In mid-January, 1992, a cultural watershed took place on the pop charts when Nirvana's Nevermind, which had been released several months earlier to little notice, finally became the number one album, knocking out Michael Jackson's Dangerous.

This was not seen simply as a sales victory, but the overthrow of the King of Pop (and all that his '80s glory represented) and the ushering in of the alternative revolution. It was, to say the least, a big deal. The subsequent popular alt-uprising, marked by Lollapalooza, Pearl Jam, manic panic hair, plaid flannel, Nine Inch Nails, and Green Day, sure smelled of teen spirit.

But if such a thing happened today, could it spark a similar sea-change? The simple answer: nuh-uh. And the simple reason is the rise of digi-singles and fall of the LP.

After an interminable two hours of red carpet coverage--during which we learned that a) Billy Ray lets Miley Cyrus wear way too much eye makeup; b) Nelly Furtado looks creepy with dyed blond eyebrows and c) the Plain White Ts guy wrote "Hey There Delilah" for an actual Delilah who still won't date him--it's finally time for the 50th Grammy awards, and our adventures in live-blogging, to begin.

And we're off...wheee!

Street cred and award shows have never been bed buddies. But the cultural relevance of the Juno Awards--which just announced 2008's nominees list, has been fading for several years because Canada's internationally acclaimed indie scene has been relegated to the "alternative" categories.

It's a disconnect best embodied by Kevin Drew's 2006 tongue-lashing of the Canadian Idol kids after his band, Broken Social Scene, took home best alternative album but was shut out of the major categories because of sales requirements.

It hardly mattered back when lame acts like, say, Sky, won best new artist because their competition was pretty lame, too. But once Canadian music started ruling, it pained when the same-old corporate rockers and cookie-cutter pop tarts got the props....

Edmonton rapper/producer Cadence Weapon made waves a few years back with the future-hop sounds of his Polaris-nominated debut Breaking Kayfabe.

But for new single "House Music," Cadence takes a page from rap's golden-era playbook to revive the late-80s "hip-house" style, albeit with modern electro ferocity, bad-ass club beats and boasts about how "on the CBC they film me above the hips."

Free MP3: Cadence Weapon, "House Music"

Keep an eye out for his post-breakthrough LP Afterparty Babies, dropping March 4 on Upper Class in Canada and Epitaph/Anti- down south.