The nominations for the Best Metal Performance of the 62nd annual Grammy Award for 2020 have been revealed. CANDLEMASS, DEATH ANGEL, I PREVAIL, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and TOOL included. The ceremony will be held on on January 26 at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and will broadcast live on the CBS television network at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.
“Best Metal Performance” Category Nominees
- CANDLEMASS – “Astorolus – The Great Octopus” (Featuring Tony Iommi)
- DEATH ANGEL – “Humanicide”
- I PREVAIL – “Bow Down”
- KILLSWITCH ENGAGE – “Unleashed”
- TOOL – “7empest”
This year, HIGH ON FIRE was honored with a Grammy in the “Best Metal Performance” category in the pre-telecast ceremony at the 61st annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 10 at Staples Center. HIGH ON FIRE was nominated for “Electric Messiah”, the title track of its 2018 album.
Last year, the Recording Academy announced several changes to the awards process, most notably to the “General Field” categories — record of the year, album of the year, song of the year and best new artist — where the number of nominations was increased from five to eight. The Recording Academy also claims to have made greater efforts this year to diversify its voting body, reaching out to women and people of color specifically about becoming new members while requiring longtime members to re-qualify based on recent work.
The turning point for the Best Metal Performance Grammy came with the nominees for 2016, where it appeared that the organization’s committee took a deeper and honest look into the genre, no longer nominating artists for cover songs, instead giving looks to bands currently defining the genre.
The Grammys are voted on by approximately 13,000 Recording Academy members, who are comprised of artists, songwriters, producers and engineers. More than 21,000 recordings were submitted for Grammys consideration this year. For 2020 awards, music must have been released between October 1, 2018 and August 31, 2019 in order to be eligible.
Video of the Grammy Awards announcement can be seen below (starts around the 10 minute mark)
The complete list of rock and metal nominees is below.
RECORD OF THE YEAR
- Hey Ma – Bon Iver
- Bad Guy – Billie Eilish
- 7 Rings – Ariana Grande
- Hard Place – E.R.
- Talk – Khalid
- Old Town Road – Lil’ Nas X Featuring Billy Ray Cyrus
- Truth Hurts – Lizzo
- Sunflower – Post Malone & Swae Lee
ALBUM OF THE YEAR
- I, I – Bon Iver
- Norman Fucking Rockwell – Lana Del Rey
- When We All Fall Asleep, Where Do We Go – Billie Eilish
- Thank You Next – Ariana Grande
- I Used To Know Her – E.R.
- 7 – Lil’ Nas X
- Cause I Love You – Lizzo
- Father of the Bride – Vampire Weekend
SONG OF THE YEAR
- Always Remember Us This Way – Lady Gaga
- Bad Guy – Billie Eilish
- Bring My Flowers Now – Brandi Carlile
- Hard Place – E.R.
- Lover – Taylor Swift
- Norman Fucking Rockwell – Lana Del Rey
- Someone You Loved – Lewis Capaldi
- Truth Hurts – Lizzo
BEST NEW ARTIST
- Black Pumas
- Billie Eilish
- Lil Nas X
- Lizzo
- Maggie Rogers
- Rosalia
- Tank and the Bangas
- Yola
BEST ROCK PERFORMANCE
- Pretty Waste – Bones UK
- This Land – Gary Clark Jr.
- History Repeats – Brittany Howard
- Woman – Karen O. and Danger Mouse
- Too Bad – Rival Sons
BEST METAL PERFORMANCE
- Astorlus – The Great Octopus – Candlemass featuring Tony Iommi
- Humanicide – Death Angel
- Bow Down – I Prevail
- Unleashed – Killswitch Engage
- 7empest – Tool
BEST ROCK SONG
- Fear Inoculum – Tool
- Give Yourself a Try – The 1975
- Harmony Hall – Vampire Weekend
- History Repeats – Brittany Howard
- This Land – Gary Clark Jr.
BEST ROCK ALBUM
- Amo – Bring Me the Horizon
- Social Cues – Cage the Elephant
- In the End – The Cranberries
- Trauma – I Prevail
- Feral Roots – Rival Sons
BEST ALTERNATIVE MUSIC ALBUM
- F.O.F. – Big Thief
- Assume Form – James Blake
- I,I – Bon Iver
- Father of the Bride – Vampire Weekend
- Anima – Thom Yorke
BEST RECORDING PACKAGE
- Anonimos & Resilientes – Voces Del Bullerengue
- Chris Cornell – Chris Cornell
- Hold That Tiger – The Muddy Basin Ramblers
- I,I – Bon Iver
- Intellexual – Intellexual