise for me this Polaris season. This psych-pop band is the Quebecois equivalent of Japan’s Kikagayu Moyo or Holland’s Altin Gun, meaning they’re a peculiar regional blend of local influences with groove-heavy psychedelia. Their debut album sounds like Black Mountain joining Plants and Animals to cover the Hair soundtrack, with a McGarrigle singing en francais. This record came out in the fall of 2019, which is too bad because it is so obviously the sound of springtime and we should all be dancing in Parc Lafontaine to this. We’re not, for so many reasons, which makes this an escapist listening experience more than anything right now. I’m feeling nostalgic for joy these days, and this record helps a helluva lot. Bandcamp link here.

Boniface – s/t: Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs is 10 years old this year. Micah Visser was 13 when it came out, and one suspects it made a deep impression. Visser, who had a few years performing under his own name before rebranding himself after his Winnipeg neighbourhood and releasing the debut Boniface album on Valentine’s Day this year. He shares with Win Butler a bittersweet melancholy for a suburban youth with ’80s alternative anthems—though in Visser’s case, probably some Robyn, Killers, and Tegan and Sara in the next-gen mix. (Don’t doubt that the ’80s are present, however—check out the album cover and font). The production is big enough to vault him on to Euro festival stages, but it’s the songwriting that really shines here, and the moments (“I Will Not Return as a Tourist”) where he sounds like he’s writing a shiny pop version of “Born to Run” for a 2020 Pride celebration. Bandcamp link here.

Bruce Peninsula – No Earthly Sound: One of my greatest musical regrets of this time is that I won’t be able to witness this band and its vital chorus of voices live any time soon. This Toronto group has been away for most of the last decade; I didn’t expect them to return. They’re a record nerds’ dream, with grooves that borrow from Afrobeat and jazzy Chicago post-rock underneath what sound like modern choral field hollers. Neil Haverty and Misha Bower trade lead vocals, but it’s the chorus behind them—a choir that once included many of Toronto’s best singers, including Snowblink, Austra and the Weather Station—that really elevates the material. The rhythm section also kicks much ass. This is a much slicker production than heard on their first two records, which suits them surprisingly well, while the raw energy still shines through. Welcome back, beautiful people. Hope to see you on a stage again some day. Bandcamp link here.

Caribou – Suddenly: Dan Snaith continues to not only improve, but to remain unique in his field. I’m hard pressed to think of another electronic artist with this breadth of material in one album, from beat-less ballads to R&B pop songs to psychedelic jazz loops to early 90s house. Less rigid than his last record, this is Snaith’s most soulful and encompassing records of his long career. Suddenly is like his own greatest hits collection. He’s one of five previous winners (Lido Pimienta, Kaytranada, Patrick Watson, Owen Pallett) with new records in this year’s eligibility period; I would not be surprised if he became the first repeat winner in Polaris history. Bandcamp link here.

Leonard Cohen – Thanks for the Dance: “Who’s moving on? Who’s kidding who?” Posthumous records deserve the bad rep they have, but this is a phenomenal exception. Son Adam Cohen proved his production mettle on You Want It Darker, and here he fleshes out his father’s final recordings, which the artist had every intention of finishing before his passing. Adam invites more guests (Daniel Lanois, Feist, Patrick Watson) and fewer chintzy synths than Cohen Sr. would ever allow. None of it sounds like something the artist wouldn’t ultimately have approved; it doesn’t tread on his well-worn template. It’s hard to top You Want It Darker, and this doesn’t—but this unexpected encore is a career coda that’s not only fitting, but entirely satisfying.

Jean-Louis Cormier – Quand la nuit tombe: Cormier won a Polaris 10 years ago with his band Karkwa, which was greeted by a collective “meh” from English Canada. But he’s making much, much more interesting music now. Recorded in L.A., Berlin and Ethiopia, Cormier ditches his guitar for keys and synths, creating a fascinating melange that draws from ’60s film soundtracks, post-Radiohead rock, Gorillaz-style global pop and more, with an unusually good drummer at the core. There are lots of twists and turns on this record, and most of them work wonderfully (the brief rap interlude, not so much). Between this and Julien Sagot’s wonderfully weird records, Karkwa’s solo projects sound better to me than the original band. Bandcamp link here.

