Adele

Who will win ...?!

The nominations for this year's Nationwide Mercury Music Prize were revealed this morning.

I don't particularly care for any of these artists though.

NME breaks down who's who on the shortlist:
"Adele - Soul star Adele broke through at the beginning of this year, racking up a Number One record with debut album '19'."

"British Sea Power - The Brighton based four-piece gained a nod with their third album 'Do You Like Rock Music?', and have been critics' favourites since their debut record 'The Decline Of British Sea Power' five years ago. They are know for their enigmatic live shows, which sees band members climbing scaffolding round a stage usually featuring some kid of foliage, as well as their devoted fans."

"Burial - This London based dubstep artist has received a nomination for his second album 'Untrue'. The anonymous producer has already gained awards for his releases, as well as remixing fans Bloc Party and Thom Yorke, but still no one knows what he looks like. "

"Elbow - Epic rockers Elbow are up for a Mercury nod with album 'The Seldom Seen Kid'. The Manchester band's fourth record was delayed for nearly two years as the band swapped record labels but they made up for lost time with an album that includes a guest spot from former Mercury nominee Richard Hawley."

"Estelle - London hip-hop lass Estelle cracked the UK this year with her American-influenced second album 'Shine', which saw her team up with Kanye West, Mark Ronson and John Legend. She scored a number one with the first single from the record 'American Boy', which features the aforementioned West, and is regularly covered by Jay-Z live."

"Laura Marling - The Reading-born teen sensation has been building up a huge folk following since the release of her first studio album 'Alas, I Cannot Swim' in February. The waif-like musician also sings with Noah and the Whale."

"The Last Shadow Puppets - Arctic Monkeys' Alex Turner has now notched up a hatrick of Mercury nominations as his collaboration with The Rascals singer Miles Kane, follows nods in 2006 and 2007 for his main band. 'The Age Of The Understatement' boasts a Scott Walker-vibe, with lush strings from Arcade Fire collaborator Owen Pallett and production from Simian Mobile Disco's James Ford who also played drums on the record."

"Neon Neon - The side project of Super Furry Animals frontman Gruff Rhys. The Welsh man teamed up with producer Boom Bip in 2006 to start work on the album 'Stainless Style', a 1980s-influenced concept album about the playboy designer John DeLorean, the main responsible for the DeLorean car featured in the 'Back To The Future' movies."

"Portico Quartet - The London based jazz quartet's debut album 'Knee-Deep In The North Sea' has been nominated for the prize this year. Renowned for busking in unusual gigging places, from churches to galleries, the foursome are booked up to play festivals this year with their hooky jazz sound."

"Rachel Unthank And The Winterset – The folk four-piece from Northumberland are already a critics favourite, and are up for the prize with their second album 'The Bairns'. The band are playing all over Europe and America for the next few months."

"Robert Plant and Alison Krauss - The Led Zeppelin frontman's collaboration record with bluegrass country singer , 'Raising Sand', hit high in the charts both in the UK and USA. The highly hyped team up has proved popular with both fans and critics"

"Radiohead - The Oxford quintet's seventh album, 'In Rainbows', caused a storm last year after the group told fans they could decide how much they wanted to pay for it as a download. The iconic Oxford band's album later hit the top of the charts after its retail release and has been praised by critics worldwide." The nominations for this year's Nationwide Mercury Music Prize were revealed this morning. ... more

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