It's The Taking Part That Counts

While the rather nebulous aim of the Mercury Prize is a bit of a sticking point for some industry commentators (complaints can usually be filed under the heading ‘What Exactly Is It Rewarding?’), I’ve never personally had too much of a problem with it. And neither, I suspect, have any of this year’s nominees. For every invitation-refusing nonbeliever there are innumerable Kit Downes Trios, whose mere presence on the shortlist will ensure a significant boost in sales, profile and live audiences. The positive effect for some of the smaller labels involved each year should also not be underestimated, providing as it does some degree of much-needed financial breathing space in what are undoubtedly tough times.

The numbers bandied about post-ceremony regarding sales uplifts can be confusing, however. While a sales increase of 1,385% might be expected to propel the lucky recipient to the top of the album charts, in the case of last year’s winner Speech Debelle it simply resulted in the – entirely creditable – achievement of her album reaching the chart for the first time.

The story is the same for many of the lesser known non-winners, too – for example, Burial’s Untrue, from 2008, went from selling fewer than 500 copies in the week before the award ceremony to over 2,600 just one week later. While artists such as these are probably unlikely to be headlining the O2 by Christmas, in relative terms the boost they receive is highly significant. While The XX may have taken the prize, all is far from lost for the others.