Alexisonfire, Dan Mangan Win At XM Verge Music Awards

09/23/09 11:39am

by Kate Harper (CHARTattack)

Alexisonfire and Dan Mangan both took home $25,000 prizes at the second annual XM Verge Music Awards at Toronto's Mod Club on Tuesday night.

Alexisonfire won the album of the year award for this year's Old Crows/Young Cardinals, while Mangan was a surprise artist of the year winner, beating out nominees Alexisonfire, Amos The Transparent, Joel Plaskett and Said The Whale.

"It's nice to win awards like that, you know, that fans vote for," Alexisonfire singer/guitarist Dallas Green told CHARTattack following his band's win. "They're really the only awards that kind of mean anything. I feel like all the other awards just involve, like, a panel of people or members of some sort of association.

"Music's just so [about] personal preference that I don't think awards mean that much, but when a ton of kids that like your band get on the computer and vote for you, it means something since they took the time to do it."

Mangan said he would use the money to buy a tour van and pay off some debts.

"I just didn't really see [winning] as an option," Mangan said. "I just kind of thought it was a nice nod and it was just great to be included in the list at the very most. So I'm completely honoured and flattered and it's a very exciting day."

The XM Verge Music Awards are determined through online votes cast by listeners of XM satellite radio station The Verge. Artist and album of the year winners both receive $25,000.

The Weakerthans received last year's artist of the year award, while Hey Rosetta! won the 2008 album of the year prize for their Into Your Lungs (And Around In Your Heart And On Through Your Blood).

Tuesday night's show featured performances from Hey Rosetta!, The Weakerthans and Metric, who ran through tracks from their Polaris Music Prize short listed Fantasies, as well as "Glass Ceiling," "Monster Hospital" and "Empty" from Live It Out and Old World Underground, Where Are You Now?'s "Dead Disco."