LONDON--Badly Drawn Boy [ tickets ], a.k.a. Damon Gough, won this year's Mercury Music Prize on Tuesday night (9/12) for his debut album "The Hour of Bewilderbeast." Gough, the bookmakers' favorite, beat artists including Richard Ashcroft [ tickets ], Coldplay [ tickets ] and Doves [ tickets ] to claim the title and $30,000 (£20,000) check.

After receiving the check from jazz musician Jools Holland, and then jokingly tossing it on the floor, he said, "I always assumed I was never going to win because nice things never normally happen to good people."

Badly Drawn Boy [ tickets ] is signed to techno mavericks the Prodigy's label XL Recordings. Judges were said to be impressed by the diversity of styles on the 18-track album, ranging from indie rock to jazz. "The Hour of Bewilderbeast" is currently at No. 39 on the U.K. album chart.