Harry Edmundson reviews the Mercury Prize 2019.
Mercury Prize
Live Review: Nick Mulvey @ the Phoenix, Exeter
With his kaleidoscopic Wake Up Now album cover behind him on the stage, perhaps resembling an intricate guitar tablature or the inter-connectivity between himself and his audience, Mulvey experiments in combining two sets by dot-to-dotting from various albums. Mulvey experiments in combining two sets by dot-to-dotting from various albums Taking to the stage as a […]
Live Review: Sunday’s Love Saves The Day
Where Saturday’s line-up brought some the finest DJs in house, disco and electronica to Eastville Park, Sunday promised to bring together one of most eclectic line-ups of the summer festival circuit to the South West. Sunday’s headliners featured some of the United Kingdom’s finest lyricists, with the focus turning away from the decks and onto […]
The 2017 Mercury Prize Result Response
Following last year and the shock of Skepta’s beating Bowie, grabbing grime’s second Mercury and shaking the British music scene, this years award appeared anyone’s for the taking. Kate Tempest’s genre bending Let Them Eat Chaos was packed with sharp bars and social commentary. Indie behemoths and previous winners alt-J and The xx seemed poised […]
Girl’s Just Wanna Have Fun(damental rights) – International Women’s Day in Music
On Wednesday 8th March, people of all genders around the globe celebrated International Women’s Day, which aims to openly recognise and validate the global fight for gender equality. Many musicians got involved in the conversation, namely Beyoncé, Madonna and John Legend, by signing an open letter in support of women’s rights. The letter, posted by […]
Skepta SHOULD have won the Mercury Prize
Urban music is no stranger to success at the Mercury Prize. R&B superstar Ms. Dynamite set the standard in 2002. Dizzee Rascal’s seminal debut album Boy In Da Corner bagged the award in ‘03. Now Skepta’s historic, unexpected win on 15 September means even more. Grime’s recovery from the commercial, trite mediocrity of the past […]
Theo the bassist, talking to Theo the bassist: An Interview with Wolf Alice
“Hello, this is Theo” “Hi there Theo, it’s Theo” comes the response from down the line, as Wolf Alice’s bassist, Theo Ellis, smirks from the coincidence. “I sincerely hope that you’re not also a bassist.” I’m afraid that he’s out of luck. Whichever deity has been placed in charge of irony must be having a field day, […]
Gaining ground and shedding skin: An interview with Ghostpoet
It took me about thirty seconds of speaking to Ghostpoet to decide he was intimidatingly cool. Throughout the interview – which took place the day after his headline tour finished, before setting out to support alt-J in Exeter – I got the impression that this is an artist for which music is everything. Not that […]
Reviewed: Mercury Prize Shortlist 2015
The Mercury Prize shortlist, announced on the morning of 16 October, was terrifyingly close to being double its usual size. So The Guardian joked, anyway. This year’s shortlist includes seven debut albums, including the a host of expectedly unexpected inclusions. The winner will be announced at the Awards Show on Friday 20 November, hosted by Lauren […]