Colin MedleyThe prevailing trend that I saw amongst Polaris Music Prize-spotters as yesterday’s short list announcement drew close was that there was hardly any consensus as to which of the 40 long list albums would make the cut. This wasn’t especially surprising since as I observed last month when the long list was revealed, the nominees were all over the place without a lot of big names or obvious picks; with absolutely nothing to back this up, I would speculate that this year’s ballots were the most diverse in the history of the prize.

But whether one point or a thousand separate first place from last, the math is the math and we now have the 2013 Polaris Prize short list. And it looks like this:

A Tribe Called Red / Nation II Nation (Pirate’s Blend)
Video: A Tribe Called Red – “Electric Pow Wow Drum”

Godspeed You! Black Emperor / ‘Allelujah! Don’t Bend! Ascend! (Constellation)
Stream: Godspeed You! Black Emperor – “Mladic”

Zaki Ibrahim / Every Opposite (Motif)
Video: Zaki Ibrahim – “Go Widdit”

Metric / Synthetica (Metric Music International)
MP3: Metric – “Clone”

METZ / METZ (Sub Pop)
MP3: METZ – “Wet Blanket”

Purity Ring / Shrines (Last Gang)
MP3: Purity Ring – “Obedear”

Colin Stetson / New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light (Constellation)
MP3: Colin Stetson – “High Above A Grey Green Sea”

Tegan and Sara / Heartthrob (Warner Music)
Video: Tegan & Sara – “Closer”

Whitehorse / The Fate of the World Depends On This Kiss (Six Shooter)
Video: Whitehorse – “Achilles’ Desire”

Young Galaxy / Ultramarine (Paper Bag)
Video: Young Galaxy – “New Summer”

Even though three of my five picks made the short list, I’m personally disappointed that my numbers one and two, Evening Hymns and Jim Guthrie, didn’t make the cut. I genuinely thought they’d make it and in my more fanciful moments, could even envision a win if the stars aligned. Shows how much I know. Well, I know enough to not speculate on who’ll win come September 23 at The Carlu in Toronto. Even in a year with strong/obvious frontrunners, the prize has been predictably unpredictable and while at the moment I’d like to see METZ, whom I swapped for Rachel Zeffira on my second ballot, take it, I’m also really curious if and how Godspeed would respond to a win. What I do know that with two two-time almost-winners in Shad and Kathleen Edwards hosting the gala – did Susan Lucci ever host the Daytime Emmys? Martin Scorcese ever hand out the Best Director Oscar? – it’ll be entertaining. And for the first time, they’ll be selling tickets to the gala, if you want to see it in person – they’ll be $50 and go on sale July 22.

The Fly talks to Raphaelle Standel-Preston of Braids, whose new full-length Flourish//Perish is out August 20.

The Line Of Best Fit talks to Diana drummer Kieran Adams about their debut album their debut album Perpetual Surrender, out August 20. They play The Great Hall on September 26.

Beatroute talks to Lightning Dust about their new album Fantasy. They play The Drake Underground on September 10.

Dazed & Confused has an interview with Daniel Woodhead of Moon King, who’ve announced their series of Obsession EPs will be released in the UK as a single volume on September 16. I would hope that a similar edition is made available domestically, for those of us who’re a little more space-conscious with their record collections.

Austra have released the second video from their second album, Olympia. They play The Phoenix on September 27.

Video: Austra – “Painful Like”

Arcade Fire have announced, via Twitter, that their fourth album will be out October 29. I like to think that somewhere in Montreal, as soon as they hit the send button on that tweet, quietly said, “boom”.

Complex has posted a cover story interview with Abel Tesfaye of The Weeknd, whose album Kiss Land is due out this Fall, probably around the time he plays three nights at Massey Hall – October 17, 19, and 20. He also released a new video from the album, the sample of which was not cleared by Portishead, and Geoff Barrow’s not happy about it.

Video: The Weeknd – “Belong To The World”

KEXP welcomes METZ for a video session.

