The seventh annual Shortlist Music Prize finalists have been announced. Described as a "peer-selected award that recognizes the most creative and adventurous albums of the year," the Los Angeles-based award hopes to highlight innovative artists who, though fairly successful, have not risen to huge mainstream awareness yet. According to the Shortlist site, any album released from January through November 2007 in the US was eligible for nomination, so long as it had not been certified gold. Though the list can confound rabid music fans, the Shortlist does spread a fairly wide net of opportunity. This year, artists from nine different countries were nominated, and the list contains more foreign acts than ever before, including Canadians Arcade Fire and Feist and French duo Justice. From the original 54 nominated acts, the listmakers whittled it to 10. Voters include include Gary Lightbody (Snow Patrol), Ronnie Vannucci (the Killers), KCRW DJ Chris Douridas (KCRW), the hosts of Hunnypot Internet Radio and our very own VP Of Content, Rev. Moose. "I was excited when Greg [Spotts, Shortlist Organizator] asked me to participate as a listmaker for the second year in a row," says Moose. "It's a great opportunity for me to spotlight some artists that might otherwise not have gotten the attention their album merits. There are some household names on the long list, but there are many developing artists included too whose youth upstages any laurels." The winner is expected to be announced in February. This year there is no cash prize, and the nominee list was larger while the listmakers were fewer. Finalists For Sixth Annual Shortlist Music Prize: Arcade Fire - Neon Bible Burial - Untrue Feist - The Reminder Justice - Cross LCD Soundsystem - Sound Of Silver M.I.A. - Kala Spoon - Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga Stars - In Our Bedroom After The War Wilco - Sky Blue Sky Working For A Nuclear Free City - Businessmen And Ghosts www.shortlistofmusic.com
