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 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.