Untrue, by the pseudonymous artist Burial, is heavily favored to win this year’s Mercury Prize, which is given to the best British album of a 12-month timeframe. But if Untrue should win as expected, the man behind the album will have to come out on stage and perform a song from the record–effectively revealing himself to the world and dispensing with any mystery the album might have at that point. So The Sun, not content with just showing boobs on its inside pages, is going to ruin the fun for everyone and unmask the guy before next month’s ceremony! “Conspiracy theories are rife as to who is behind the tunes, with producers NORMAN COOK and APHEX TWIN in the frame,” the paper writes, although the more savvy people who read Drowned In Sound are pooh-poohing that idea, saying that the writer only came up with the first two DJ names he could think of in the name of starting controversy. Ooh, burn!
Fresh off last year’s coronation of the Klaxons as the best band in Britain, this year’s Mercury Prize nominations feature quite a range of popular music, from summer jam tournament runner-up Estelle to a few acts that will send you scurrying to Google.
Nu-rave banner-hoisters Klaxons win the Mercury Prize, the award given to the best British or Irish album of the last 12 months. Yes, really. OK, OK, “Golden Skans” is a pretty good song. But really? Klaxons? Did Natasha Khan run over someone’s bunny with her bike or something? More »
Surely it’s no coincidence that in the same week that the remake of Hairspray hits theaters, Amy Winehouse, Divine’s spiritual heir*, has made the Mercury Prize shortlist for her debut album, Back to Black. More »
