Alt-J: An Awesome Wave, an awesome band

A year ago if you asked someone if they’d heard of a band called Alt-J they probably would have replied with “Alt who?” But now most people who follow music could tell you exactly who they are, as their album An Awesome Wave just won the 2012 Barclaycard Mercury Prize.

It’s been an odd year for the band that formed at university in Leeds back in 2007. They’ve gone from strength to strength and they were the favourites to win the prize long in advance. But for a band that has risen so quickly there is always a sense of trepidation: how will they possibly follow up this success?

The Mercury Prize hasn’t always secured a band’s future. Speech Debelle didn’t seem to achieve as much as was expected, with album sales never being anywhere near as high as other winners. But one feels it isn’t all about the money for Alt-J; they seem to be happy making different and exciting music and it is nice to see the prize recognizing that, and not favouring the most popular artist.

All this aside, it is misguided to say that their competition this year wasn’t of a high standard. With them beating the likes of Richard Hawley, Plan-B and The Maccabees.

Following a similar path, fellow nominees Django Django have risen from the unknown and their self-titled album is also exciting the music world. Close competition, but the Edinburgh four-piece was beaten to the prize by an equally, if not more, innovative group.

With the band just finishing their headline American tour – which was a sell out – the Alt-J hype is far from over. Will the Mercury Prize win be looked back on as an important turning point for the band? Probably, but I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s as relevant as some critics will make out. Alt-J has shown us a lot in their debut album, and I for one look forward to seeing what else they have got.