Arctic Monkeys, Take That, Foo Fighters take Brit Awards

Arctic Monkeys Pic: PA Photos

Plus Rhianna and Klaxons team-up and Amy Winehouse makes comeback

Feb 21, 2008
8 Comments
Brit Awards 2008 news, reviews, video and tour dates
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Arctic Monkeys, Foo Fighters and Take That shared the honours at last night’s (February 20) Brit Awards.

The bands picked up two awards each at the ceremony held in Earls Court in London.

Arctic Monkeys’ repeated their 2007 record picking up Best British Band and the evening’s big prize, Best British Album again.

Watch Arctic Monkeys' drunken acceptance speech now.

It was the first time the band had ever attended the ceremony, despite winning awards for the past two years, and they certainly made an impression on their debut with all four Arctic Monkeys donning tweeds and flat caps to drunkenly pick up their awards dressed like extras from Emmerdale Farm.

Watch Arctic Monkeys' drunken acceptance speech on NME.COM now

Take That caused an early upset, beating the likes of Muse to Best Live Act before winning Best Single, which was decided by a public phone vote on the night.

Though they could not attend the ceremony due to US touring commitments, Foo Fighters made it a clean sweep in their international categories, winning the Best Band and Best Album awards.

The threatened “pop takeover” predicted by many music industry commentators did not happen – X Factor winner Leona Lewis surprising won nothing despite four nominations – but pop acts were successful with Kylie Minogue and Mika both winning.

Kate Nash, Kanye West and Mark Ronson were also celebrating.

Hosted by the Osbourne family – Ozzy, Sharon, Kelly and Jack – the ceremony boasted several notable collaborations, though it was Klaxons and Rihanna who stole the show.

Bathed in lasers and playing beneath a Pink Floyd-esque pyramid, the acts teamed-up to perform a version of Rihanna’s ’Umbrella’ which mixed in elements of Klaxons’ ’Golden Skans’.

Watch Klaxons and Rihanna's Brits collaboration on the NME Office Blog now.

Mika meanwhile was joined by The Gossip’s Beth Ditto to open the show, while Mark Ronson called upon Adele, Daniel Merriweather and Amy Winehouse for his medley - the latter making her first public appearance since entering rehab.

The London singer played Zutons cover ’Valerie’ with Ronson before she returned for a solo performance of her own ’Love Is A Losing Game’ which she dedicated to her currently incarcerated husband Blake Civil Fielder, telling the crowd to “Make some noise for my husband. My Blake.”

Paul McCartney rounded off the night picking up his Outstanding Contribution To Music Award before playing a five song set of ‘Dance Tonight’, ‘Live And Let Die’, ‘Hey Jude’, 'Lady Madonna' and 'Get Back'.

To get the full Brit Award results just click on the categories below:

Best British Live Act
Critics' Choice Award
British Breakthrough Act
Best International Male
Best British Male
Best International Female
Best International Group
Best British Female
Best International Album
Best British Band
Best British Single
Best British Album
Outstanding Contribution To Music Award

The Shockwaves NME Awards 2008 are coming soon – and it’s time to have your say. Vote now by heading to NME.COM/awardsvote and you could win VIP tickets to the ceremony, which takes place in London on February 28.

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Comments (8)

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airguitarsuperstar

Feb 21, 2008

Me thinks that a young Mr Alex Turner was slightly sozzled when collecting that Album Award well done to them anyway. As for the attire, slightly random! Congratulations though...doing Sheffield proud.

bradpringle

Feb 21, 2008

"the ceremony boasted several notable collaborations, though it was Klaxons and Rihanna who stole the show."

What show were you watching? Sure they have fancy lights but the song was awful. Still good to know the Klaxons have a career as a backing band if the whole nu-rave thing falls flat.

lou87

Feb 21, 2008

the klaxons and rihanna thing.. what was it all about?? was rubbish should of just been the klaxons or rihanna singing there song!!

springer

Feb 21, 2008

last night Brits- Kaiser Chiefs were awful and Klaxons looked like extras from the video for Duran Duran's Wild Boys.
God Bless Arctic Monkeys- they were fantastic and good to see Richard Hawley on their table

G O D

Feb 21, 2008

these are sad times for the music world. the thought of foo fighters being considered for all these prestigious awards makes the very bones in one's frail skinny frame creak and crack under the weight of the terribleness of it all. arctic monkeys are good, not brilliant, 'lad rock' isn't really my cuppa char but the lyrics are well constructed and the tunes are catchy. but the subjects they touch up on are written for disco dwellers, laddettes and larger louts (all of which can be found in abundance at any a.m. gig). where are those red hot bands of the past that will go down in history will the likes of joy division and nirvana, sex pistols??? nowhere to be seen. if i were dave grohl i'd know deep down that i was a pretty crappy songwriter and and worse lyricist. and i'd know that my band will never rank in the same league as my heroes bands.

k8elou

Feb 22, 2008

I'm appalled, how any band can beat muse to best live act after their Wembley Stadium gigs last year is beyond me. How they can lose to Take That is just ridiculous!

AdamShanklyUK

Feb 22, 2008

When McCartney footed the stage, I thought "The Arctic who?". Here is a true songwriting master showing every other pretender that won an award at this pretentious ceremony exactly how it's done. Will Alex Turner be bashing out tunes at sixty four that people still care about, or at least want to hear... methinks not. He highlighted the sheer bottom-of-the-barrel musical talent that we're celebratory of nowadays. Oh well, at least we still got our McCartney. Altogether now, na na na na na na na hey Jude, na na...

crazyforicecream

Feb 24, 2008

well, we all know where music is heading to nowadays..as long as the industry keeps promoting mediocrities like Lily Allen or Kate Nash, just because a bunch of thirteen year olds is in full puberal crysis and loves them, there's no hope we can get good bands, good songwriters and innovative ideas back on stage.