Beatroute talks briefly with Al Spx of Cold Specks.

CBC Music asks the likes of The National’s Matt Berninger, amongst others, why On The Beach is their favourite Neil Young album. It’s mine as well, but no one asked me why.

Todd WeaverHere are some things I didn’t know about Islands. That though their history is pretty firmly tied to the early aughts Montreal scene that spawned The Unicorns and from whose ashes the first of many incarnations of the band were based, Wikipedia now says they’re based in Los Angeles. Of course, this is probably based on the fact that where Nick Thorburn, the only constant in the band since its inception, lays his hat is where they’re based, and circa their last record – last year’s A Sleep & A Forgetting – Thorburn was indeed working out of the city of angels. I also didn’t know that Evan and Geordie Gordon, principals of Guelph’s disco-tastic The Magic, had been members since 2009. Who knew?

But what I do know is that the stylistically eclectic pop outfit already have a new record ready to go, that they’ve called it Ski Mask, that it’s about being angry – the next logical step from Forgetting‘s prevailing themes of heartbreak, I guess – and that it will be out on September 17, and the first sample from it is available to stream below. Also confirmed is a North American tour that brings them to The Garrison in Toronto on October 10 for a ticket price of $12.50. And if you don’t believe me, consult Pitchfork – surely they’re a reliable source?

Stream: Islands – “Wave Forms”

While there’s no local Two Hours Traffic show per se, the band will be in the area to play Hillside over in Guelph and so are throwing their local fans a bone by playing a free in-store at Sonic Boom’s Annex location on July 27 at 5PM.

MP3: Two Hours Traffic – “Territory”

Summerworks added a musical component to their established theatre festival starting back in 2008, and while the showcase they provided to many of the area’s local on-the-verge talents was a great one – The Rural Alberta Advantage, Diamond Rings, Evening Hymns, the aforementioned Magic, Miracle Fortress, Hooded Fang, and Hidden Cameras to name but a few – they’ve only in the last couple years begun realizing the potential of really connecting the musical acts with their theatre roots. With this year’s programme, it seems they’ve finally figured out a way to make the music series really distinct and have enlisted The Wooden Sky, Snowblink, The Bicycles, and Maylee Todd to participate in some unique collaborations with other multi-disciplinary artists, and really, it’s just easier if you go and read about them than me try to explain. Oh, and there’s also more conventional live music performances at the Performance Bar. Summerworks runs August 8 to 18 in and around the Lower Ossington Theatre and Great Hall; tickets for the musical series shows will be $15 a piece.

MP3: The Wooden Sky – “Angelina”
MP3: Snowblink – “Unsurfed Waves”
Video: Maylee Todd – “Baby’s Got It”
Video: The Bicycles – “Nap Trap”

It’s unfortunate that Summerworks overlaps the fifth and final ALL CAPS! festival taking place at Gibraltar Point on the Toronto Islands the weekend of August 10 and 11 because they’re really catering to the same audience. In fact, Summerworks alumnis Hooded Fang were just added to the lineup, along with Magneta Lane. Torontoist talked festival organizers at Wavelength about why they’re calling it after five years and what will come next.

Video: Hooded Fang – “Bye Bye Land”
Video: Magneta Lane – “Lady Bones”

You may recall at the end of last Summer, I decamped to the wilds of northern Quebec for Festival de music émergent, a fun and fascinating little festival in the town of Rouyn-Noranda. They’ve just announced this year’s lineup, and while it’s not the Feist-Godspeed! one-two punch they got for their tenth anniversary, it’s a solidly trippy bill headlined by Montreal space-cadets The Besnard Lakes, New York art-rockers Blonde Redhead, and Quebec prog-metal legends Voivod, amongst many others of both Francophone and Anglophone persuasion. It’s off the beaten path, to be sure, but it’s a unique experience if you’re looking for something along those lines for the Labour Day long weekend. And if the music isn’t enough to persuade you, the words 24-hour poutinerie might. Exclaim has more details on this year’s FME, as the locals call it.

