Editors Ramblings - Mercury Rising

So I have been away for a bit at numerous festivals and all over the place in general checking out some amazing music, but I am back now and thought it was best that I got stuck into moaning about the ridiculously bland shortlist for this years’ Mercury Music Prize.  For those of you that have not seen who is on it, here’s the low down

Adele – ‘19’

British Sea Power – ‘Do you like Rock Music?’

Burial – ‘Untrue’

Elbow – ‘The Seldom Seen Kid’

Estelle– ‘Shine’

Laura Marling – ‘Alas I Cannot Swim’

Neon Neon – ‘Stainless Style’

Portico Quartet – 'Knee Deep In The North Sea’

Rachael Unthank - ‘The Bairns’

Radiohead - ‘In Rainbows’

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss - ‘Raising Sand’

The Last Shadow Puppets - ‘The Age of The Understatement’

I am not sure if anyone could have chosen a safer selection. So I agree that the retro ‘Age of The Understatement’ is a remarkable album and Alex Turner (Mr. I can do no wrong musically) and Miles Kane are deserving of their nomination.  Laura Marling also deserves her nomination for somewhat underground offering ‘Alas I cannot swim’ which is a bold debut from the alt-folk singer, as does the hyped up Neon Neon and the cultish Burial, who I am sure many people have not even heard of. 

However Estelle? Please.  I wouldn’t consider that to be an award wining record and much of its success can be attributed to the involvement of the likes of Kanye and the other uber American producers she worked with.  It’s not very exciting in the wake of the superb talent the UK music scene is currently offering and will never be included in the essential albums you must own lists.  Even if by some stroke of hideous fate she won.   

Radiohead are Mercury nomination veterans, this being the 4^th year they have received the accolade and never previously claiming the prize. It’s arguable again whether ‘In Rainbows’ is even worthy of the title this year, unless the award comes down to notoriety.  Don’t get me wrong its an epic record for many different reasons, but its not groundbreaking, nor brave in its content.  Would it have been so revered had they not employed a ‘pay what you want’ scheme in the absence of their former label EMI and made it impossible for the music industry to continue as it had done previously?  If the Mercury’s are about entrepreneurial spirit or revolutionary ideas then fuck yeah give it to Radiohead.

The industry loves Adele right now, fact! She has undeniable talent and a fuck it attitude which makes people love her, but I wouldn’t say she is anymore talented or ingenious than everyone’s favourite junkie, Ms Winehouse.  Furthermore surely if you are including Adele in a category like this then what about Welsh songstress Duffy who has also received acclaim for her debut this year??? 

And then there are the should be contenders that were overlooked.  What about Portishead with ‘Third’ or the album of the year (in my opinion) so far ‘21’ from Mystery Jets or the ubiquitous Foals with ‘Antidote’? 

Last year rightly or wrongly we had a winner in nu-rave pioneers The Klaxons, although it is arguable how much they actually had to do with pioneering nu-rave, but anyhow……it was a controversial choice but it highlighted what the best album of the year should be about.  It should be about ingenuity, insight and guts.  It should be dynamic, diverse and innovative and Klaxons nailed it with ‘myths of the near future’.  Definitely one for the collection!

Burial will have been robbed if he doesn’t win for the mysterious and dark offerings of ‘Untrue’; Neon Neon has a good chance and similarly stands out from the list.  But for safety my money is on Radiohead.

F

Xoxo

Ps. Can everyone stop going on about bloody Glasvegas.  Glasvegas are not the new ‘best band in Britain’ at the moment; they are very bland and pretty damn boring live. Fact!