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Villagers frontman Conor O'Brien scoops songwriting award

O’Brien has won a prestigious Ivor Novello prize for the title track of his band’s acclaimed album Becoming A Jackal.

May 19th 2011, 4:45 PM 1,322 Views 4 Comments

Conor J O'Brien with his Best Song award at today's ceremony

Image: Ian West/PA Wire/Press Association Images

INDIE MUSICIAN AND Villagers frontman Conor J O’Brien has won a coveted Ivor Novello songwriting award for the group’s track Becoming A Jackal.

O’Brien received the 2011 prize for Best Song Musically and Lyrically – the most prestigious of the Ivors – at a ceremony at Grosvenor House, London today. The annual awards, named after a Welsh music-hall entertainer, are designed to reward “artistic excellence” and are judged by songwriters and composers. They are widely respected as some of the only music prizes not to be influenced by publishers and record companies.

The song Becoming A Jackal comes from the group’s critically acclaimed 2010 album of the same name, which was also nominated for a Mercury Prize. However, the record lost out to the XX at the ceremony last July.

Conor O’Brien formed Villagers in 2008 after the breakup of his previous band The Immediate.

Villagers are set to perform at Marlay Park in Dublin on July 23. Have a listen to the lovely Becoming A Jackal right here:

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Villagers frontman Conor O'Brien scoops songwriting award