MP3: Blonde Redhead – “Missile++”
MP3: The Besnard Lakes – “People Of The Sticks”

Somewhat closer to home, local emergent synth-pop heroes Diana have scheduled a hometown record release show for their debut album Perpetual Surrender; the record is out August 20, they’re at The Great Hall on September 26, and there’s a brand-new video from said record to win your hearts and minds and eyeballs.

MP3: Diana – “Born Again”
Video: Diana – “Perpetual Surrender”

Remember when The Weeknd was all shy and would play shows or give interviews and stuff? Well no more. With his first proper – as in you pay for it – album due out this fall in Kiss Land, Abel Tesfaye has booked not one, not two, but three nights at Massey Hall to sing you some songs. He’s there on October 17, 19, and 20 and tickets run from $45 to $75 in advance. A video for the title track of the new record was released earlier this Summer.

MP3: The Weeknd – “Wicked Games”
Video: The Weeknd – “Kiss Land”

Kat Burns of Kashka – and formerly of Forest City Lovers – talks to NOW about her new identity and direction. She plays Harbourfront’s Soundclash festival this Saturday afternoon, July 13, at 1:30PM; that’s free.

Exclaim has premiered the new video from Louise Burns’ just-released new record The Midnight Mass; she talked a bit to Ion Magazine about making the clip.

Video: Louise Burns – “Emeralds Shatter”

The Effects Bay gets a look at Jimmy Shaw’s pedalboard with Metric, if you’re into that sort of thing.

Robert NetheryAnd the theme of today’s post is videos. Domestic videos if you’re Canadian, and exotic foreign ones if you’re not. And led off by Mr. Colin Stetson – who is in fact American by birth but Canadian by immigration – because he will be releasing his new album New History Warfare Vol 3: To See More Light next week on April 30, and because the man has a big horn.

He’s actually rolled out a few clips over the past few weeks – one doing double-duty for a couple More Light songs debuted at Pitchfork, and another clip surfaced this week at Interview, so if you were wondering what sort of visuals go with intense, experimental jazz performed on bass saxophone, now you know.

The Skinny also has a feature interview with Stetson, who will be at The Great Hall in Toronto on May 19.

Video: Colin Stetson – “Among The Sef”
Video: Colin Stetson – “In Mirrors”/”And In Truth”

The Wilderness Of Manitoba have released a new video from their second full-length Island Of Echoes, while Baeble Music has premiered the performance video for one of the tracks from their new Leslieville Sessions EP. Their next local show comes this weekend, on April 28 at The Campbell House Museum.

Video: The Wilderness Of Manitoba – “Echoes”

Toronto’s Hooded Fang have put out a clip for the sort-of title track of their new album Gravez, coming out May 28. They play a hometown release show for it at The Horseshoe on May 31.

Video: Hooded Fang – “Graves”

Young Galaxy have put out the first video from their just-released new record Ultramarine and discuss the new record with The Fly, Exclaim, Toro, The Montreal Gazette, and CBC Music. They bring it to Lee’s Palace on May 31.

Video: Young Galaxy – “Pretty Boy”

Hayden has made a new video taken from Us Alone, coinciding with the announcement of a handful more Canadian tour dates which you can find at Exclaim. However, the only Toronto date remains his appearance at the Field Trip festival at Garrison Commons on June 8.

Video: Hayden – “Oh Memory”

This video from Montreal’s Valleys isn’t technically very new – it debuted in early March – but seeing as how I haven’t talked about the band before and their debut Are You Going To Stand There And Talk Weird All Night? comes out next week and is available to stream in whole at Exclaim… I figured I’d post both. Because it’s a good record that does the icy/moody/emotive cinematic electro-pop thing a la Chromatics quite well. So yeah, you haven’t heard about them hereabouts before now, but henceforth you most certainly will.

Video: Valleys – “Undream A Year”
Stream: Valleys / Are You Going To Stand There And Talk Weird All Night?

