New York, NY (Top40 Charts/ Shore Fire Media) Today Steve Jordan, Founder and Executive
Director of the Polaris
Music Prize, announced details regarding the 8th annual Polaris
Music Prize Gala. The gala is on Monday,
September 23rd at The Carlu in downtown Toronto. As was revealed at the Short List announcement on July 16th, this year's hosts will be previous Polaris
Music Prize nominees Kathleen Edwards and Shad. The entire event will be aired live on Aux.tv and SiriusXM channels (The Verge XM ch. 173 and The Iceberg
Sirius ch. 161) beginning at 8pm ET. For the first time ever, the public will be able to attend; a limited number of tickets are on sale through ticketfly.com.
This year's Gala will include live performances by Short List nominees Zaki Ibrahim, Metric, METZ, Purity Ring, A Tribe Called Red,
Whitehorse and Young Galaxy. Colin Stetson recently sustained a hand injury but hopes to be healed in time to perform.
Some presenters have also been confirmed. They include Giller Prize winning author Joseph Boyden, author and critic
Jessica Hopper, and musician and past nominee Bry Webb. The remaining presenters will be revealed leading up to the gala.
This year's Grand Jury has also been announced. They are chosen from a larger jury of over 200 music journalists, broadcasters and bloggers. The 11 member Grand Jury will be sequestered in a room at the Carlu on the evening of the Gala to debate and decide the winner. This year's Grand Jury members are Alan Cross (Indie 88.1), Kat Dornian (CJSW), Katherine Duncan (CBC),
Stuart Henderson (Pop Matters), Jenny Henkelman (CKUW), Ryan McNutt (freelance journalist), Sean Michaels (Said The Gramophone), Ian Steaman (Different Kitchen),
James Tennant (CFMU), Phil Villeneuve (Xtra) and Andrea Warner (freelance journalist).
THE 2013 POLARIS MUSIC PRIZE SHORT LIST IS (In Alphabetical Order):
Godspeed You!
Black Emperor - 'Allelujah! Don't Bend! Ascend!
Zaki Ibrahim - Every Opposite
Metric - Synthetica
METZ - METZ
Purity Ring - Shrines
Colin Stetson - New History Warfare Vol. 3: To See More Light
Tegan and Sara - Heartthrob
A Tribe Called Red - Nation II Nation
Whitehorse - The Fate of the World Depends on This Kiss
Young Galaxy - Ultramarine
The Polaris
Music Prize awards $30,000 to the artist who creates the Canadian Album of the Year. Judged solely on artistic merit, without consideration of genre or record sales, the prize's past winners have included
Feist (2012),
Arcade Fire (2011), Karkwa (2010), Fucked Up (2009),
Caribou (2008), Patrick Watson (2007), and Final Fantasy (Owen Pallett) (2006).
