Klaxons album wins record cover prize
The Klaxons' second album, Surfing the Void, has won an award for 2010's best record cover.
In a public vote, the sleeve - which depicts a cat in an astronaut suit - beat 49 other shortlisted covers to take the Best Art Vinyl prize. Caribou album Swim was voted second, while an EP from relatively unknown German dance label Cadenza came third. Artists including Goldfrapp, Arcade Fire, the Chemical Brothers and Scissor Sisters were among the nominees. Art Vinyl - a company that promotes record covers as art - said this year's winners were a diverse mix of art and design. The winning sleeve, it said, showed "the power a bit of humour can have when added to the music design mix". "The Art Vinyl award is about celebrating the emotional resonance of the best sleeve designs from 2010," said awards director Andrew Heeps. The prize, he continued, honours "some of those unsung heroes of art and design who provide the visual identity for so many bands and artists". The top three sleeves will be featured at exhibitions at the British Music experience in the O2 Arena in London, Georges House Gallery in Folkestone, and the Art's Complex in Edinburgh from 4 January. There will also be shows in Paris, Brussels and Gothenburg. US indie rockers Fleet Foxes won the prize last year for their self-titled debut album. Muse, Thom Yorke and Hard Fi are among the other previous winners.