February 29, 2008

At 2008 NME Awards A'Monks Win Big, Vampire Weekend Injured

Last night the New Music Express held their annual Shockwaves Awards and gave repeated thumbs up to the usual suspects like Arctic Monkeys (three times over: Best Band, Track, Video), the Killers (Best International Band), Klaxons (Best Album), and Kate Nash (Best Solo Artist), while naming George Bush the Villain Of The Year. Which of course begs the question: Who won Hero of the Year? You guessed it! Pete Doherty. OK you didn't guess it. But it becomes much more reasonable when you find out they forgot the "in," and that Doherty was just getting praise for having the Best Heroin there. Even more tragic than NME's questionable sense of heroics, however, was this sad report:

Vampire Weekend drummer Chris Thompson was involved in a collision with a car in London tonight (February 29), sustaining a head injury.

Thompson was outside the Hoxton Hotel at around 12.30am gmt after attending the Shockwave NME Awards in West London.

An ambulance was called and Thompson received treatment in an ambulance outside the hotel.

Thompson has been taken to the Royal London Hospital for treatment.

Feel better, Chris!

In Stereogum related news -- we lost Best Music Blog! Aww. Congrats Miss Modern Age. After the jump, Kate Nash is quite rambly, the Kooks cover "Young Folks" from that celebratory covers comp were were just blogging about, and a full list of the night's trophy takers.

Her verbosity surprises us not. Neither does the this-song-will-never-die-ability of "Young Folks." Here's the Kooks bludgeoning whatever remaining lovability the tune possessed...

And you can wash that down with this list of winners:

Best British Band: Arctic Monkeys
Best International Band: The Killers
Best Solo Artist: Kate Nash
Best New Band: The Enemy
Best Live Band: Muse
Best Album: Klaxons - Myths Of The Near Future
Best Track: Arctic Monkeys - "Fluorescent Adolescent"
Best Video: Arctic Monkeys - "Teddy Picker"
Best Music DVD: Nirvana - Unplugged In New York
Best Live Event: Carling Weekend: Reading And Leeds Festivals
Best TV Show: The Mighty Boosh
Best Radio Show: Zane Lowe (Radio 1)
Best Film: Control
Best Web Site: Facebook
Best Venue: Wembley Stadium
Hero Of The Year: Pete Doherty
Villain Of The Year: George Bush
Best Dressed: Noel Fielding
Worst Dressed: Amy Winehouse
Worst Album: Britney Spears - Blackout
Worst Band: The Hoosiers
Sexiest Man: Noel Fielding
Sexiest Woman: Kylie Minogue
Godlike Genius: Manic Street Preachers
Philip Hall Radar Award: Glasvegas
John Peel Award for Musical Innovation: Radiohead
Best Dancefloor Filler: The Wombats - "Let's Dance to Joy Division"
Best Album Artwork: The Good The Bad And The Queen
Best Band Blog: Radiohead
Best Music Blog: The Modern Age