Mercury Prize 2012 shortlist

The shortlist nominations for this year's Mercury Prize has been announced and I have to admit I've not heard a single album on this list.

The Maccabees - Given To The Wild

Jessie Ware - Devotion

Roller Trio - Roller Trio

Django Django - Django Django

Field Music - Plumb

Michael Kiwanuka - Home Again

Sam Lee - Ground of its Own

Richard Hawley - Standing at the Sky's Edge

Ben Howard - Every Kingdom

Alt-J - An Awesome Wave

Plan B - ill Manors

Lianne La Havas - Is Your Love Big Enough?

Mercury Music Prize 2007 shortlists

*sigh* I am not going to comment on the rationality of the organisers nominating the Arctic Monkeys again.

Here is this year's Mercury Prize shortlists:

Arctic Monkeys - Favourite Worst Nightmare
Basquiat Strings featuring Seb Rochford - Basquiat Strings
Bat for Lashes - Fur & Gold
Dizzee Rascal - Maths & English
Jamie T - Panic Prevention
Klaxons - Myths of the Near Future
Maps - We Can Create
New Young Pony Club - Fantastic Playroom
Fionn Regan - The End of History
The View - Hats Off to the Buskers
Amy Winehouse - Back to Black
The Young Knives - Voices of Animals and Men

William Hill odds:

Arctic Monkeys 4/1
Amy Winehouse 4/1
The View 8/1
Klaxons 8/1
Jamie T 8/1
Dizzee Rascal 8/1
The Young Knives 10/1
Fionn Regan 10/1
Bat For Lashes 10/1
New Young Pony Club 12/1
Maps 12/1
Basquiat Strings 12/1

via Guardian music blog

Mercury Music Prize 2006

Hmm... Well, looks like what I predicted came true.

Not that I am surprised that the judges bought into the hype. After years of criticsm that they only tend to award the top prize to 'niche' bands, they finally went for the safest choice available. Even safer than 2004's winner Franz Ferdinand. Well, at least it isn't some crap hip hop artist.

Technorati tags: Indie Britpop Britrock Mercury Music Prize

Mercury Music Prize 2006 nominations

Pretty good list, filled mainly with indie and britpop albums. Similar to last year's nominations, a couple of songwriters are also included and that hip hop is largely ignored (inserts unfunny evil laughter). Disappointed to see Editors (okay, but not great), Muse (average) and Arctic Monkeys (overhyped monkeys) making the list though. I never 'got' Radiohead so I am a little bit sceptical about Thom York's The Eraser.

I would have preferred if they would have nominated Dirty Pretty Things and Belle & Sebastian to satisfy the mainstream indie crowd. I do hope that Isobel Campbell (former Belle & Sebastian vocalist/cellist) and Mark Lanegan (okay, he isn't British but so what?) wins with their debut Ballad of the Broken Seas album If not there are many who I think deserves to win, including Hot Chip and Guillemots.

However knowing that this is the Mercury Music Prize, I believe the judges will cock it up once again. I predict an easy win by the Arctic Monkeys, followed by a chorus of "what the fuck" follow up blog posts by people like me. We will see.

Technorati tags: Indie Britpop Britrock Mercury Music Prize

Opinion on 2005 Mercury Music Prize nominations

I meant to blog about this yesterday but I guess the piss poor second London bombing of the year diverted some of my attention.

Anyway the 2005 Mercury Music Prize nominations is up:

Antony and the Johnsons - I Am a Bird Now
Bloc Party - Silent Alarm
Coldplay - X&Y
The Go! Team - Thunder, Lightning, Strike
Hard-Fi - Stars of CCTV
KT Tunstall - Eye to the Telescope
Kaiser Chiefs - Employment
The Magic Numbers - The Magic Numbers
Maximo Park - A Certain Trigger
MIA - Arular
Polar Bear - Held on the Tips of Fingers
Seth Lakeman - Kitty Jay

Looking at the list, with the exception to Coldplay, this year has been one hell of a quality year. Favourites to win at 4/1 (odds by William Hill) is Kaiser Chiefs for their amazing debut album.

I am aware that Bloc Party has been compared to the slightly hyped up Franz Ferdinand many times (including in this very blog), but with Silent Alarm, the bar has been raised ten-fold. I wish British Sea Power's Open Season was included in the short-list but it seems that the judges prefered nominating 'new' bands and/or those with 'debut' albums. That would be my choice for winning the prize had it been nominated.

Maximo Park's A Certain Trigger deserves a nod as well. The northern lads' debut album is a great find. So many to root for... including KT Tunstall and The Magic Numbers.