After much speculation, one of the capital's most elusive artists, previously known only by a single-word moniker and a distinctive body of work. has emerged from the murk to reveal his name and face. Banksy? Not him. We're talking about dubstep artist Burial, hotly-tipped for this year's Mercury prize and a man whose shuddering bass and industrial squawks have scored many a sojourn through nighttime London's bitter streets. Having long shunned the limelight, Burial......

We are very excited about this year's Nationwide Mercury Music Prize nominations. Not only did we personally manage to guess 9 out of 12 correctly, but some Londonist favourites are nicely sitting in the mix with the unnervingly young Laura Marling, the mighty Elbow, dazzling jazz stars Portico Quartet and dubstep hero Burial all on the list. What we're really excited about is the inclusion of Neon Neon - Gruff Rhys and Boom Bip's......

About half an hour ago this week’s Mercury Music Prize nominees were announced. As could be expected, they included a selection of some of this year’s biggest records along with a few more obscure ones that will keep everyone guessing. At the moment William Hill have last year’s winners Arctic Monkeys and also Amy Winehouse as joint favourites to win (at 4/1), though with the Mercury's you never know who could win. Jamie T, Amy......

Winning, nay just being nominated, for the Mercury Music Prize can do a lot for you. While some of us might still be scratching our heads wondering where exactly Miss Dynamite have got to, those artists who were little known at the time of their nomination are happily running around doing massive tours and signing major deals. One such artist is Seth Lakeman. Famous for making his nominated album Kitty Jay for the tidy......

And if you're wondering why we have a massive picture of Scritti Politti on the front page. it's because the nominations for this years' Mercury Music Prize have just been announced, and here they are: Arctic Monkeys Richard Hawley Sway Muse Editors Hot Chip Isobel Campbell Lou Rhodes Scritti Politti Guillemots Thom Yorke Zoe Rahman Full marks to you if you've heard of all 12 of them. So, any thoughts?......

...favourites, the Kaiser Chiefs. So no surprises there then. In fourteen years the Mercury Music Prize Chiefs have only once voted in the populist choice, last year's Franz Ferdinand, instead opting for the muso-ically worthy (2000's Talvin Singh), the then obscure (2003's Dizzee Rascal) or the just plain odd ('94's M People). Which is why, last night, one of the few remaining award ceremonies not chosen by viewers of T4, awarded the prize for......

The nominations for the 2005 Mercury Music Prize are out and, as you would expect, it's a mixed bag (all quotes are from the Mercury judges): The Magic Numbers – The Magic Numbers "The Magic Numbers celebrate the joy of singing pop harmonies so fervently that it’s impossible not to cheer along." M.I.A. – Arular "Hip-hop, ragga, dancehall, pop and electro never sounded such perfect soulmates." Polar Bear – Held On The Tips Of......