Barclaycard Mercury Prize Albums Of The Year Shortlist

LONDON, UK (Top40 Charts/ Barclay Cards) - A significant year for musical excellence and diversity is highlighted by the 12 Albums of the Year shortlisted for the 2009 Barclaycard Mercury Prize, announced on Tuesday 21 July, 2009.

'This has been a rich and creative year for British and Irish music,' says Simon Frith, Chair of Judges. 'There are seven fine debut albums on the list and five outstanding records from more established acts, all marking out new ground. What most impresses is the imaginative verve with which British and Irish musicians continue to explore musical possibilities, push musical boundaries and refuse to be pinned down by genre'.

The 2009 Albums of the Year are:
Bat for Lashes Two Suns
Florence & The Machine Lungs
Friendly Fires Friendly Fires
Glasvegas Glasvegas
Kasabian West Ryder Pauper Lunatic Asylum
La Roux La Roux
Led Bib Sensible Shoes
Lisa Hannigan Sea Sew
Speech Debelle Speech Therapy
Sweet Billy Pilgrim Twice Born Men
The Horrors Primary Colours
The Invisible The Invisible

The Barclaycard Mercury Prize celebrates the year in music. The shortlist, chosen from an entry of over 260 albums by UK and Irish artists, was announced by Lauren Laverne.

The event was hosted by The Hospital Club in Covent Garden, the club for creative industries.

The winner of this year's Barclaycard Mercury Prize will be announced live on BBC Two on Tuesday 8 September 2009 as part of the BBC's coverage of the Awards Show.

A second programme on BBC Two will be broadcast on Friday 11 September.

The programmes will be presented by Lauren Laverne, with the Awards Show itself hosted by Jools Holland.

The Barclaycard Mercury Prize for 'Albums of the Year' is open to all genres of music from the UK and Ireland. It is judged solely through consideration of the music on the albums - it does not have categories, nor does it take into account sales, media exposure or live performances.

The Prize also celebrates the best live music in the UK through monthly 'Barclaycard Mercury Prize Sessions' with the Hospital Club - a stand alone, new initiative, which is not linked to the 'Albums of the Year' competition.

Barclaycard is one of the pioneers of new forms of payments and is at the forefront of developing viable contactless and mobile payment schemes for today and cutting edge forms of payment for the future. They have recently launched a new music site for their customers