It added shades of emotion to an already powerful performance, aided by his intense, soulful vocals. (From the time of the first settlements until shockingly recent, Indigenous children were often taken from their families and forcefully assimilated, which is now recognized by Canada as a form of cultural genocide). Indigenous songwriter Aysanabee, meanwhile, played a recording of his grandfather talking about his harrowing experience at residential school. The late Dallas wasn’t mentioned by name, but an image of him onscreen spoke a thousand words. The Sadies are no stranger to Massey Hall’s stage, collaborating over the years with legendary performers like Neil Young and Gord Downie, so seeing them play as a trio – Dallas’s brother Travis Good taking center stage – felt jarring yet poignant. It was the long-running psychedelic country band’s final album with founding guitarist Dallas Good, who tragically passed away during its recording. There’s a potent story behind The Sadies’ shortlisted album Colder Streams, but it wasn’t told directly. But if the intention is to put the spotlight on Canadian music people might not know, it lacked some important context. In a way, that approach stayed true to the Polaris ethos, keeping the focus solely on the music. It moved briskly over two hours and kept the focus on the music – no livestream, no extended gaps and, notably, no host at all. Seven out of 10 of the shortlisted artists played live on the famous stage of Massey Hall (Daniel Caesar, Feist and Alvvays were on tour and unable to be there), and it often felt more like a concert than an awards show. This year, they swung hard in the other direction. With lengthy changeovers between performances that seemed to cater more to the CBC Music cameras than the in-person audience, last year’s gala at the Carlu in Toronto dragged on over a tiring four hours. It stood out as a memorable performance in a night filled with many. Over electronic production, live guitar and a mini-string section of viola and cello, her vocals sounded yearning and emotional. If Canadian music is defined by anything, it’s easy cultural fluency, an ability to mix different sounds and multicultural traditions almost by second nature.ĭespite her confident and aggressive delivery, Debby Friday’s live performance of “So Hard to Tell” instead stood out with dreamy melodicism. On a purely sonic level, it’s distinct from previous winners such as Afrobeats artist Pierre Kwenders, rappers Cadence Weapon and Backxwash and producer Kaytranada, but it fits within the recent trend to reward artists who push at the limits of genre and create new sounds out of deeply personal influences. Debby Friday’s music is uncategorizable – a mix of pulsing beats, adventurous production and brash, swaggering vocals equally influenced by hip-hop and punk. Once criticized for awarding only indie rock artists, the Polaris Prize is now a testament to the genre-less diversity of expression within the country’s borders. Chosen by a panel of music journalists and professionals, it’s the closest thing the country has to a pure critics’ prize – an award that disregards factors like record label, genre and chart position to focus solely on the always slippery concept of “artistic merit.” That makes it harder to predict than any other award in the country, but it makes it a good barometer for the critical conversation in Canadian music. Now in its 18th year, the award continues to evolve and surprise. Now I’m here today, and it just feels like a miracle.” I was born in Nigeria in a small village. “This is something I didn’t even realize was a possibility. “I’m in shock!” she said through both laughter and tears. A BMI Sale Has the Music Industry On Edge - But Could It Benefit Songwriters?Īccepting the award for best Canadian album of the year and an accompanying $50,000 prize, the Toronto-based industrial electronic artist was as pleasantly surprised as anyone in the audience at Toronto’s Massey Hall.
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