The Good Family don’t have a new video – though you can bet that home movie footage of Dallas and Travis as toddlers wouldn’t go viral – they are streaming The Good Family Album at Exclaim ahead of its release next week on April 30. The family reunion show runs two nights at The Dakota on May 9 and 10.

Stream: The Good Family / The Good Family Album

Beatroute has words with METZ, coming home to Lee’s Palace on May 17.

DIY talks with No Joy about their just-released Wait To Pleasure.

Spinner talks to Metric about being three-time winners at this year’s Juno Awards.

Grimes has taken to her Tumblr to post a pretty strong statement against the sexism in the music industry that she and many others still have to deal with in 2013.

David BastedoSo at this point I may as well just earmark Tuesday posts as concert announcement roundups, Mondays being the busiest day for tour-related press releases and also being the easiest to put together as I wait for a torrent of Bunheads to surface. Shut up, it’s a great show.

First up is Prince Edward Island’s finest power-pop band Two Hours Traffic, now with a slightly altered lineup – guitarist Alec O’Hanley left after 2009’s Territory and can now be found in Always, who’ve gotten a fair bit of ink around here – and a new album in Foolish Blood coming out February 19. Touring machines that they are, they hit the road almost immediately afterwards for a Spring tour that takes them from the Maritimes down to Austin for SXSW, then back up through Toronto for a Canadian Musicfest headlining showcase at Lee’s Palace on March 21, and then across the rest of Canada. Saskatchewan’s Rah Rah will accompany them for most dates of the tour.

Stream: Two Hours Traffic – “Last Star”
Stream: Two Hours Traffic – “Amour Than Amis”

Montreal’s The Besnard Lakes step in as the big draw at Lee’s Palace for the Friday night of CMF – March 21 – previewing their new album Until In Excess, Imperceptible UFO before it comes out April 2.

MP3: The Besnard Lakes – “Albatross”

March 22 is also the day The Indies – the festival’s bizarro mish-mash of awards ceremony no one really understands and musical bill of some of the fest’s biggest names playing abbreviated sets – goes down, but this year it’s at the Kool Haus rather than the ballroom of the Royal York hotel and the lineup is somewhat more coherent. Metric will headline and the undercard contains the likes of Diamond Rings, Yukon Blonde, The Wooden Sky, and Cadence Weapon. Tickets for that are $49.50. Yup.

MP3: Metric – “Artificial Nocturne”
MP3: Diamond Rings – “I’m Just Me”
MP3: Yukon Blonde – “Fire”
MP3: The Wooden Sky – “Child Of The Valley”
MP3: Cadence Weapon – “Conditioning”

When Portland’s Parenthetical Girls were last here in April, their series of Privilege EPs had yet to be completed, only getting compiled into 21-song box set form last Fall. On February 19, it gets recompiled into a concise, 12-track album of the same name and gives them an excuse to tour again, this time coming to Double Double Land on March 28.

MP3: Parenthetical Girls – “The Pornographer”

Scottish indie-rock heroes The View will give their new record Cheeky For A Reason – out last Summer in the UK – a North American release on February 13 and have a date at Lee’s Palace on March 29 to promote it. Tickets for that are $15 in advance.

Stream: The View – “How Long”

Pitchfork brings Wavves news; specifically a new album in Afraid Of Heights coming March 26, a stream of a song from said new record, and tour dates in support of it including an April 5 date at The Horseshoe. Accompanying them on this tour are FIDLAR and Cheatahs, both of whom come with their own head of buzzy steam and equal facility for mangling the English language.

MP3: FIDLAR – “Got No Money”
Stream: Wavves – “Demon To Lean On”
Stream: Cheatahs – “The Swan”

The release of Jim James’ solo debut Regions Of Light And Sound Of God is upon us next Tuesday – February 5 – and with that comes and advance stream courtesy of NPR,interviews courtesy of Rolling Stone, CBC Music, and Exclaim, and a North American tour – dates courtesy Pollstar – that includes an April 24 stop at The Phoenix, tickets $26 in advance.

