6 KERRANG!
a twofold night of celebration for the Bristol
gang –not only because it’s their first-ever
K! trophy, but also because it’s guitarist Lee
Kiernan’s birthday. Awwww.
“Thank you!” smiles Lee after a collective
rendition of Happy Birthday throughout
the room. “This is fucking weird – I dreamt
about winning one of these!”
Up next, on a more global scale: Best
International Breakthrough Act. Presented
by comedian and musician Matt Berry (“I
didn’t know what to say this evening, so
I phoned Ginger Baker, and he said, ‘Why
the fuck have you phoned me, you c**t?’”),
it’s another high-stakes moment, with Angel
Du$t, Vein, The Interrupters, SWMRS and
Simple Creatures all nominated.
The trophy goes to the best (or worst...)
dressed band of the evening: Oakland
punks SWMRS. “This is the first award we’ve
ever won!” reveals an elated Cole Becker.
“I think that, in America, there’s a lot of
people who say oftentimes that rock music
is dead ... but it’s really just an
excuse to say that they’ve given
up on the kids, and so I want to
say thank you to Kerrang! for
never giving up on the kids.”
Our presenters for award
number three this evening are the
equally enthusiastic Employed
To Serve duo Justine Jones and
Sammy Urwin.
The category this time is Best
Song, and up for the title are
FEVER 333, Slipknot, Rammstein,
While She Sleeps and Frank Iero
And The Future Violents.
“And the winner is...” begins
Sammy. “Slip-FEVER 333!”
Justine announces playfully.
Frontman Jason Aalon Butler
clearly falls for the joke (“That got
me fucked up!”) but he then takes
a second to tell his peers and
contemporaries in the room how
appreciative the trio are.
“I’ve spent so much of my
life just trying to fit in, and to be
accepted in some way, knowing
that people voted for this makes it
very special,” he says.
Up next, metal royalty Kelly Osbourne
takes to the stage to present the award
for Best Album. Well – with the help of
Beartooth frontman Caleb Shomo, who
walks her up the stairs like a gent.
“Thank you so much –I was was terrified
I was going to eat shit,” she laughs to the
singer, before informing the rest of the
room that Architects, Bring Me The Horizon,
Behemoth, Ghost and Greta Van Fleet are
the nominees.
And the winner is... a surprisingly
casual-looking Tobias Forge, and Ghost’s
incredible Prequelle record. “Wow, there’s
been so many nice things said that I don’t
really know how to further extend that...”
the frontman ponders, before repeating
“thank you” several times. You’re very
welcome, Cardinal.
Caleb is back in action again now – this
time presenting the award for Best British
Live Act to either Architects, Employed To
Serve, Frank Carter And The Rattlesnakes,
Enter Shikari or Don Broco. Oooooh...“The winner is, I think, one of the greatest
fucking bands of all time,” smiles Caleb.
“They gave us a serious shot to be able to
do what we do over here... and that band is
called Architects.”
“We won this last year, we’re winning it
this year... I think that means we really are
the best British live band!” announces a
proud Sam Carter.
Now it’s time for Best International Live
Act in association with Rizla –presented
by Thin Lizzy’s own Scott Gorham.
“I got this list and I remember looking at
the calibre of bands,” he muses of FEVER
333, Metallica, Parkway Drive, Ghost and
Mastodon. “I was like, ‘There’s that great
player, there’s this kick-ass player, I love that
song, I’ve seen these guys play before...’
This is a really tough category, and for me,
there’s no losers – everyone is a winner.”
Indeed, although taking home the big K!
tonight are – of course – Metallica.
“Dude, 1976 in Copenhagen, front rowfor Thin Lizzy! Come on!” responds Lars
as he and Rob head up to collect their
prize. “I was hanging out at the Plaza Hotel
afterwards, and I got a chance to meet Phil
[Lynott, frontman]. I don’t know where you
were – you were probably off having fun...”
There’s even more reflection from the
sticksman, as he celebrates both the birth of
’Tallica and this very magazine.
“I spent the summer of 1981 schlepping
around England, and that whole summer
was the reason that I wanted to be in a
band,” Lars recalls. “Then I went back to
California and I called up somebody I’d
met a few months prior – James... I can’t
remember his last name! But it all worked
out fine, and 38 years later, Metallica and
Kerrang! share the same birthday. And
I’ve got that first fucking issue, the one
with Angus [Young].I bought two of them,
because I figured that maybe this would
all lead to something. I’ve lived pretty
much my whole life through Kerrang!,
so this is really cool. Thank you for invitingus, and thank you for this award.”
You’re welcome back any time, lads...
Our winners of Best British Act are the
only band who are absent tonight, but Bring
Me The Horizon (who beat Architects,
Enter Shikari, Biffy Clyro and Iron Maiden)
did take “some time out from visiting their
local garden centre to send us a message”,
as Sam describes.
“We’re sorry we couldn’t be there tonight,
but we just want to say thank you to all the
readers of Kerrang! –we really appreciate
this award,” says drummer Matt Nicholls.
“Thank you very much.”
In the first of Kerrang!’s three signature
gongs this evening, Feeder’s Grant Nicholas
heads up to present the Kerrang! Hall Of
Fame in association with Marshall to the
one and only Skunk Anansie.
“I have to be honest,” says singer Skin,
staring at the trophy, “the last time I saw
one of these, Marilyn Manson was trying
to stick it up my arse!”
Can’t say we’re altogether
that surprised, actually.
Following that is the
Kerrang! Inspiration Award,
presented by our very own Phil –
or, should we say, member 1477
of the winner’s fan club.
“Without this band, I don’t
think I’d be standing here,” he
admits, before Motörhead’s Phil
Campbell scoops his K!.
Next up, Queen legend
Roger Taylor arrives to present
Best International Act in
association with Vans.
Between Slipknot, Rammstein,
Metallica, Panic! At The Disco
and Foo Fighters, this is beyond
tough to call. So, Roger...?
“And the winners are...
Metallica!” he reveals.
As Lars returns to encourage
the audience to “go to gigs with
your dad –it’s fucking cool”,
and Rob dedicates the trophy to
“all the bands that are out there
kicking ass”, it’s the perfect way
to round off the last of our eight
voted-for categories.
And the final award that goes out tonight
is the biggest one of the evening: the
Kerrang! Icon Award.
“This next award is for someone who
has had such an insane influence over our
music,” begins another birthday boy: Royal
Blood’s Mike Kerr. “We made pretty dodgy
music before we heard Led Zeppelin.”
That’s right, the iconic London rockers’
guitarist Jimmy Page is the final recipient at
the Kerrang! Awards 2019 – and he’s thrilled
with the honour.
“I just want to send you all the best –this
is as much for you guys as it is for me,” he
beams over an incredibly loud audience.
Phew. Now that’s all over and done with,
it’s time for the afterparty, which goes on
until 2am. Which is where our report ends,
because, well, that’s all we remember! ‘Til
next year.HEAD ON OVER TO KERRANG.COM TO
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