Mercury Prize 2017: Opinion

In case you didn't already know, The Mercury Prize is kind of a big deal. As it's own website states "It is the music equivalent to the Booker Prize for literature and the Turner Prize for art". For over  20 years it has been awarded to albums from the UK that have best captured the Zeitgeist. I look to the Mercury Prize to discover new music. Yet only one artist this year is unfamiliar to me. I'm just going to come out and admit it, this years list sucks. It's predictable, dull and just disappointing. I'm torn between anger and remembering that awards ceremonies really aren't worth getting angry about (even if you are nominated). Its worth remembering that in order to be eligible for the list artists have to submit roughly £200 and have their music available both physically, and on major download sites. Even so it feels that a lot has been missed out.

The Jazz Wild Card
This years token Jazz album (I'm assuming) comes from a group called Dinosaur. As I know little about jazz I cannot comment much. However it feels a bit disheartening that after Jazz's current explosion into being cool again in the US. In the UK it's still a niche genre, albeit one of the most vibrant and eclectic ones there is. I look forward to discovering what this band have to offer.

The Usual Suspects 
At this point The XX, and Alt- J have both won the prize and are being nominated for the 3rd time. The problem is that while both bands début albums were worthy prize winners, neither bands 3rd albums break new ground. 'Relaxer' is an awkward listen that has none of the coherency of their previous work. 'I see you' is equally as good as either of The XX's previous releases, but by now I've heard it all before. Kate Tempest's 'Let them eat chaos' is her boldest, darkest, and most overtly political yet. It's one of my favourites for this years prize. Yet considering that her début 'Everybody Down' was also nominated and that she was one of the judges last year. I'm not surprised to see her nominated this year.

The Urban Selection
I might be one of the few who is willing to say this, but I felt that Stormzy's début album 'Gang signs and prayer' was a massive disappointment. The album felt very uneven, a mix of hard-hitting grime anthems, mixed in with softer love songs. The problem was in that showing his maturity, Stormzy lost his edge. GS&P was a showcase of Stormzy's harder and softer sides, showing that he is the new star of grime, yet at the same time outgrowing it. I have to admit i've not heard either of the albums by J Hus or Loyle Carner. Yet the one album that feels absent is Wiley's late career masterpiece 'Godfather'. After Skepta's win last year it seems odd that the prize has snubbed grime for more mainstream hip hop sounds.

The WTF'S
2017 is the year that in the US, Hip-Hop overtook rock as the most popular music genre. Indie rock has been the bed-rock of 'guitar music' for some time now and if Blossoms and the Big Moon are the best that the UK can offer right now then the genre is surely in dire straights. The former being a soulless revival of 90's brit-pop with 70's prog keyboards. The latter being a fun yet immediately forgettable indie rock racket. If the Big Moon deserve a nomination it's for album they've made with Marika Hackman. My hatred for Ed Sheeran has given way to more of an indifference in recent years. My girlfriend likes Ed Sheeran, so rather than ranting about him (again). I shall state that there is an award for Ed Sheeran. Its called the Brit's.


The Hopefulls
Now that that's all over with there are only three albums at the time of writing which I want to see win the Mercury Prize in 2017. The first is by Glass Animals. While I don't rate them as highly as bands such as Django Django. Glass Animals have done a good job of continuing the trend of British  bands who are both clever and fun. They're a bit too 'topshop indie' for my taste, but I respect their eclectic nature. I'd happily see Kate Tempest walk away with an award for 'Let Them Eat Chaos. Yet my favourite album by far that's been nominated this year is the début from Sampha.
In a decade that is packed full of R&B, Alternative R&B, Neo-soul and whatever else. Sampha has managed to stand out from the crowd with an album that is deeply personal and emotional yet boldly experimental. Sampha stands out as being the UK's own Frank Ocean.

The albums in my order of preference 

Sampha - 'Process'
Kate Tempest - 'Let Them Eat Chaos'
Glass Animals - 'How to Be a Human Being'
J Hus - 'Common Sense'
Loyle Carner - 'Yesterday’s Gone'
The xx - 'I See You'
alt-j - 'Relaxer'
Dinosaur - 'Together, As One'
Stormzy - 'Gang Signs & Prayer'
The Big Moon - 'Love in the 4th Dimension'
Blossoms - 'Blossoms'
Ed Sheeran - '÷'

The albums I'd like to have seen nominated

Wiley - Godfather
Mr Jukes - God First
Roger Waters - Is this the life we really want?
Mura Masa - S/T
Bugzy Malone - King of the North
Public Service Broadcasting - Every Valley
Harry Styles - S/T (yes, really)
Wesley Gonzalez - Excellent Musician
Idles - Brutalism 
Ride - Weather Diaries 
Slowdive- S/T
Creeper - Eternity, in your arms
Formation - Look at the powerful people (this is the best album of the year in my opinion, why has no one else heard it?)

Pumarosa - The Witch
Jarvis Cocker & Chilly Gonzales - Room 29
 
https://www.mercuryprize.com/news/2017-hyundai-mercury-prize-albums-of-the-year-revealed