It was supposed to be Amy Winehouse’s night, but the Mercury Music Prize produced a surprise winner when the “nu rave” band Klaxons took the Album of the Year award.

The audience had been enraptured by an acoustic performance from Winehouse, returning to the stage after lurid allegations of drug abuse. But her million-selling Back to Black album lost out to the London group who are influenced by the sci-fi author, J. G. Ballard, and mix highenergy rock, indie and dance music.

The judges hailed their debut album Myths of the Near Future, saying: “Rock meets pop meets dance — the Klaxons take us on an ecstatic musical adventure.” The album reached number two in the UK charts and produced the hit singles Golden Skans and It’s Not Over Yet.

Fans turn up at Klaxons gigs wearing neon T-shirts and waving glo sticks. They have only been together for two years after meeting at the Glastonbury Festival.

James Righton, the keyboard player, whooped with joy when he accepted the award, which caused gasps among the industry crowd. He said: “This means so much to us. Last year we were recording the album and watched Arctic Monkeys take this award. We are the band pushing music’s foundations.

“I think the front cover best describes the record. It’s a collage of different ideas squeezed into 37 minutes. It’s a weird pop record that’s not about a place or a girl or a nine-to-five job. We just write escapist, melodic pop about the things which aren’t usually seen in the pop genre.”

Conor McNicholas, NME Editor and Mercury judge, said: “It is an album that could only have been made in the UK and could only have been made this year. But it is a record which will stand the test of time.

“It is a pop record with wide influences from science fiction to literature. There were passionate discussions in the judges’ room but this was a unanimous choice.”

The NME has seized on the “nu rave” theme, which has brought a new audience of teenage concertgoers to gigs. Klaxons are heavily influenced by the early Nineties rave theme and have adopted its multi-coloured dress and pounding electronic rhythms.

The judges decided to recognise an album that had been critically acclaimed rather than add another prize to Amy Winehouse’s straining mantelpiece.

The Nationwide Mercury prize is worth £20,000 to the winner but will generate greater value in album sales for the surprise winners.

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