Here we have some of hotpress' experts weighing in on a few of the shortlisted albums:

Bowie's - Blackstar: "a great swansong" "may prove to be his most significant" - See more: here

Laura Mvulva - The Dreaming Room: "The album alternates between dark defiance and uplifting triumph." - See more: here

RadioHead - A Moon Shaped Pool: "The first thing to note about A Moon Shaped Pool is how muted it is. There are no barnstorming avant-jazz workouts like 'The National Anthem', and there are most definitely no nuclear-powered guitar assaults like 'Just' or 'My Iron Lung'. Instead, this is an album of delicate acoustic folk and moody avant electronica, all underscored by lush orchestral arrangements" - See more:here

The 1975 - I like it when you sleep, for you are so beautiful yet so unaware of it:
"Fully embracing their new-found boyband status, the British four-piece have left behind the scuzzy – and you might say safe – indie sounds of ‘Sex’ and immersed themselves in ’80s pop." - See more: here

Bat For Lashes – The Bride:
"Still, taken in isolation, The Bride is frequently bewitching – properly bonkers, too, with Khan delivering a tingle-inducing piece of spoken word on ‘Widow’s Peak’ (There’s a demon here... I can’t get home, I can’t get home,” she whimpers theatrically) and coming on like a funereal Lana Del Rey on ‘I Will Love Again’ and ‘Joe’s Dream’ (named for the fictional dead groom)". - See more:here

Other popular nominees include: Jamie Woon – Making Time
Kano – Made in the Manor
Michael Kiwanuka – Love & Hate
Savages – Adore Life
Skepta – Konnichiwa
The Comet Is Coming – Channel the Spirits

The final winner will be announced at Hammersmith Apollo on September 15.