Mercury Prize contenders

LAST UPDATED AT 17:07 ON Thu 20 Aug 2009

FRIENDLY FIRES - 'FRIENDLY FIRES' 8/11: the St Albans three-piece’s eponymous club-friendly album, released in 2008, got a boost this summer thanks to several euphoric festival performances.

FLORENCE AND THE MACHINE - 'LUNGS' 5/1 (all odds from bookmaker William Hill): Florence and the Machine, fronted by the flamboyant Florence Welch, is the odds-on favourite to win the Mercury Prize 2009 along with Kasabian. Epic, eccentric and soulful, 'Lungs' received Critics Choice award at the Brits in February and was only held back from the No.1 chart spot by the late Michael Jackson's 'The Essential' compilation.

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Mercury Prize
Music
Pop music