Quietus favourite PJ Harvey has won The Mercury Prize for her outstanding Let England Shake album.
It is almot the ten year anniversary of her first win for Stories From The City, Stories From The Sea, she was interviewed on Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour yesterday and described how she won the prize on September 11. Her and her band were in one hotel room under lockdown only able to watch TV and see the Pentagon from the window, the streets outside only occupied by army vehicles.
We’d like to wish Polly – who is currently on tour – a much more relaxing and happy day.
She wins on her fourth nomination, having also been nominated for Rid Of Me and To Bring You My Love.
Read our review of Let England Shake here
Read our interview with PJ Harvey here
Elsewhere in the night, many nominees’ performances seemed strangely muted and workmanlike this year, perhaps a result of the night’s usual seated formation. Anna Calvi and Tinie Tempah opened proceedings, both clad in identical red-jacket-black-trouser combinations for that Mercury-fresh look, James Blake’s fuzzy blubstep struggled to get off the ground and Adele’s performance ended up being a screened facsimile taken from jazzy host Jools Holland’s show (the lady herself couldn’t sing thanks to a throat infection). Katy B’s, meanwhile, was the best performance of the night. Her downbeat version of ‘Katy On A Mission’ was also the most visually impressive, boasting a Rinse-themed drum kit and some serious horn section action.
