The 53rd annual Grammy Awards take place Feb. 13 live from Staples Center in Los Angeles. Little gramophones are given out in an overwhelming 109 categories. Each day between now and the awards ceremony, we”ll take a category or two and pick the act we believe will taken home the statue. First up: Best Alternative Music Album.
Best Alternative Music Album
“The Suburbs,” Arcade Fire
“Infinite Arms,” Band of Horses
“Brothers,” The Black Keys
“Broken Bells,” Broken Bells
“Contra,” Vampire Weekend
This is one of the strongest slates in this year”s awards with each album a stand-out-and there were, arguably, a number of albums waiting in the wings that could have also earned a spot among the top 5: Best Coast”s “Crazy For You”, Beach House”s “Teen Dream,” Joanna Newsom”s “Have One on Me,” etc. Plus, the Grammy powers-that-be parse things up further by taking someone like Ray LaMontagne and the Pariah Dogs and put them in the contemporary folk album category instead of alternative. Even we aren’t sure where something like Mumford & Sons’ “Sigh No More” should fit in. So there”s a lot of hair splitting. Having said that, despite the fact that “Broken Bells,” was my No. 1 album of the year across the board, this is most likely a race between “Brothers,” “Contra” and “The Suburbs,” all of which were strong, if occasionally spotty, efforts. “The Suburbs” is also up for Best Album, which, in Grammyland, presumes some level of superiority over the other contenders. Hey Grammys: why no best alternative music song category?
WILL WIN: “The Suburbs,” Arcade Fire