On February 13th, the music biz will celebrate albums and songs that came out between September 1st, 2009 and September 30th, 2010 at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. Who will win, you may ask -- and who should win? And why won't Britney Spears perform? You've come to the right place. The Amp is breaking down each of the 10 biggest categories every day until the big event.
Category: Best Alternative Album
Nominees:
Arcade Fire - "The Suburbs"
Band of Horses - "Infinite Arms"
The Black Keys - "Brothers"
Broken Bells - "Broken Bells"
Vampire Weekend - "Contra"
Who Will Win: Arcade Fire
Who Should Win: Arcade Fire
Why: Easy answer -- they're the only nominee that was on The Amp's list of the Best Albums of 2010. Longer answer -- they're the only nominee that's also up for Best Album (which they will not win). Even longer answer -- "The Suburbs" is a beautiful meditation on the nature of growing up that includes some of Win Butler and Co.'s most subtly brilliant orchestration. It's not perfect, but it's an indie rock record that has mass appeal. Broken Bells and Band of Horses made pretty records that appeal to narrower fanbases (and are therefore less likely to be known by older Grammy voters), the Black Keys will surely pick up one or two of the other four awards they're up for, and Vampire Weekend need to be punished for inflicting "Holiday" on us in a never-ending commercial loop.
Who Won Last Year: Phoenix's "Wolfgang Amadeus Phoenix"
Who Won Five, 10, 20 Years Ago: The White Stripes ("Get Behind Me Satan"), Radiohead ("Kid A"), Sinead O'Connor ("I Do Not Want What I Haven't Got")
Previously:
• Grammy Guide: Who'll Win Best Pop Vocal Performance?
[Photo: Simone Joyner/WireImage.com]