Ooh, can you feel the nerves building yet? The Mercury Music Prize takes place tonight – the nation’s foremost music prize where the judges will pick a winner based on how cool it’ll make them look rather than actual quality of music.
Yesterday, we looked at the first half of nominees, including the wonky-dancing Estelle and the brilliantly bonkers British Sea Power. With another six albums to pick from, we’re glad that the job hasn’t been given to us to pick a winner. We’d just get in a flap and end up throwing a dart at the various records. That is how the Pope is picked isn’t it? Anyways, here are the rest of the nominations for this year’s prize…
Neon Neon – Stainless Style – Featuring the producer Boom Bip and Gruff Rhys, who is one of the members of the Super Furry Animals. The music’s concept revolves around the playboy designer John DeLorean. Yes that’s right, as in the DeLorean car in the Back To The Future movies. Ace, eh?
Portico Quartet – Knee Deep In The North Sea – When people say jazz isn’t popular, you can at least say one album has some respect. Their raw sound has seen this fourpiece busk around their home city of London which can involve churches. What Jesus what make of this isn’t known. But we assume he’d crack out a saxophone and jam with them.
Rachel Unthank and the Winterset – The Bairns – Natives of Northumberland, they have created a subtle blend of folk which warms the cockles of most music reviewers. Despite many not knowing of them too much, there could be an outside chance of them winning if the bigger artists fail to capture the attention of the judges.
Radiohead – In Rainbows – Last year, Radiohead shat all over the music industry by letting fans buy their album at any price they felt. Once we got over that and listened, Thom and co returned with another album combining the weirdness of Kid A with their fortune finding album OK Computer. This year’s big entry who won’t win for this reason.
Robert Plant & Alison Krauss – Raising Sand – You know the guy from Led Zeppelin? Well it’s not quite a solo album, but he has departed from the rest of his OAP rockers. This is his side project whilst he debates whether or not to reform Led Zep. A country-sounding album with Alison Krauss caught many offguard, but the variation in style made shows he can hack different genres and make sure people know another country record apart from anything Johnny Cash released.
The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement – Another year, another Arctic Monkey connection to the awards. It could have been an hour-long record with Alex Turner being recorded on the bog and it’d still get nominated. Based on his connections to Sheffield’s finest and Miles Kane – singer from The Rascals, fans literally lapped it up before listening. Not a straightforward listen, but instead a development in the writing ability of the two.
We mentioned yesterday that we think Burial will win the Mercury Music Prize. This hasn’t changed since yesterday, but tomorrow we’ll probably be writing to celebrate the success of someone else. Bah.