Best of MTL 2017: Music

Bernardino Femminielli, Freakiest Act #3. Photo by Cecilia Granara

The script has flipped in the Best Band category, with Arcade Fire taking the #1 spot back from Half Moon Run after last year’s upset — the fact that Arcade Fire will be releasing a new record this year (and played a show here in March for the first time in ages) may have something to do with that.

More recent breakout star (and Cult MTL cover bro) Kaytranada is clearly on our readers’ minds, too, trading places with Grimes to take the #1 spot in Best Electronic Act (a Top 5 otherwise dominated by ladies, which is very cool), and topping the Best Solo Act category, too. (Speaking of Grimes, this is the last year we’ll consider her a Montrealer — unless she moves back from sunny California, of course.)

And it’s nice to see relative vets of the scene like Jean Leloup, the Dears, Godspeed, Patrick Watson and Bloodshot Bill — not to mention the late, great Leonard Cohen — rubbing shoulders with the likes of synth-pop eccentrics CO/NTRY, bilingual hip hop act Dead Obies, experimental rock duo Big/Brave and singer-songwriter Safia Nolin.

Best Band
1 Arcade Fire
2 Half Moon Run
3 Dead Obies
4 The Damn Truth
5 Strange Froots
6 History of Gunpowder
7 Patent
8 Urban Science
9 CO/NTRY
10 Alaclair Ensemble

Best Solo Act
1 Kaytranada
2 Leonard Cohen (RIP)
3 Patrick Watson
4 Bloodshot Bill
5 Grimes
6 Coeur de Pirate
7 Leif Vollebekk
8 Celina Wolfe
9 Bud Rice
10 Marie Davidson

Freakiest Act
1 CO/NTRY
2 Jean Leloup
3 Bernardino Femminielli
4 Duchess Says
5 Bad Uncle
6 Anthony Hansen Problem

Most Pretentious Act
1 Arcade Fire
2 Lakes of Canada
3 Godspeed You! Black Emperor
4 Coeur de Pirate
5 The Dears
6 Celine Dion
7 Martin Matte
8 Pierre Lapointe

Strange Froots, Best Hip Hop Act #2, Best Band #5. Photo by Mariel Rosenbluth

Heaviest Act
1 Duchess Says
2 Mad Parish
3 Godspeed You! Black Emperor
4 USA Out of Vietnam
5 Big/Brave

Best Hip Hop Act
1 Dead Obies
2 Strange Froots
3 Nomadic Massive
4 The Posterz
5 Alaclair Ensemble
6 Koriass
7 Kaytranada
8 Hua Li
9 Urban Science
10 The Lyonz

Best Club DJ
1 Frankie Teardrop
2 Diskommander
3 DJ Awwful
4 Toddy Flores
5 Jojo Flores
6 Like the Wolf

Best Electronic Act
1 Kaytranada
2 Grimes
3 Xarah Dion
4 Marie Davidson
5 Mozart’s Sister
6 Jacques Greene
7 Radiant Baby
8 Wiz Kilo
9 Kid Koala
10 Saxsyndrum

Best Country/Folk Act
1 Li’l Andy
2 Katie Moore
3 The Barr Brothers
4 Lisa Leblanc
5 Old Time Honey
6 Avec pas d’casque
7 Bats in the Belfry
8 Ol’ Savannah

Best Jazz Act
1 Shy Shy Schullie
2 Beth McKenna
3 Kalmunity
4 Dave Gossage
5 The Continentals

Best Singer-songwriter
1 Leonard Cohen (RIP)
2 Leif Vollebekk
3 Patrick Watson
4 Safia Nolin
5 Heather Ragnars
6 Martha Wainwright
7 Bud Rice
8 Beaver Sheppard
9 Li’l Andy
10 Felix Dyotte

Best Busker
1 Spoonman
2 Marianne Trenka
3 Bolero Trio
4 Jorie
5 Street Meat
6 Caravonica
7 Boat guy

Best Record Label
1 Constellation
2 Stomp
3 Arbutus
4 Secret City
5 Bonsound
6 Dare to Care
7 Lisbon Lux
8 Fixture
9 Art Not Love
10 UNLOG

See the rest of the Best of MTL here:

* PEOPLE & PLACES
* MEDIA
* NIGHTLIFE
* FILM & ARTS
* GOODS & SERVICES
* FOOD & DRINK

(To see the results from the 2016 poll, click here.)