Beyond the winners, the short list of ten acts for the 2026 Polaris Album Prize reveals the depth and artistry of Canadian contemporary popular artists.
Anya Wassenberg is the Toronto City Editor and senior writer at Ludwig Van. For three decades, she worked as a freelance writer and blogger with a strong specialty in culture and travel, and as a creative writing instructor for OntarioLearn. Many of her pieces have been quoted and used in the bibliographies of academic papers and publications, and she is a current jury member for the Polaris Music Prize. Under the artist name Anya Mia, she is a singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist, and hosts a monthly open mic for writers in her hometown of Hamilton, ON.
To the surprise of no one, Angine de Poitrine, international sensations and the pride of Saguenay, Québec, took home the $30,000 prize for 2026 Polaris Album Prize for Vol. 2 at the Polaris Gala last night, September 22, at Massey Hall. The duo of Khn de Poitrine and Klek de Poitrine also pocketed another $10,000 with a win for the SOCAN Polaris Song Prize for “Fabienk”.
It’s the first Polaris win for an instrumental ensemble without vocals. Over the last several months, Angine de Poitrine have been electrifying audiences worldwide with their unique blend of percussion, double-neck microtonal guitar/bass hybrid and looping pedals, combined with a polka dotted costumery and sci-fi personas.
The Album and Song Prize wins were announced by two-time Polaris Album winner Jeremy Dutcher and SOCAN’s Tanya Van Luven.
“That all this attention is being directed toward music this rock-driven and this complex is unexpected, yet entirely deserved,” said Angine de Poitrine’s manager Sébastien Collin on their behalf. “This artistic project is the result of a lifetime of refinement, collaboration, a drive to push beyond one’s limits, and a refusal to be confined by any established framework. Beyond the innovation and the extreme level of difficulty, the band has managed to create music that is incredibly catchy and accessible, which makes it all the more impressive.
“Congratulations to Angine de Poitrine, congratulations to the other nominees for innovating in their own ways, and thank you to Polaris for this tremendous recognition.”
The Polaris Music Prize is unique in itself in that it considers solely the quality of the music, without regard to genre, commercial success, online followers, or any other measure. The Album Prize is funded by The Slaight Family Foundation / Slaight Music, and the Song Prize by SOCAN.
Beyond the prize winners, the short list of ten acts for the Album Prize reveals the depth and artistry of Canadian contemporary popular artists.
The 2026 Polaris Music Prize Album Short List was:
The 2026 SOCAN Polaris Song Prize Short List was:
The Polaris Music Prize Gala begins with a jury of over 200 stretched across the country, of which I’m a member. The work is ongoing, year round, as jury members suggest albums and artists for consideration in an online forum. The music is discussed, and often passionately debated.
From that process, a very long list of more than 200 possibilities are culled, then whittled down to a list of 40. The jury votes on that list, which then becomes the “Short List” of 10. The song prize undergoes a similar process.
For the first time this year, the jury as a whole also voted on the final winners from the Short List, which included debate and discussion sessions.
Like most of my fellow jury members, in my work I specialize in specific genres of music. What I’ve loved about the Polaris jury process has been the ongoing introduction to such a wide spectrum of Canadian artists and their music. I especially appreciated the debate sessions, which were held live online but also recorded for ongoing reference. There was a lot of passionate discussion of the musical merits of all the acts.
One of the great perks of attending the Awards Ceremony is a series of performances by most of the acts on the short list, showcasing the music on their nominated albums. All of them got a warm response from Massey Hall’s sold out crowd.
Veteran artist Beverly Glenn Copeland opened the proceedings with his brand of melodic songs in lush arrangements that featured piano, sax and a full choir as vocal back up.
Charlotte Cornfield offered roots music of heartfelt simplicity and romance, with an unvarnished look that matched her 21st century troubadour delivery. In the roots tradition, her songs talk about everyday emotions and tragedies.
Les Louanges’ latest release Alouette! is a complex and inventive mix of genres, poetry, electronics, and soundscapes that examine Québécois culture and more broadly, the human condition.
Winnipeg’s Begonia is an artful chanteuse for the 21st century, showcasing her superb vocals in a medley of tunes. Special kudos for her princess themed costume, in keeping with the title and theme of her album Fantasy Life.
Aquakultre, from Dartmouth NS, sings about Black history and culture of the Canada’s East Coast with a big voice bolstered by six harmony and guest singers in a jazzy gospel vein. It was stirring music with an impassioned message.
Iconic artist Peaches, who was the recipient of the Heritage Prize in 2021 for her breakout 2000 debut album, The Teaches of Peaches, couldn’t make the awards ceremony. Her music was interpreted by Slash Need, a Toronto based industrial electropunk band, who did justice to Peach’s subversive brand of electronica with a costumed set of onstage mayhem, including balloons tossed out to the audience.
Tanya Tagaq’s fiercely individual and uncompromising set started with voice and cello only, later adding guitar (played with non-standard methods that included stroking), and percussion. After a furious chorus of “Fuck war, Fuck Trump”, she finished by throat singing with another Inuit woman. The pair burst into laughter to end the set. Tagaq delivers distinctive avant-garde art music that struck a chord with the audience.
Montréal’s Bibi Club (Adèle Trottier-Rivard and Nicolas Basque) offer a sophisticated take on electro-pop, often infused with diverse elements such as Arabic rhythms.
Angine de Poitrine performed last, just before the Award announcements, to an enthralled (and loud) audience. Their quirky personas are interesting, and while they keep something of a distance from their fans (they don’t speak directly to anyone, or reveal the identities behind the elaborate masks), they also inspire a devoted following.
Western classical music still occupies a minority niche position in the larger world of popular music, but for aficionados, there are encouraging signs. Angine de Poitrine’s musical complexity, the presence of choirs, vocal excellence, orchestral instruments and other elements are indicative of its foundational influence, permeating Canadian music.
Microtonal music is part of the cultural heritage of the Southwest Asia, North Africa and Levant, something that organizations like Labyrinth Ontario have been working to popularize for years. To see it brought into the mainstream is an interesting development.
The acts on stage and the audience were both multigenerational and diverse. Polaris also honours legacy acts and albums that were released before the inception of Polaris in 2006. This year’s 2026 Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize designations included The Watchmen, and the late Willie Dunn.
For those who couldn’t be in attendance, the 2026 Polaris Concert & Award Ceremony was recorded by CBC, and will be broadcast on a future episode of the CBC Music Presents: Live At Massey Hall series. Individual performance videos, winner reveals, and other excerpts from the gala will be available here.
For those of us on the jury, the work has already begun to compile the long, long list for 2027.
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