2023 Mercury Prize with FREE NOW nominees announced

now this is one of my favourite times of the year in terms of quality music. some really good albums shortlisted but loyle carner is my winner, he’s crazy good and so much better than other uk rappers out there. nobody knows (ladas road) was a masterpiece 

Mercury Nominees 2023​

Welcome to this edition of my annual ramblings, except this one isn't really 'annual'. It's the Mercury Prize nominations for 2023, and they've just been announced. And now I get to talk about them. Simple as that, really.

Arctic Monkeys - The Car No shocks that these lot have been nominated. Won it in 2006, and have been trying ever since.

RAYE - My 21st Century Blues That album RAYE made after Escapism did so well. Got stopped from topping the album chart in February by Shania Twain.

Fred Again.. - Actual Life 3 Dance fever hits like a mach truck, it seems. What with all the chart success and packed Glastonbury sets he's achieved, you can probably bet on this man winning it.

J Hus - Beautiful and Brutal Yard Was literally on top of the album chart a couple weeks ago. Includes the current smash Who Told You, which is also one of the few songs right now I actually LIKE.

Jessie Ware - That! Feels Good! Officially no longer able to inspire Radio 1 anymore, she nonetheless comes up with another rich and fulfilling album. Free Yourself is the undisputed highlight here.

Loyle Carner - Hugo Had to play third fiddle in the album chart during Taylor Monkey week back in 2022. Doesn't stop him from being nominated though.

Olivia Dean - Messy Generic singer songwriter, nothing really noteworthy here. I guess she'll just make up the numbers, as the likes of Erasure, Jamelia and Maximo Park have done in the past.

Young Fathers - Heavy Heavy Winners in 2014, and still achieving Top 10 albums. Can't sit still for 5 minutes when it comes to making different types of music.

Ezra Collective - Where I'm Meant To Be ​The token jazz act. This means they have no hope of winning it.

Shygirl - Nymph​ This squeaked to 34 in September, yet it seems the critics haven't forgotten about it. Th4t m3Ans 5he MusT b3 g0od.

Jockstrap - I Love You Jennifer B Not gonna lie, I completely had no idea this album was up for the Mercury. Naturally, that will probably result in them not being victorious.

Lankum - False Lankum The token folk act. NEXT.

Oh wait, that's all the nominees. Welp. Time for us to predict whether the winner will go down the same paths as Primal Scream, PJ Harvey and Elbow, or just end up as another Talvin Singh, Benjamin Clementine or Speech Debelle. Everyone is hoping it ain't the latter. Bye.

(P.S. I bet nobody apart from me will ever read this review. Guess this means I'll be forgotten about for the rest of time then.)

(edit: This aged well)