Polaris Judges: Opinions & Temptation
By Jillianne Hamilton
(09/19/09)
In 1993, Moncton grunge-indie rock outfit Eric's Trip released Love Tara, their first full-length album. Using a "lo-fi", DIY approach, the former bedroom of guitarist and singer Rick White became a makeshift recording studio.
"I've interviewed a lot of musicians," arts reporter Bob Mersereau states in his 2007 book The Top 100 Canadian Albums. "But this was the first time I'd been asked to meet a band at a member's parents' house."
Mersereau has covered east coast music for CBC, The Coast, The Telegraph-Journal and has appeared on Morningside and Sounds Like Canada. And this year, he's a member of the Polaris Music Prize grand jury.
"I've been reviewing and broadcasting since 1978, and have specialized in Canadian music," Mersereau said. "It seemed like a good fit."
Jury members are plucked from various parts of Canada but most have a music print or broadcast journalism background.
Halifax blogger Bryan Acker (of Herohill.com) is another member of the grand jury this year.
"It's pretty cool," he said. "I'm thrilled that the blog world can stand side-by-side with the 'real' critics and help determine who wins this thing."
Ben Rayner, originally from St. George, N.B. and now a music columnist for The Toronto Star, is also on the grand jury this year. He said he's usually "pretty loud-mouthed" about the bands he supports when the long and short lists are put together.
"This year, for once, a couple of the records I voted for actually made the final cut," he said. "I just fit the mix."
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The 2009 Polaris Music Prize Shortlist
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* Elliot BROOD, Mountain Meadows
* Fucked Up, The Chemistry Of Common Life
* Great Lake Swimmers, Lost Channels
* Hey Rosetta, Into Your Lungs
* K'NAAN, Troubadour
* Malajube, Labyrinthes
* Metric, Fantasies
* Joel Plaskett, Three
* Chad VanGaalen, Soft Airplane
* Patrick Watson, Wooden Arms
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The judges have to take several things into account when choosing which album should win,
Merserseau said.
"I think that many of the judges want to honour new and challenging artists. This is similar to the Mercury Prize in England, as opposed to the Grammy Awards or Juno Awards, which tend to award sales success."
Rayner said being on the grand jury has forced him to listen to albums that he normally would avoid.
"Polaris is teaching me to have an open mind."
For the first time, all the nominated artists will convene at a performance gala in Toronto.
Mersereau said he's not sure how executive director
Steve Jordan was able to get all 10 performers in Toronto at once.
"I guess it speaks to the importance this award has earned in such a short time."
Every music writer has a favourite album that didn't make it to the list.
Acker thought
Timbre Timbre and
Japandroids should've been included.
"There are 150 people choosing these nominees, so I can't say that any of the records picked shouldn't have made it," he said.
Rayner felt
Dog Day's album
Concentration was "fucking awesome" and should've made the long list, at least.
"The
Joel Plaskett triple-album is pretty fine, though. I could easily get behind that," he said. "I'd probably feel more biased if there was a band from New Brunswick in the running."
An interesting album that offers something new is what he'll vote for,
Rayner added.
"I'm not interested in a record you scratch your chin and nod appreciatively to for a couple of spins and then tuck away on the shelf forever. I want something I play all the time and that makes me excited about music again."
Mersereau said nothing surprises him when it comes to juries and opinions, including the final outcome of the
Polaris short list.
"You have to remember that every person has slightly different tastes, and that's the beauty of the
Polaris jury. You have old guys like me with long memories and young people who think
Joel Plaskett is getting on in years."
Acker said he doesn't think region will affect his vote too much.
"Of the records nominated, I think
Joel [Plaskett]'s deserves serious consideration. It wouldn't matter if he was from Montreal, Toronto or the West Coast. That being said, I am going to listen to what people say about their favourites too."
But
Mersereau, a New Brunswick native, said the temptation to vote for an east coast artist is there- and for good reason.
"I often feel- rightly or wrongly- that east coast musicians have a tougher time getting the attention they deserve," he said. "I think our east coast artists, in this case, are pretty well-respected by the music community nationwide. Also, I happen to like both these acts a lot, so there's further temptation."
Being a grand jury member has been an influence-free experience,
Mersereau said.
"It's as clean as a whistle. In fact, nobody has called me at all. Not an email, nothing. No 'let's have a beer in Toronto', no 'did you want tickets to any shows?'. It's either completely clean, or I'm the biggest loser in Canadian music. Probably the latter."
Established in 2006, the
Polaris Music Prize is a Canadian music prize given to the creator of a full-length album released in the past year, as chosen by an 11-member jury. The winner gets $20,000- and bragging rights, of course. The award is sponsered, in part, by
Sirius Satellite Radio,
FACTOR and
MySpace Canada.
Last year's prize went to psychedelic-rock band
Caribou for their album
Andorra. This is the first nomination for
Hey Rosetta! and the second for
Joel Plaskett, who was previously nominated for
Ashtray Rock in 2007.
You can check out the
Polaris Music Prize ceremony live at
CBC Radio 3 or
MuchMusic.com on Monday, Sept. 21st at 10pm AST.
(Photos courtesy of the Polaris website.)
Related links:
+ Polaris Music Prize (website)
+ Polaris Music Prize (Facebook)
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Jillianne Hamilton is a writer, blogger and a lover of indie music, funny movies, artsy things and the color red. She is studying Journalism at
Holland College, had an internship at the
Truro Daily News
and blogs for various college and pop culture websites. To contact Jill, visit her
website.
