Mercury Prize Nominees Rachel Unthank & The Winterset Ready For U.S. Tour

Because I've been here, there and at your mom's house, I didn't get a chance to predict or comment on this year's Mercury Prize nominees.

The list had a bunch of no surprises -- Radiohead, Robert Plant, Last Shadow Puppets, Adele, Estelle and Laura Marling. The nice surprise was Elbow getting some love for fine their album, The Seldom Seen Kid. A couple of the nominees are good albums, but I could have thought of some more worthy picks. British Sea Power's album is good, not great. Neon Neon's Stainless Styledoesn't break new ground and is not very challenging.

I was convinced The Ting Tings and Duffy would be on the list, since the Prize usually picks up on the hot new acts. I guess England's beloved Coldplay will sit out this year. I haven't heard of Portico Quartet or Burial, but will see what I can find.

Which leaves us with Rachel Unthank & The Winterset. They are like England's answer to The Decemberists -- a literary minded collective with seafaring songs done with a strong British accent. The album, The Bairns, plays out like a storybook about people and places in a time forgotten.

Now that they have some instant recognition, they'll be hitting up North American for some dates:

• Sep 18: CSPS -- Cedar Rapids, Iowa
• Sep 19: Cedar Cultural Centre -- Minneapolis
• Sep 20-21: World Music Festival -- Chicago
• Sep 22: The Ark -- Ann Arbor, Michigan
• Sep 23: Hugh’s Room -- Toronto
• Sep 25: Iron Horse  Northhampton Massachusetts
• Sep 26: Joe’s Pub  New York
• Sep 28: World Café Live -- Philadelphia
• Sep 29: Jammin Java -- Vienna, Virginia
• Sep 30: T.T. The Bears --  Cambridge, Massachusetts

Doh, won't be able to catch them.

In any event, my money is on Radiohead for the prize. The upset choice is Estelle.