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The Mercury Prize nominations were announced on BBC 6 Music this morning. Things started well with the first ever Mercury nod for Aphex Twin and a well-deserved nomination for Wolf Alice’s excellent debut album, plus a shout-out for Time Out favourite Eska. There’s plenty of great music to enjoy on the full list and, bonus: half of the nominees are Londoners.
There were some pretty major omissions though. A dozen picks will always be a limited selection, but Nadine Shah and Lonelady should have been shoo-ins, and Jamie XX doesn’t exactly represent the very best of British dance music in 2015. We’re not gutted, but the judges played it very safe.
Now everyone gets to start picking likely winners. Will Gaz Coombes triumph? Could Ghostpoet follow through on his second nomination? We’re tentatively tipping Florence, but there could well be another upset like last year, when Young Fathers came out of nowhere. Find out on November 20 when the prize is awarded at Broadcasting House.
Discover the full Mercury Prize shortlist, or check out our list of the best albums of 2015 so far.