Stream: Jim James / Regions Of Light And Sound Of God

British “can we not call it dubstep” electronic artist James Blake will have a new album out later this year, but first comes a Spring tour built around Coachella that brings him to the Danforth Music Hall on May 4. Tickets $25 in advance.

MP3: James Blake – “To Care (Like You)”

Even though they were here just in December, Marina & The Diamonds have made a return engagement in support of second album Electra Hart and will be at the Sound Academy on May 23 as part of a Spring tour with support coming from next big thing Charli XCX. Tickets for that show are $28.50.

MP3: Charli XCX – “Glow”
Video: Marina & The Diamonds – “How To Be A Heartbreaker”

Crystal Castles also aren’t waiting long to play another local show, but they live here so it’s a little less of an undertaking. Following their release show for III back in November – from which they just released a new video – they’re back at the Sound Academy on June 8 and those tickets are $28.

MP3: Crystal Castles – “Wrath Of God”
Video: Crystal Castles – “Sad Eyes”

Washington DC punk/hardcore legends Bad Brains put out a new record in Into The Future late last year, and will be here on June 13 at The Phoenix to play some songs from it. And probably some old ones. Almost certainly some old ones. Tickets $30.50.

MP3: Bad Brains – “Pay To Cum”

The Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark reunion continues apace, with a second 21st century album – English Electric – due out April 8 and an accompanying North American tour confirmed. They’ll be at the Danforth Music Hall on July 11, advance tickets $35.

Video: Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark – “If You Leave”

Frank YangIt’s probably a reach to think that Sloan had some sort of master plan for the past couple years that would pull their career from the respectable but not overly remarkable holding pattern that it’d been in for the past few albums and make them both exciting and relevant again, but that’s pretty much what they’ve managed to do. Their twentieth anniversary as a band last year was kept from being a one-way trip down memory lane thanks to The Double Cross, arguably their best album this century (those arguing otherwise would generally be arguing for 2006’s Never Hear The End Of It). Further, their partaking in the “Don’t Look Back”-style album recital shows – Once Chord To Another for a local show last December and Twice Removed for this Fall tour – was an attractive hook for getting old fans who might have lost interest in recent years to be reminded of why they loved the band in the first place and that despite ups and downs in their discography, they’re still one of the best acts this country has produced in the past two decades.

I covered the landmark-ness of Twice Removed back in September, and as you’d expect given its iconic status, The Phoenix was sold out for Thursday night’s (adopted) hometown performance, the second-last show of their cross-country tour. Not as many people as who’d shown up for their epic show at Echo Beach last August, but that was a free show – hardly a fair point of comparison by numbers, but you could probably make a case for this show’s crowd winning on enthusiasm and anticipation. Despite promising to be on at the stroke of 8 – as with many shows on this tour, there was no opening act – the stage remained empty until quarter-to-nine, perhaps all a ploy to get some old-school “Slooo-aaaaan” changes going. If so, it worked.

When they finally took the stage, it was straight into “Penpals” and the first of many boisterous, singalong moments. And here’s where I’ll make a point about Twice Removed that I didn’t mention last time – for all the love laid at its doorstep, it’s really quite an odd record. Catching the band in the process of transitioning from a noise- to power-pop outfit and before each of the four songwriters had settled into the roles and styles that’d define them henceforth, it’s high on quirk and creative forays that they’d not repeat later in their career. In practical terms, it also meant that fewer Twice Removed songs made it into live sets than their more chart-friendly peers. Why play “Bells On” rather than “She Means What She Says”? “I Hate My Generation” instead of “The Rest Of My Life”? Maybe the Twice Removed recital was largely fan service and a nostalgia exercise, but it’s also true that its songs don’t get nearly the live attention that they deserve, and was as much of a treat as anyone could have hoped.

