Shortlist Music Prize Cancelled Amidst Infighting, Overinflated Egos

The annual Shortlist Music Prize was envisioned by creators Greg Spotts and Tom Sarig to "create opportunities for left-of-center culture to cross over to the mainstream." And to accomplish this, they enlisted a slew of "respected members of the creative community" to serve as arbiters of indie taste.

Pitchfork announced today that this year's Shortlist awards have been cancelled, owing to infighting between Spotts and Sarig:

Speaking about the duo's rift to AP, Spotts said, "I've tried very very hard to have a Shortlist this year. I think it's become an important cultural happening on the calendar. The only reason why we haven't this year is because Tom and I don't seem to be able to agree on how. It seems to be just like as bands get more successful, the egos get more complicated to manage. That same process seems to be happening with the management with our company."

Further complicating the matter, Tom Sarig seems to be moving on. He has taken his Shortlist vision, slapped a different name on it, and put together an entirely new awards show on his own. Going under the moniker New Pantheon, the proposed gathering appears eerily similar to the previous extravaganza-- so much so that his former cohort has threatened legal action. "That isn't something that I feel is legally possible for him," Spotts said. "You can't compete against a company that you co-own."

Since its inception in 2001, Shortlist Award Winners have included Damien Rice (2003), N*E*R*D (2002) and Sigur Ros (2001) - finalists included Dandy Warhols, Gorillaz, Ryan Adams, Doves, The Hives, Aphex Twins, Franz Ferdinand and heaps more. What was so cool about the whole thing, though, was the list of celebrity judges: people like Robert Smith (The Cure), Jim Jarmusch, Norah Jones, and Jack Black had a chance to share their music tastes with the indie-adoring public. Whether or not we agreed with their final choices (hit or miss) didn't really matter; it was simply nice that the nominated bands who'd otherwise been overlooked were able to receive a modicum of recognition.

Might the newly-created "New Pantheon" awards merit the same respect as its predecessor? We're not holding our breaths.