Polaris People For The Week Of November 16: Weeknd Speaks (Sort Of) & Black Mountain Get Psyched

It’s been an exciting week in Polarisland.

First, we kicked off the 2013 season with our new feature “Polaris Picks.” Our first advocate for this new regular feature was National Post’s Ben Kaplan who really thinks Jason Collett should win the Polaris next year for his album Reckon.

Then we announced that our patented argument parties, the Polaris Salons, are going international. On November 29 we’re taking to New York City to nerd out and talk records with the likes of Alan Light and Maura Johnston (Google them, they’re kinda a big deal).

And now we’re about to love bomb you with news about our favourite people, the Polaris People. Here’s what some of them were up to this week:

Arcade Fire, Tegan And Sara and a bunch of other really good non-Polaris People may or may not be involved in some kooky Austin-based movie that sounds like a hipster generation Singles.

Former 2009 Short Listers Elliott Brood ran into a spot of trouble in Saskatoon. Not only did the get robbed, they also encountered a witch. It’s all explained here.

The champs from 2009, Fucked Up, kicked off their curated Long Winter sessions. It was weird. And there may have been people paying money to prank call D-Sisive. Oh, and in case you were worried, they’re not retiring any time soon.

Holy swirling trails of kaleidoscopic awesomeness. Past Short and Long Listers Black Mountain have been announced as part of the upcoming 2013 Austin Psych Fest. They join the likes of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Black Banana, The Black Angels and The Black Ryder. And some bands without “Black” in their name.

This animated Mother Mother video for the song “The Sticks” was done by former two-time Short Lister Chad VanGaalen. It’s… something.

Nashville Scene has outed 2012 Short Listers Japandroids for their vaguely secret connection to the Music City. The band “didn’t know a single person” when they went there on a musical vision quest.

This is a true failure by the jurors/journalists of the Polaris Music Prize to have failed in uncovering Drake‘s connection to Plymouth, U.K. before now. Thankfully Noisey had us covered.

Speaking of Drake, if you consider his running buddy The Weeknd‘s two word statement (“killing me”) about clearing samples to Billboard an “interview,” then the gauntlet has officially been thrown down and he’s now doing traditional press. If.

How’s 2007 Polaris champ Patrick Watson, you ask?
“We're knee deep in a wet stop-motion animation jungle. It's like a Jim Henson porno in space!”
The lesson: Be careful what you ask Patrick Watson.

Finally, let’s experience some storytime with Weakerthans mainman John K. Samson.