English Teacher’s debut album “This Could Be Texas” is back in the UK top 40 charts following their win at the Mercury Prize awards.

On the 5th of September, the Leeds band English Teacher took home the prize for best debut album, making them the first band from outside of London to win in over a decade.

The band won over their competition which included Nia Archives, Barry Can’t Swim, BERWYN, and the predicted favourite Charlie XCX’s Brat, to name just a few.

The album received stellar compliments from the judging panel, with the team stating: “We did agree that This Could Be Texas by English Teacher stands out for its originality and character. A winning lyrical mix of surrealism and social observation, alongside a subtle way of wearing its musical innovations lightly, displays a fresh approach to the traditional guitar band format. This Could Be Texas reveals new depths on every listen; the mark of a future classic. The Mercury Prize was set up to celebrate the album as an artistic format in its own right and all the judges agreed that this charismatic body of work deserves to be the 2024 Mercury Prize Album of the Year.”

Since receiving the award, English Teacher’s music has increased in popularity. On the 17th of September BPI, the organisers behind the Mercury Prize, reported the increase in streams the winning album has received. As reported by Music News, according to BPI analysis of Official Charts Company data, “This Could Be Texas” saw a chart sales increase of 1,073% in the week after the award show, the album’s best performance since its release.

A number of other bands shortlisted for the Mercury Prize have also benefitted from their place on the 2024 list, with BERWYN, Corinne Bailey Rae and corto.alto also seeing sale increases of over 100%.

Following winning the award, the band spoke to NME, stating that they would “continue to be honest” about their struggles as a band.

The group’s drummer Frost went on to say: “The response to the album has been incredible, we did not expect it at all. We were actually very worried about it and expecting the opposite, so it’s been surreal. I feel like it’s going to take me a long long time for this to sink in. As soon as it was announced, my whole body just shut down.”

In light of their recent accolades, the band have acknowledged that it will take a lot for them to top this achievement. The group seem up to the task, however.