Grammy-winning Montreal rockers Arcade Fire, Toronto-born legend Neil Young and Halifax's Sloan are among a list of 40 Canadian artists who have been longlisted for the $30,000 Polaris Music Prize.
The 40 nominees, announced Thursday, will be whittled down to a short list of 10 to be announced July 6, with a winner to be crowned at a gala on September 19.
The long list includes plenty of familiar names, including Ron Sexsmith, Stars, Buck 65 and Black Mountain.
But many buzzy artists found themselves receiving their inaugural Polaris acknowledgment for their debut releases, including Toronto indie R&B outfit the Weeknd, Montreal-based singer-songwriter Little Scream and the Kingston, Ont., duo PS I Love You.
This is the sixth year of the Polaris, which seeks to honour the best Canadian album from the previous year. The prize is judged solely on artist merit, without regard to genre or record sales, and is voted on by 227 music journalists, broadcasters and bloggers from across Canada.
Past winners include Karkwa, Patrick Watson and Caribou.
