This year's Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards nominations have been announced, with Slipknot and Amon Amarth taking the lion's share of the nominations with three apiece.

Now in it's seventh year, the Metal Hammer Golden Gods are voted for by the public, with the presentation taking place this year at the IndigO2 on Monday 15th June. Unlike other awards ceremenonies, the Golden Gods has a sensible eight categories, which are: Best International Band, Best Live Band, Best Metal Label, Best New Band, Best UK Band, Best Underground Band, Breakthrough Artist, Shredder(s).

Slipknot are nominated as Best International Band, Best Live Band and Shredders (for Mick Thompson and Jim Root), with Amon Amarth competing in both the Best International Band and Shredders category.

Deathstars, Dragonforce and Lamb of God share two nominations, whilst veterand Iron Maiden are up for the Best UK Band category, along with Trigger The Bloodshed, Dragonforce, Gallows, Motorhead and Saxon.

The full list of nominations can be found below - details of how to vote are on the Metal Hammer website (www.metalhammer.co.uk).

Nominations

• Best International Band
  1. Slipknot
  2. Amon Amarth
  3. Deathstars
  4. Dimmu Borgir
  5. Metallica
  6. Lamb of God
• Best Live Band
  1. Slipknot
  2. Devildriver
  3. Clutch
  4. Deathstars
  5. Skindred
  6. Down
• Best Metal Label
  1. Roadrunner
  2. Metal Blade
  3. Rising Records
  4. Nuclear Blast
  5. SPV / Steamhammer
  6. Spinefarm
• Best New Band
  1. Black Tide
  2. Five Finger Death Punch
  3. Sylosis
  4. Malefice
  5. Trigger The Bloodshed
  6. Alestorm
• Best UK Band
  1. Iron Maiden
  2. The Answer
  3. Dragonforce
  4. Saxon
  5. Gallows
  6. Motorhead
• Best Underground Band
  1. Architects
  2. Annotations Of An Autopsy
  3. Kylesa
  4. Beneath The Massacre
  5. Legion Of The Damned
  6. Behemoth
• Breakthrough Artist
  1. All That Remains
  2. Amon Amarth
  3. Gojira
  4. Bring Me The Horizon
  5. Airbourne
  6. Underoath
• Shredder(s)
  1. Mick Thompson & Jim Root (Slipknot)
  2. Olavi Mikkonen & Johan Söderberg (Amon Amarth)
  3. Mark Morton & Willie Alder (Lamb of God)
  4. Eric Petersen & Alex Skolnick - Testament
  5. Herman Li & Sam Totman (Dragonforce)
  6. Mike Akerfeldt (Opeth)