In a crowded pool, the Mercury Prize has retained its significance as a musical yardstick. Artists actually want to win this one. This year’s nominees list is drawn from a refreshingly diverse field, with plenty of albums worth barracking for.

Perhaps the – œbiggest’ contender is Radiohead’s zeitgeist-defining In Rainbows, which has already been tagged as a frontrunner. Arctic Monkey Alex Turner has notched up his third nomination in as many years – this time for his other band, The Last Shadow Puppets. Quiet achievers like Portico Quartet and Rachel Unthank & The Winterset up the niche value, but the buzziest inclusion is undoubtedly Burial’s melancholic masterpiece Untrue. Although a winner whose real identity remains unknown might make for an anti-climatic awards ceremony…

Mercury Prize shortlist

Adele – 19

British Sea Power – Do You Like Rock Music?

Burial – Untrue

Elbow – The Seldom Seen Kid

Estelle – Shine

Laura Marling – Alas I Cannot Swim

Neon Neon – Stainless Style

Portico Quartet – Knee-Deep in the North Sea

Rachel Unthank & The Winterset – The Bairns

Radiohead – In Rainbows

Robert Plant & Alison Krauss – Raising Sand

The Last Shadow Puppets – The Age of the Understatement