More hipster nominees than usual

TO THE LEFT, TO THE LEFT: While the gratifying selections of Arcade Fire’s The Suburbs as an Album of the Year nom, Mumford & Sons in the Best New Artist field and Cee Lo’s viral sensation “Fuck You” for both Song and Record are the most obvious indications of the Academy voters’ increasing awareness and acceptance of cutting-edge music, the overall list of nominees is peppered with hipster-embraced artists and records. The Black Keys snagged four noms, more than any other band, mainstream or fringe, and Ray LaMontagne finally got some love on his fourth album with three nods, topped by Song of the Year. Feisty old-timer Neil Young scored a pair for his sonically radical Le Noise, while Danger Mouse got recognized for his always-inventive production work. And the five noms in the Alternative Album category—The Suburbs, Band of Horses’ Infinite Arms, The Black Keys’ Brothers, Broken Bells’ self-titled LP and Vampire Weekend’s Contra—are also showing up on year-end critics’ polls. (12/2a)