Even though the band took a decidedly businesslike approach to getting through the material – little talking, straight onto the next song – they still created no shortage of magical little moments; fitting for an album defined more by its magical little moments than any big, rousing singles. Patrick Pentland’s “Loosens” reminding everyone that he was the sensitive pop guy in the band before he decided to become the classic rock guy, Chris Murphy and Andrew Scott going it alone for the guitar-and-drum highlight “Deeper Than Beauty”, the irresistible chorus of Jay Ferguson’s “Snowsuit Sound”, and perhaps most of all, their bringing out jale’s Jennifer Pierce to reprise her harmonies with Pentland on too-sweet-for-words album closer “I Can Feel It”.

Sloan left the stage on that high for an extended intermission, but returned for a second 45-minute set of career-spanning material that offered a good balance of hits and deep cuts, an extra bit of focus on Double Cross and a four-song mini-set of Andrew Scott tunes in the middle of it all. It may not have been formulated to keep a packed house packed – people began peeling off throughout the second set as it became clear that it wouldn’t be a greatest hits revue – but I have to respect the band for keeping it unpredictable (though thankfully not as unpredictable as their all b-sides set at Sonic Boom for Record Store Day 2010. And I can only hope that those who left early got a good night’s sleep, because it meant they missed hearing Jennifer Pierce return for the encore to cover her parts on Smeared‘s rarely-played “I Am The Cancer”, didn’t get to see Chris Murphy’s one scissor-kick of the night during “Losing California”, and didn’t get to sing along with “Underwhelmed” for the set closer.

It’s no easy thing to work both the nostalgia circuit and maintain your status as a creative, active band simultaneously – I can only think of The Wedding Present as far as acts who are even really trying over the long term – but Sloan are doing a fine job of it. During the show, they promised a new studio album in 2013 and a One Chord To Another deluxe reissue set after that. What’s next, Navy Blues live? Bring it. I’ll stay interested until Pretty Together.

NOW, BlogTO, and The Record talk to Jay Ferguson about revisiting Twice Removed. The National Post also has a writeup of the show.

Photos: Sloan @ The Phoenix – November 22, 2012
MP3: Sloan – “Follow The Leader”
MP3: Sloan – “The Answer Was You”
MP3: Sloan – “Unkind”
MP3: Sloan – “I’m Not A Kid Anymore”
Video: Sloan – “Unkind”
Video: Sloan – “Witch’s Wand”
Video: Sloan – “Emergency 911”
Video: Sloan – “All Used Up”
Video: Sloan – “The Rest Of My Life”
Video: Sloan – “The Other Man”
Video: Sloan – “Friendship”
Video: Sloan – “Losing California”
Video: Sloan – “She Says What She Means”
Video: Sloan – “Money City Maniacs”
Video: Sloan – “The Lines You Amend”
Video: Sloan – “Everything You’ve Done Wrong”
Video: Sloan – “The Good In Everyone”
Video: Sloan – “People Of The Sky”
Video: Sloan – “Coax Me”
Video: Sloan – “500 Up”
Video: Sloan – “Underwhelmed”

Another track from Crystal Castles’ new album (III) has been made available to download.

MP3: Crystal Castles – “Affection”

CBC Music talks to Gentleman Reg about his new album Leisure Life, which they’ve also got available to stream in whole. He plays a record release show at The Gladstone on December 2.

Stream: Gentleman Reg / Leisure Life

Also available to steam at CBC Music with attendant Q&A is The Dears’ new Live At Pasagüero live album, out digitally this week.

Stream: The Dears / Live At Pasagüero

Spinner has an interview and Bowery Presents an acoustic video session with Diamond Rings, coming home for a show at The Mod Club this week on November 29.

Pop This and The Vancouver Sun have interviews with Cold Specks, opening up for Conor Oberst at Massey Hall on December 8.

The Fly talks to Purity Ring, in town at The Phoenix on February 1.

The Grid Q&As Emily Haines of Metric.

Spinner and State have long and short interviews with Torq Campbell and Pat McGee of Stars, respectively.