Arctic Monkeys (Scott Kowalchyk), Florence and the Machine (David Brendan Hall), King Krule (Philip Cosores)

The Mercury Prize is given out every year by a panel of UK critics and industry figures to honor the best album from the United Kingdom and Ireland. Past recipients include Skepta, Arctic Monkeys, Pulp, PJ Harvey, Portishead, James Blake, and Primal Scream. Most recently, Sampha took home the honors, topping the likes of The xx and Ed Sheeran in the process.

The shortlist nominees for 2018 were announced today and include King Krule’s The Ooz, Arctic Monkeys’ Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino, Florence and the Machine’s High as Hope, Jorja Smith’s Lost and Found, and Wolf Alice’s Visions of a Life.



As The Guardian notes, this year also marks the first solo nomination for Noel Gallagher (Who Built the Moon?), though through his work in Oasis he was nominated twice before. Smith and King Krule are also seeing their first nominations, as are pop star Lily Allen (No Shame), grime act Novelist, and post-punk artist Nadine Shah.

The winner will be announced at London’s Eventim Apollo on September 20th.

Here’s the full list of nominees:

Lily Allen – No Shame

Arctic Monkeys – Tranquility Base Hotel & Casino

Everything Everything – A Fever Dream

Everything Is Recorded – Everything Is Recorded

Florence + the Machine – High as Hope

Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds – Who Built the Moon?

King Krule – The Ooz

Novelist – Novelist Guy

Nadine Shah – Holiday Destination

Jorja Smith – Lost and Found

Sons of Kemet – Your Queen Is a Reptile

Wolf Alice – Visions of a Life