One could argue that no band has had a better last 18 months than The xx. Sure, guitarist/keyboardist Baria Qureshi may have quit mid-way through all the hoopla, but that didn’t stop the UK outfit from taking the world by storm with a masterful debut and like 48 different world tours. They were also great on Fallon.

Just moments ago, The xx’s break through was further realized when they were awarded the 2010 Mercury Prize, the annual UK award for best album. The album, titled xx, topped a formidable batch of candidates that also included Laura Marling’s I Speak Because I Can, Foals’ Total Life Forever, Mumford & Sons’ Sigh No More, and Villagers’ Becoming a Jackal.

Past Mercury Prize winners include the Arctic Monkeys, Antony and the Johnsons, Portishead, and PJ Harvey.