September 5th, 2007
Music Prizes - judges versus punters
“And the person…”? Jools Holland dawdled tantalisingly as he began the Nationwide Mercury Music Prize winner announcement last night. “Yes!”, I thought. Justice has prevailed and Bat for Lashes has won. Until he continued: “And the person who’s going to announce the winner is me. and it’s Klaxons!” Why the usually straightforward Jools felt that an already charged night needed a smidge of deception right at the end is one thing, but Klaxons winning? What the bejebus?
But then the Mercury is no stranger to controversy. This is, after all, a prize that honoured the pedestrian keyboard “soulâ€? of M People over Blur and The Prodigy’s Music for the Jilted Generation and gave Roni Size’s Reprazent the gong in 1997 instead of Radiohead’s OK Computer. The fact that Spice by The Spice Girls was on the same shortlist might’ve been an early indicator that the taste receptors were a tad skewed that year.
Fast forward a decade to 2007 and once again we have an unexpected winner. Unexpected, as code for “outsiderâ€?, is fine, but when it’s one of the weakest albums in one of the most annoying new genres (I blame the NME - who LOVE this kind of genre sloganeering - for New Rave) you can understand the backlash. Why didn’t Natasha ‘Bat for Lashes’ Khan win for her utterly splendid Fur and Gold? Or Wicklow’s very own Fionn Regan for an album that breathes minty freshness into that much beleaguered singer songwriter tag? Even Maps or New Young Pony Club would have been easier to take. As it was the night belonged to one person, Amy Winehouse, as many predicted a no-show from her on the back of a recent tabloid frenzy over her personal life. An immaculate make-up job no doubt hid a multitude, but why was Amy the only artist subjected to lingering toe-to-head shots? Were the non-tabloid cameras of the BBC jumping on the red top bandwagon and scanning for nicks and bruises? No one else was filmed leaving the stage, but then no one else was greeted by their drug-addled other half. Fittingly, she sang ‘Love is a Losing Game’ and I’d nearly have given her the prize based on last night’s performance alone.
Despite not agreeing with the winner, the judges obviously did their utmost to reach that conclusion. Why? Because I know from being locked in a room with 11 other judges trying to decide who should get this year’s
Choice Music Prize. In the end, I was happy with the winner (The Divine Comedy) but I know there were some judges who weren’t, but we all accepted that the process of debating and championing the albums you like . and being asked to justify these by Jim - using various criteria is the fairest way to decide a prize like this. It doesn’t give too much away to say that the Choice Prize was a close contest, so maybe Bat for Lashes was lauded by several judges but lost out by a hairline margin. We’ll never know.
So good luck to Klaxons and their mediocre album. It was nice to see their surprise; they were obviously so convinced they wouldn’t win that they had democratically elected to get thrashed early, never imagining they’d have to get up on the stage and string some words together. It doesn’t matter what me or anyone else thinks about the 2007 Mercury Prize winner. The judges liked it and that’s how these things go. Just ask Neil Hannon.
September 5th, 2007 at 3:54 pm
It is a splendid thing the I had never even heard of the Klaxons-which is a free newspaper in spain- before to day, long may my benign ignorance continue.
Welcome home toots!
September 5th, 2007 at 3:58 pm
[…] Zac Efron Music Prizes - judges versus punters » This Summary is from an article posted at The Sigla Blog on Wednesday, September 05, 2007 Music Prizes - judges versus punters [ klaxons]“And the person…â€? Jools Holland dawdled tantalisingly as he began the Nationwide Mercury Music Prize … . As it was the night belonged to one person, Amy Winehouse, as many predicted a no-show from her on the back … a multitude, but why was Amy the only artist subjected to lingering toe-to-head shots? Summary Provided by Technorati.comView Original Article at The Sigla Blog » 10 Most Recent News Articles About Amy Winehouse […]
September 5th, 2007 at 4:40 pm
Here, dont be giving away all the choice music prize secrets!
September 6th, 2007 at 8:32 am
Well despite putting one of their vids up on the site, I have never heard their stuff either (admission: I put up the vid, but I didn’t listened to it!). I just considered them one of those bland guitar bands that teenagers are encouraged to listen to by the sell out NME - new rave, wtf does that mean? Good to know that perhaps there was a bit of a scrap in the judges booth over this. But in the case of Choice the outcome was decidedly more positive. I lost faith in the Mercury prize years ago, around the time I got that Talvin Singe album.
Great to see you blogging again, Sinead. Welcome back.
September 6th, 2007 at 8:33 am
I don’t think I’ve heard any of the Klaxons music. I only heard of the band when they were announced on the shortlist. I suppose I’ll be hearing them on the radio for a while now though.
Welcome back, btw.
September 6th, 2007 at 8:45 am
I actually quite like the Klaxons. Although after hearing Maps’ performance on the night I was routing for them.
September 6th, 2007 at 9:04 am
[…] UPDATE: Sinead Gleeson is back blogging, and is giving off about the Klaxon’s winning the Mercury Music prize. Can’t say I care for the Klaxon’s at all, as I haven’t heard any of their music. It was always there, but their sort NME promoted blandness doesn’t interest me in the slightest. […]
September 6th, 2007 at 9:53 am
That Maps album is a thing of beauty alright…
September 6th, 2007 at 9:55 am
I for one think its a good thing. The mercury music prize usually means that the winner dissappears from the radar after a few months. Talvin Singh where art thou now?
Maybe it will open the way for the ‘real’ new ravers: Bong-Ra, Aaron Spectre, and Ceephax Acid Crew.
October 12th, 2007 at 10:34 am
[…] When discussing the Mercury prize a while back Sinéad Gleeson mentioned Bats for Lashes[1] and their album Gold and Fur, so I took a chance on it. […]