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The New York-based Antony and the Johnsons have claimed the 2005 Mercury Music prize.
The baby of lead singer Antony Hegarty, the prize was won for his debut LP 'I Am A Bird Now'.
Stealing a quote from elsewhere, we can report that Hegarty said in true-flummoxed-by-his-own-greatness style:
_ "I think they must have made a mistake. I am completely overwhelmed. I think that's insane. It's kind of like a crazy contest between an orange and a spaceship and a potted plant and a spoon - which one do you like better?"_.
Beating off strong competition from the likes of Kaiser Chiefs and MIA, he now gets to walk off with a £20,000 cheque and some probably much-deserved publicity.
The full list of nominees were:
Bloc Party – 'Silent Alarm'
Hard-Fi –'Stars Of CCTV'
Kaiser Chiefs – 'Employment'
MIA – 'Arular'
The Magic Numbers – 'The Magic Numbers'
Coldplay – 'X&Y'
The Go! Team – 'Thunder, Lightning Strike'
Antony And The Johnsons – 'I Am A Bird Now'
KT Tunstall – 'Eye To The Telescope'
Maximo Park – 'A Certain Trigger'
Seth Lakeman – 'Kitty Jay'
Polar Bear – 'Held On The Tips Of Fingers'
Well done, Ant.
