Best Film & Video presented by Eagle Rock Entertainment
Zach: This particular award could go one of two ways. It could end up going to Lamb Of God, and serve as Revolver’s way of acknowledging Randy Blythe’s struggles over the past year stemming from his trial in Prague. On the other hand, giving the award to Through The Never could be Revolver’s way to honor Metallica that evening. I’d like Lamb Of God to get it, though it would be nice to see Through The Never get one nice honor (since it didn’t make a dent in the box office).
Matt: As The Palaces Burn has a good chance for the same reasons I mentioned for “Best Live Band” in that Randy’s trial is still very recent. But with all the hype and press it got, I think Through The Never has the best chance. It always seems like Metallica has more detractors nowadays than fans, but I’m sure it’ll get the push in terms of votes.
Kodi: I think this one is all Lamb of God, all the time. Through the Never didn’t go over like everyone hoped it would, and the story behind As the Palaces Burn makes it one of the best metal documentaries in a very long time.
Bram: I’ll go with As the Palaces Burn as well. It’s got a real narrative behind it, as opposed to the music videos and awesome-looking but fractured Metallica film.
Best New Talent presented by Victory Records
Zach: I think Crosses (†††) has the best shot of winning the Chino Moreno connection, though thanks to the buzz they’ve created for themselves this year, Deafheaven also has a strong chance to win. However, and maybe I’m a little bias, but I’d rreeaallllyy love to see Twelve Foot Ninja win this. It’s a known fact that Metal Insider has a history with the band, but TFN are truly a great blend of metal and…well, a shit ton of random genres (even a little disco at times). They have great potential to break out even bigger in the U.S., and it would be incredible to see them get he upset and win this award.
Matt: I’ll be surprised if Deafheaven doesn’t win this one. They seem to gain more and more fans everyday, including many people who aren’t all that into metal. With all the hype they’ve gotten, I say they’ll take this one easily. Also…Issues is on here, too? Seriously, what’s with these guys popping up all the sudden?
Kodi: I don’t know what cash Issues is dropping to suddenly be everywhere, but I want some of it. That said, Twelve Foot Ninja is totally perfect for this. Deafheaven is more of a cred concession than a likely winner, and TFN’s fanbase just keeps getting bigger. I don’t think Crosses gets it because I’ve seen Deftones get upset too many times in other categories lately. To me, this category is a bit more of a tossup, though Scar the Martyr’s mild reception from Slipknot fans makes me think it’s not going to have the gas in the tank to get there.
Bram: I think Chino wins on this one. Deafheaven is a ballsy move, but I think it’s more lip service to the few people that read both Decibel and Revolver.
Comeback of the Year
Zach: Black Sabbath are likely the favorites to win this one, thanks in part to making a pretty awesome album with Ozzy back on the mic. However, it would be truly amazing to see Carcass take the Golden God. We had been promised a Ozzy-led Sabbath album for a few years before it finally saw the light of day (and the fact it finally came out is indeed a miracle). However, Carcass blindsided almost everyone when they announced they were reuniting to record a new album. And not only did Surgical Steel blow minds left and right, but reinvigorated Carcass’ career.
Matt: Surgical Steel had no business being as good as it was, so Carcass are much deserving of the award. Sabbath might have them beat though because…well, they’re Sabbath. Both are deserving of the award but Sabbath might edge them out because they had to jump through the hoops of Bill Ward not playing with the band and Tony Iommi’s lymphoma to make this thing happen and it still turned out pretty damn well.
Kodi: Same as the Album award. Come on, it’s Black Sabbath. As much as I would like Carcass to take this, they just won’t. They don’t have the same level of name recognition, and even more importantly, they don’t have anywhere near the same level of Revolver readers. Now, if this were the Decibel Golden Gods, that would be a different story!
Bram: Black Sabbath is going to have to win. The last time Ozzy sang on a Sabbath album, we were living in a Hit Parader, Circus and Creem world. Carcass put out the best comeback record in metal for years, and deserves to win, but it’s hard to deny Sabbath.
