The Dead Albatross Music Prize 2014: Results

And we have a winner! The Dead Albatross Music Prize crowned it’s second ever champion last week, with Paul Ackroyd aka Kamikaze announcing results across a three-hour show on Reel Rebels. Gutted that the bickering and squabbling over who should and shouldn’t have made the shortlist is over for another year, but well stoked at the caliber of contestants that makes this one of my favourite events of the year. For those late to the party, The Dead Albatross Music Prize is an alternative to the Mercury Music Prize (the winning of which was once likened to “having a dead albatross hanging around your neck for the rest of your career” by Damon Albarn), collecting the best albums of British and Irish artists from the year just gone, and rewarding one with the illustrious honour of being deemed the panel’s favourite. And yes, true to the theme, the winner gets some form of dead albatross as a prize.

If you’re not keen to see the results you can check out the show below before scrolling down for more. Paul plays tracks from each of the twenty five shortlisted albums before breaking down the top five in order and eventually naming a winner.

Although only it’s second year, the support for 2014 was overwhelming. The panel we mentioned above consisted of fifty people living with the twenty-five album shortlist. It’s a thing of beauty really, as it gives you an experience of listening you might no otherwise have.

For my own part, I compared my top ten list after the first week with my final selections, and only four of the ten remained on there. And from that final list I surprised myself at what was in there.

On a side-note, despite the fact that a mixture of vinyl, digital and CD platforms (some releases exclusively on one of those three) were represented, all the top five were available on wax. Something nice about that.

Big ups Paul Ackroyd for pulling it all together and to everyone who got involved, including Norman Records who even had a special mail-out and sale dedicated to the nominees of last year and this. Already looking forward to 2015.

via The Dead Albatross Music Prize
We’re very proud to announce that Ibibio Sound Machine claimed the albatross-shaped gong this time round for their excellent debut LP. Shopping came in second, Good Throb third, Millie & Andrea fourth, and, completing the top five, The Soundcarriers.

But of course Dead Albatross ain’t just about the winner. We’re very proud to have helped introduce so many people to so many amazing artists over the past few weeks. And we thank you all for helping spread the word – we couldn’t have done it without all of your help, real DIY community-spirited sharing of music. Makes us very happy indeed!