Mercury Prize 2015 nominees: London newcomers Wolf Alice, Jamie xx, and Benjamin Clementine nominated for award

Fresh talent from the capital will go up against Florence and the Machine, Aphex Twin, and more
Fresh-faced: Ellie Rowsell from Wolf Alice, nominated for the Mercury Prize
Cassandra Hannagan/Getty
Alistair Foster16 October 2015

London newcomers Wolf Alice, Eska and Benjamin Clementine will go up against the likes of Jamie xx and Florence + The Machine for this year’s Mercury Prize, it was revealed today.

The capital has provided six of the 12 artists shortlisted for the highly coveted award. The winner will be announced on November 20.

Florence + The Machine and Jamie xx are both from London, while south Londoner Ghostpoet’s third offering, Shedding Skin, completes the sextet.

Jamie xx, a member of acclaimed band The xx, has long been a favourite for the prize for his debut solo effort In Colour. Florence + The Machine are nominated for the second time with their third album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, which topped the charts in eight countries. Clementine, who was raised in Edmonton and later relocated to Paris, is nominated for his first offering At Least For Now, Lewisham’s Eska for her self-titled debut, and north London rock quartet Wolf Alice are on the list for My Love Is Cool.

They will face competition from Aphex Twin for his first release in 13 years, Syro, and former Supergrass frontman Gaz Coombes, who is nominated for his second solo record, Matador. Completing the list are newcomer C Duncan’s Architect, former Moloko star Róisín Murphy’s Hairless Toys, Slaves with Are You Satisfied? and 18-year-old singer-songwriter SOAK’s Before We Forgot How To Dream. There were surprise omissions for early favourites including Blur, Paul Weller and Everything Everything.

Mercury Prize 2015 - Nominees

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Simon Frith, chair of judges, said: “This year’s Mercury Prize shortlist includes seven debut albums and it celebrates artists from every stage of their careers. These musicians come from a fascinating variety of musical places, cultures and histories. What they have in common is the ambition and the craft, the ideas and the imagination to make great music.”

The awards show, hosted by Lauren Laverne, will be held at the Radio Theatre at the BBC’s Broadcasting House and broadcast live on BBC Four and BBC Radio 6 Music. Last year, Scottish trio Young Fathers defied the odds to win the prize with album Dead.

Follow Alistair Foster on Twitter: @alistair_foster

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