Pages tagged “mercury prize”

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The xx Have No Plans for Second Album

Don’t get too excited for that follow-up to The xx’s Mercury Prize-winning debut just yet. Bassist Oliver Sim told the NME that the group has no plans to record a second album....  read more

The xx's Album Sales Go Through the Roof After Mercury Prize Victory

On Tuesday, The xx snagged Britain’s coveted Mercury Prize, and as a result, their self-titled debut is enjoying a nice sales boost....  read more

The xx, Laura Marling, Mumford & Sons Make Mercury Prize Shortlist

The coveted British album of the year award now awkwardly known as the Barclaycard Mercury Prize has helped put artists like the Arctic Monkeys on the map. As The Guardian points out, the panel of British music critics who award the prize have “always made wildly idiosyncratic choices that often ignore the popular mood,” but sometimes these choices don’t seem so crazy two or three years after the fact. Case in point: the Arctic Monkeys, Elbow, Portishead....  read more

Hey, Ladies: Mercury Prize Nominees Include Record Number of Females This Year

The UK's Barclaycard Mercury Prize announced its shortlist for the best albums of the year recently, and of the 12 nominees, five are female artists or bands fronted by women. This marks a new record for female nominations for the prize, awarded each year for the best albums by British and Irish musicians. In their announcement of the shortlist, the Prize's website said that this year's nominees "reflect the strong feminine presence in UK and Irish music with many young, empowered women making an appearance with their debut records."...  read more

Elbow very, very happy about Mercury Prize win

Unless you’re Kanye West, the customary acceptance speech for a top culture award is a combination of humble thanks and I-can’t-believe-it incredulity. For those 45 seconds on stage, you’re self-detractingly funny, in awe of your opponents’ talents and just so honored even to be there. ...  read more

2008 Mercury Prize nominees announced

[Above: Perennial nominee Alex Turner (here representing the 2006-winning, 2007-nominated Arctic Monkeys) accepts a Mercury. His project The Last Shadow Puppets is up for nomination this year.]For many award events, the fervency of surrounding discussion seems as influential as the actual bestowing of accolades. The Mercury Prize, given to the best album by a British or Irish artist made in the previous year, is no exception. ...  read more