Dundas native Dan Snaith's trippy pop project, Caribou, has won the $20,000 Polaris Music Prize for the best Canadian album of the year.

Caribou's CD, Andorra, was chosen by an 11-member jury of experts from a short list of 10 albums drawn up by more than 170 writers, broadcasters and bloggers from across the country.

Dan Snaith, the sole full-time member of Caribou, stammered a bit as he accepted his giant cheque Monday night at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto. He said he was unprepared to speak to the crowd because didn't expect to win.

"I guess the most important thing I wanted to say is, I feel so lucky and so proud to be included among such an incredible group of musicians and group of albums," he said. "I really feel humbled and proud."

Snaith first started performing as a student at Parkside High School and then played piano with the Hamilton All Star Jazz Band before heading to the University of Toronto, where he began recording under the name Manitoba. Snaith went on to obtain his PhD in mathematics in London, England, where he continued to record under the name Caribou.

Snaith currently resides in London, but spends much of his time on club tours in Europe and North America.

The Polaris award doesn't go to the biggest names in Canadian music, and instead rewards the more undiscovered and underappreciated acts performing under the radar.

Last year, Patrick Watson beat out the likes of Arcade Fire and Feist, and in 2006, Final Fantasy's album was selected over records by Broken Social Scene, Sarah Harmer, Metric and the New Pornographers.

This year's nominees represented a wide range of genres, from the different rock and pop sounds of artists such as Hamilton roots queen Kathleen Edwards and improvisational electronic band Holy F---, cofounded by Burlington native Graham Walsh.

Edwards said the night was a good way of recognizing the contributions of artists and their sometimes-ignored work.

"We probably couldn't do anything else with our lives because there's something within us that makes us put out what we do," she said. "And I applaud and deeply respect all of you."

Also nominated were Black Mountain, Basia Bulat, Plants and Animals, Stars, Two Hours Traffic, the Weakerthans and Shad.

With files from The Canadian Press

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