my pick for this years mercury music prize

gwilym simcock is a 29 year old pianist who has long been creating classical & jazz pieces. his latest album, good days at schloss elmau, is a masterful piece of work & has been nominated for this years barclaycard mercury music prize alongside established chart toppers such as adele, elbow & tinie tempah, as well as the likes of james blake & ghostpoet. although unlikely to win the accolade, good days at schloss elmau is a well crafted & thought out piece of jazz that's sure to calm even the most hectic of days. throughout the album simcock's tumbling keys become somewhat of a signature for the album, add to it a rhythmic precision & melodic progression & you can see why the album has received so many positve reviews. as i say, gwilym simcock is a far cry from the favourite to win the prize, but hopefully the nomination will be enough to allow good days at schloss elmau to grace the ears of a wider audience than it otherwise would have. Drew