Blowing his own horn: Colin Stetson at The Drake

Short List nominee Colin Stetson has the rare distinction of not only having his own album up for the Polaris this year, but he also happened to play on two of the other 2011 Short List records: Arcade Fire's The Suburbs and Timber Timbre's Creep On Creepin' On.

Apparently being highly in demand is just what happens when you play the bass saxophone, which Stetson bends into all manner of otherworldly sounds on his nominated album New History Warfare Vol. 2: Judges, which defies categorization or easy description.

Alas, Stetson won't be on hand to cheer on himself or his fellow nominees at the Polaris gala on Sept. 19, nor will those tuning into the ceremony get a chance to see him coax those must-be-heard-to-be-believed bass notes out of his oversized instrument. But he's got a pretty good excuse: Stetson's playing with indie superstar Bon Iver that same night in Los Angeles.

But if you want to see and hear Stetson's unique brand of avant-jazz for yourself, those in Toronto can catch him in a rare local performance at the Drake Hotel this Friday night (Aug. 26). Keep an eye on the Polaris Twitter feed for a chance to win tickets to the show!

And if you're curious to see what that massive saxophone sounds like in the hands of this rising musician, check out the amazing one-take video above of “The Stars In His Head (Dark Lights Remix)â€.

Concert details:

Colin Stetson
The Drake Hotel
Friday, August 26
Doors: 8 pm
Emily Wells (opener): 8:30 pm
Colin Stetson: 9:30 pm
Tickets: $12 advance/at the door
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