Corridor – Junior. The third album by the first franco Quebecois band signed to Sub Pop, Junior is a rollicking, rockin’ good time of a post-punk new wave record that pulls from the Jam, early R.E.M., the fuzzier side of Sloan, and the hazier side of the Stone Roses. The rhythm section is consistently propulsive, the boy harmonies are exquisite, and the guitars pop, ring and jangle and all those other ridiculous adjectives that I no longer know how to use and probably never did. Have Corridor toured with Alvvays yet? That would be dreamy. This is yet another franco record that the anglo indie kids should be snapping up. Bandcamp link here.

Livestream, baby, livestream

I haven’t been to a live show in three months. That’s the longest period of time in my life, since I was 14 years old, that I haven’t waited in anticipation for that first kick drum to reverberate through my chest, for the manipulation of air particles into sound to affect me emotionally in ways I’ve come to recognize have a spiritual and narcotic effect. It’s hard for me to live without. My family and I make music at home. But it’s something else entirely to have someone else take you on that journey. I knew I would miss that feeling. I had no idea how much I would miss that feeling.

And no, streamed concerts are not the answer. I didn’t care for them before, and I don’t now. But they’re what we have right now. It’s the only way we get to see old friends and heroes in real time. So here we are.

I came of age artistically in Guelph in the 1990s. I moved there for university, played in a few bands, got a job, stuck around. For a while there I thought I might never leave. The friends I made there remain some of my favourite people to this day; the music we made together still resonates deeply for me.

One of my favourite people of that time (and there are many) is Vicki Fraser, who blew into town from Ottawa's jam band scene. She was a great singer-songwriter with a huge R&B voice she applied to folk music both on her own and with MVP Tannis Slimmon in the duo Crow's Feet. She often guested with my band, Black Cabbage, and after I played on her debut album, 1999's Dynamite Opening, I played accordion and keyboards behind her that summer. 

Vicki is an exceptionally generous person, and now works as a therapist. Which is why I’m excited that after watching her friends' gigs dry up, she is assembling three Zoom concerts of old friends, based on the three cities Vicki has inhabited in her life: Toronto, Ottawa, and Guelph. A $20 ticket (+ $2.30 fee) delivers an hour-long variety show with five different artists—not unlike a folk festival workshop stage—with all proceeds going directly to the performers. You’re not going to see any of these people play your local pub or folk festival any time soon, and they’re not going to be making any gig money anywhere anytime soon. So: win-win. 

The FB page for these things is here.

The first show, on Sunday, May 31, features Oh Susanna, Regina Gently (the drag alter ego of Gentleman Reg), Culture Reject (Black Cabbage’s Michael O’Connell), Ravi Naimpally (Toronto’s top tabla player), and Dave Clark (Rheostatics, Woodchoppers Orchestra). It sold out within a week. Too late, suckers! But wait, there’s more.

The Guelph event is Sunday, June 14, a matinee from 3 to 4.30pm. The lineup is as follows:

Dave Withers used to play with me in Black Cabbage. He was older than the rest of us pups back then. (He’s still older than us.) He wrote the rock anthems that got us on the radio. These days he does not write the rock anthems. Nor does he write rock bios, including his own, so I whipped this off for the old geezer: “For the last nine decades, Dave Withers has been an enigmatic part of southwestern Ontario's music scene. From his early Victrola recordings of farmhand hollers, to his innovative combination of country music and poetry that inspired Leonard Cohen, to his punk rock days drowning in distortion pedals, to his rebirth as an environmental propagandist infiltrating the public education system—Dave Withers has been impossibly hard to pin down. He didn't properly get his due until the early 90s with Black Cabbage, who coaxed him out of retirement and shoved him into a van driving across Canada. They shoved him out somewhere outside Edmundston, N.B., in 1999. For the next decade he could be spotted playing the same sad-bastard song at every open stage in Guelph (the Replacements' "Here Comes a Regular"). More recently he's been paying his bills in a wedding band while slowly working with producer Scott Merritt on his epic rock opera about a shuttered tattoo parlour.” Some of that is true. Maybe most of it. 

