Lankum miss out on 2023 Mercury music prize to British jazz group Ezra Collective

Irish contemporary folk band Lankum have missed out on the 2023 Mercury music prize after being nominated for their fourth album, False Lankum.

The winners on the night were Ezra Collective, a British jazz quintet, with their record Where I’m Meant to Be.

[ Lankum: False Lankum – Landmark collection with surprising light among the deathly intent ]

The Dublin group formed in 2000 and is made up of Ian Lynch, Daragh Lynch, Radie Peat and Cormac MacDiarmada.

In a review, The Irish Times described False Lankum as “a space that’s utterly [the band’s] own: delighting in the myriad influences that colour their sound – from English and Scottish folk to Irish traditional, death metal, Krautrock and ambient”.

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False Lankum was recorded in Dublin’s Hellfire Studio and released in March.

Previous Irish nominees for the prize include U2, Róisín Murphy, Jessie Buckley, SOAK and Villagers but no Irish act has taken the award home yet. This year’s other nominees included Arctic Monkeys, who play Dublin and Belfast in October, Young Fathers and recent Electric Picnic headliner Fred again.

[ Lankum’s Radie Peate: ‘Singing with other people, in harmony, is a lovely experience because it releases some mad chemical in your brain’ ]

The award, which recognises the best album released in Ireland or the UK in the previous year, has globally regarded in the music industry since it first began in 1992.

Recently, Lankum cancelled two shows in Europe and their entire North American tour to “to preserve the health and well being of our band members”. It was the first time in the band’s history they had cancelled shows.

Ezra Collective performed in Ireland earlier this summer with a set at the All Together Now festival.

2023 Mercury Prize albums of the year nominations

Arctic Monkeys – The Car

Ezra Collective – Where I’m Meant to Be

Fred Again – Actual Life 3 (January 1st – September 9th, 2022)

J Hus – Beautiful And Brutal Yard

Jessie Ware – That! Feels Good!

Jockstrap – I Love You Jennifer B

Lankum – False Lankum

Loyle Carner – Hugo

Olivia Dean – Messy

RAYE – My 21st Century Blues

Shygirl – Nymph

Young Fathers – Heavy Heavy