A Look at the Polaris Long List: 28. Lindi Ortega – Little Red Boots

This is more purely ‘alt. country’ (whatever that amorphous term actually really means) than that Rose Cousins album I posted last night. I’m not really much of a country music fan but Lindi has a helluva voice. From my point of view Polaris jurors tend to get it confused and think a deserving Polaris Music Prize album winner has to be ‘progressive’ sounding or boundary breaking. I take the prize organizers at their word and think an album just has to sound insanely great. By that measure, while Little Red Boots might sound like a niche or genre record, I’d say it more than qualifies for serious consideration. Does that mean it will be a contender though? I’d say it’s tough to call. Ya dig that sampler above though? Then hit the jump for the full album via RDIO (snippets only for non-RDIO subscribers).

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A Look at the Polaris Long List: 39. Yamantaka // Sonic Titan – YT//ST

A lot going on here: art rock, prog rock, heavy metal with female vocals on top. It’s definitely on the cutting edge of what could be considered ‘different’ but, while others have been raving about this since it’s release and they put on a bit of a spectacle live (I saw them at the Lixar NXNE showcase last week), this isn’t something that really resonated for me.

[Music Video] Tre Mission – Hilroy

I posted a video of this kid killin’ it on Tim Westwood on my tumblr a little while back. He’s from Scarborough in Toronto’s East End (aka where I used to dwell until I made the jump downtown) but he spits like a UK MC and is in fact apparently the only non-UK (non-London??) MC accepted in the grime scene. He’s already been on tour with Wiley and just finished an opening slot for Rae & Ghost’s headlining NXNE show last Sunday. This is the first video from his forthcoming mixtape album, a track featuring him going in over Jamie XX‘s steel drum-powered, ethereal-sounding “Far Nearer” track. An ode to lyricists everywhere with their pens and notebooks (Canadians know)?

A Look at the Polaris Long List: 23. Handsome Furs – Sound Kapital [possibly NSFW image?]

Got to give credit to the Handsome Furs for creating an album in Sound Kapital that is obviously in debt to the synth pop, new wave and alternative pop sounds of the mid-80s but that still manages to sound fresh and contemporary at the same time. Not sure I’d vote for it on my short list ballot but I was kind of digging this. Unfortunately, this husband and wife duo apparently just split up after six years just as their album was being awarded this accolade. Talk about poor timing!

Dig what you heard with those two tracks? Then hit the jump for an embed of the entire album for streaming via RDIO (preview snippets only for non-RDIO subscribers). And oh, I tagged this NSFW based on the album cover art above. Apparently, it riled someone down South of the border (my guess: the chief music buyer at Walmart) because the art on the RDIO embed has completely different art.

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A Look at the Polaris Long List: 24. Japandroids – Celebration Rock

Turn of the century MTV-friendly alternative rock as re-imagined by underground, garage rockers or something. True to the title, this sounded like feel-good, stadium-friendly anthem rock for the hipster, new indie rock set. Not my thing but I can’t argue that it’s not pretty well done. Extra points for keeping it short and sweet with just eight tracks. #lifestooshort

[streaming player via Exclaim!]