Jessy Bell Smith has been singing with the Skydiggers for years as a backing vocalist, but when she’s given a solo spotlight—as she was at a recent Massey Hall concert I witnessed—she absolutely brings the house down. One of the most spine-tingling vocalists I’ve ever heard in my life—never mind had the immense pleasure of working with—Jessy brings total class to everything she does. She played my Guelph book launch a couple of years ago, delivering incredibly emotional takes on Gord Downie and Tragically Hip songs.

Jeff Bird and Sue Smith have been leading lights of Guelph music for 40 years. Jeff is known primarily for his role with the Cowboy Junkies ever since The Trinity Session, but was in Canadian folk legends Tamarack before that, and has made all manner of music since, including a breathtaking tribute to Hildegard von Bingen performed on harmonica and harmonium. Sue was one-third of the Bird Sisters and co-founded the Hillside Festival, and has been an inspiring teacher for generations of Guelphites—including me.

Nathan Lawr was just out of high school when he joined King Cobb Steelie as touring drummer in 1997. Two years later he joined Aaron Riches’ Royal City, whose first two albums helped kick off an indie rock explosion in Canada in the early 2000s. He’s played with Feist, the Constantines, and many more, as well as releasing a series of fine solo records. These days he leads the Afrobeat-inspired psychedelia of Minotaurs, whose brand new record is a real gem. As is he.

Nicolette Hoang is a next-generation Guelphite with one hell of a killer country voice, which she puts to use in Nicolette and the Nobodies, who released their debut in early 2019. I’ve yet to see her live, which is clearly my loss.

Tickets for the Guelph show are available here:

https://myevent.com/supporttheartscabaretseriesguelph

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On to Ottawa. That one takes place Sunday, June 28 at 3pm, with these fine folks on board:

Kinnie Starr is a Vancouver-based artist, who first turned heads in the late 90s by mixing powerful lyrics, grungy guitars, hip-hop beats, and anything else she could find into an intriguing, unique blend. I didn’t know anything about her Ottawa connection until Vicki told me that Kinnie spent part of her teen years there, which is when they connected. Starr has had a particularly rough time in recent years, so it’s a real pleasure to see her back on the scene and performing.

Rebecca Campbell is an MVP in Ontario’s music scene, from her days as a backup singer for Jane Siberry to leading her own band, Fat Man Waving, to performing with electronic project Microbunny with King Cobb Steelie’s Al Okada.

John and Michelle Law are songwriters who run the Kingsville Folk Festival, near Point Pelée. Many moons ago John played in Ottawa band Four Way Street, and now he and Michelle are acclaimed songwriters with Nashville connections and at least one pundit declared them “the best duo out of Canada since Ian & Sylvia.” So there’s that.

Mark Robertson is perhaps best known for his role in Bullfrog, the Montreal funk band that featured world-renowned DJ Kid Koala. Robertson himself also played with Beastie Boy Money Mark, and has opened solo for Maceo Parker, the Wailers, and dozens more. His new album of soulful acoustic songs is called Made Easy for Guitar.

Dave Muir is now a stage tech at the NAC, but his days in Ottawa past include time with Longbottom, the Fabulous Primates and the Ultramundanes.

Tickets for the Ottawa event can be found here:

https://myevent.com/supporttheartscabaretseriesottawa

Go get tickets, people! Especially people I know personally from Guelph days and beyond, and if you happen to have mutual friends with any of the above people.

And check out the great work that SideDoorAccess.com is doing as well. You’re bound to find some chums there. My friend Veda Hille—who’s a fellow Scrappy Bitch with Oh Susanna and Kinnie Starr—is doing one on Sunday, May 24 at 3pm Eastern, and Charles Spearin (Broken Social Scene, Do Make Say Think, Happiness Project) is doing one on May 27 at 11pm Eastern.

I don’t love the idea of live streaming as a substitute for the live experience, but I’m certainly going to make some exceptions.  

As Vicki puts it, “chums supporting chums.”