Pop newcomers Keane are celebrating again after their debut album was nominated for the Mercury Music Prize.

The Sussex-based three-piece, who grew up in Battle, near Hastings, have seen their first album Hopes And Fears storm to the top of the charts since its release in May, selling more than 500,000 copies to date.

Now it has joined 11 other shortlisted albums from some of the UK's top artists to fight for the prize.

Keane - singer Tom Chaplin, 25, pianist Tim Rice-Oxley, 27, and drummer Richard Hughes, 28 - have been lauded by critics for their soulful, melancholic, guitar-free sound. They formed in 1997 while boarders at Tonbridge public school, Kent.

Their melodic piano-led style came about almost by accident after their guitarist left and was not replaced.

Keane started gigging in their current incarnation in 2002 and took their name from Cherry Keane, a woman who used to work at their school.

Hopes And Fears was described by Mercury judges as "a supremely confident debut unveiling a stunning new British rock voice on a formidable collection of songs".

Despite this endorsement, Keane are not the favourites to scoop the award. Bookmakers William Hill have named Franz Ferdinand's self-titled debut and A Grand Don't Come For Free, the second album from rapper Mike Skinner, aka The Streets, as 3-1 joint favourites.

The other nominees are 17-year-old soul sensation Joss Stone, singer Amy Winehouse, Liverpool band The Zutons, dance act Basement Jaxx, r'n'b star Jamelia, rapper Ty, Scottish collective Belle and Sebastian, Irish quartet Snow Patrol and 59-year-old musician Robert Wyatt.

The £20,000 Nationwide Mercury Prize, now in its 13th year, honours the best album of the year by a British or Irish band and is dubbed the Booker of the music world. It is judged on talent and innovation rather than commercial sales and the winner can usually expect a surge in sales and publicity.

Johnny Rocks, manager of Rounder Records in Brighton, believes a Mercury Music Prize nomination can provide a band with essential exposure.

But he will not be supporting the local boys done good.

He said: "Personally I think the Keane album is abhorrent. It's very wimpy, lifeless and does nothing to me apart from making me want to turn all that whingeing off. I'd much rather see the prize go to Franz Ferdinand."