Hypnotic Brass Ensemble

Chicago superheroes of modal jazz music are bringing their unique sounds to the streets of Montreal. You may think that this kind of music is outmoded since the release of the genre's most important and celebrated record in 1959, Miles Davis' Kind of Blue. You shouldn't. Hypnotic Brass Ensemble decided to embark themselves on a crusade to reinvent organic music. They have not been alone, since they have been heard and hired by Mos Def, Jay Z and Damon Albarn to work on different projects. These eight sons of Sun Ra alumnus Phil Cohran plus a drummer will transmit the festive energy of their wicked mix of traditional balkan brass band music, hip hop, funk, jazz and soul to the audience.

Irma Thomas

Did you know that Irma Thomas was the first to record  one of The Rolling Stones' first hit songs? The legendary vocalist, who is featured at this year's POP Montreal Festival, was the first musician to sing Time is on my Side, a song that was originally written by American producer and composer Jerry Ragovoy.

Ratatat

Yes, you can. Pop followers have been quick to find out about the ticket links on the "Events" section of the website. They are going fast! Don't panic, you can still get in those two shows without giving your money to those evil men known as ticket scalpers. Buying an Industry Pass will let you join your friends into the party!

Lucy & The Popsonics

Here are the top 3 bands, as selected by the public & jury of POP Montreal musical pundits:

Lucy & the Popsonics / The Craft Economy / Les Handclaps

Congratulations to everyone who got into the top 200 as well!

The SIRIUS Satellite Radio stage will be at the Jupiter Roomon Saturday, October 4th. Our full schedule will be out in a week, so check it out for more details and to see some other great artists & legends!

Here is some more information about the winners...

Shadrach Kabango AKA Shad

Shad is an MC from London, Ontario who just got nominated for the 2008 Polaris Prize. His last album, The Old Prince, got awesome reviews from both Okayplayer and RapReviews. 89/100 and 10/10 respectively. "As far as Okayplayer accolades, I'd place Shad somewhere in the Blu/Kweli continuum, a deft lyricist with Exxon-deep rhyme pattern reserves."

Sister Nancy

Sister Nancy is not only a pioneer woman Mc, she's one of the best and most enduring. To her credit, she was also the first woman to become a famous dancehall DJ, and the first to fly out of Jamaïca for world tours. This world class reggae singer has been the award-winning queen of the caribbean sound systems of the 80s. Hardcore dancehall fans have endless respect for her and she has worked with Kid 606, DJ/Rupture and Thievery Corporation.

Did you hear about The Persuasions? The benchmark for a capella ensembles will come to visit the streets of our beautiful city in October. We are really excited about hearing their voices at POP. Check out this movie to have a taste of what's coming:

At this moment, you can send your song requests here, and buy tickets for the show there. Keep in mind that the weird demands that you may want to send in as jokes will still be considered as possibilities. The Persuasions have already made an album only with Zappa covers. Take a chance with your favorite King Crimson or Radiohead song, you never know what could happen.

This unmissable event will take place on October 4 in the magnificent Ukrainian Federation!!!

The summer has come and nearly gone, and all the while, we've been on the edge of our seats awaiting word from the judges. The suspense is now over.

The judges, Christian Bok, poetry, and Zoe Whittall, fiction, have delivered their choices, from a field of well over 100 manuscripts, and were thrilled with the quality and quantity of exemplary new writing from Canada.

Here are the winners:

In the category of poetry, the winner is Jonathan Ball of Calgary, Alberta.
A special honourable mention goes to Jennifer Still of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan

In the category of fiction, the winner is Ian Roy, of Ottawa, Ontario for his story Clouds.
A special honourable mention goes to Shane Neilson for his story, Sitting. 

The time has come to whittle things down a little! Now that juat over 1/10 of all the bands are left in competition for their spot on the Sirius stage at Pop, we're narrowing down the tracks on the player as we get closer to what you guys think is worth a listen. Here's a random sampling of the top 50 favorites and a link to a page with the top 200! The final 3 will be announced on 08/30, so now's the time to make your vote count!