A harrowing "end of the world" song, 'World Painted Blood', the title track from SLAYER's most recent release, has been nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Metal Performance". This is the band's fifth Grammy nod, having taken home the prize twice, first for 'Eyes Of The Insane' in 2006, and then again with 'Final Six' in 2007, both in the "Best Metal Performance" category.

"I admit, I'm excited and kind of surprised," said Slayer's bassist/vocalist Tom Araya, who co-wrote (with guitarist Jeff Hanneman) 'World Painted Blood'. "To have Slayer's music recognized by an organization as traditional as the Grammys - five times now - is like that gold star that someone puts up by your name. It's unexpected, but it's cool."

The 'World Painted Blood' nomination caps off one of the band's most challenging yet successful years of its career. Beginning with Araya's successful neck surgery that now has him pain-free, Slayer went on to co-headline (with MEGADETH) the Canadian and American Carnage tours, a UK/European headline dates, the historic summer series of Big Four Sonisphere European concerts with METALLICA, Megadeth and ANTHRAX, and the recently completed Jagermeister Fall Music Tour that Slayer co-headlined with Megadeth and featured Anthrax.

Slayer's 2011 will launch with a slew of major Australian festivals, with more North American news to be announced.

The 53rd Annual Grammy Awards will take place in Los Angeles at Staples Center on Sunday, February 13th, 2011, and will air live on the CBS Television Network from 8 – 11:30 PM (ET/PT). As a result of last year's earlier show and Awards process dates, this year the eligibility dates for the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards are September 1st, 2009, through September 30th, 2010. (This year will mark a 13-month eligibility period.)

Following are the nominations in the Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance, Best Hard Rock Performance and Best Metal Performance categories:

Best Solo Rock Vocal Performance

ERIC CLAPTON - 'Run Back To Your Side'

JOHN MAYER - 'Crossroads'

PAUL MCCARTNEY - 'Helter Skelter'

ROBERT PLANT - 'Silver Rider'

NEIL YOUNG - 'Angry World'

Best Hard Rock Performance

ALICE IN CHAINS – 'A Looking In View'

OZZY OSBOURNE – 'Let Me Hear You Scream'

SOUNDGARDEN – 'Black Rain'

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS – 'Between The Lines'

THEM CROOKED VULTURES – 'New Fang'

Best Metal Performance

IRON MAIDEN – 'El Dorado'

KORN – 'Let The Guilt Go'

LAMB OF GOD – 'In Your Words'

MEGADETH – 'Sudden Death'

SLAYER – 'World Painted Blood'

Best Long Form Music Video

BLUR - No Distance Left To Run (Will Lovelace, Dylan Southern & Giorgio Testi, video directors; Thomas Benski, Laura Collins & Lucas Ochoa, video producers)

THE DOORS - When You're Strange (Tom Dicillo, video director; John Beug, Jeff Jampol, Peter Jankowski & Dick Wolf, video producers)

ARIF MARDIN - The Greatest Ears In Town: The Arif Mardin Story (Doug Biro & Joe Mardin, video directors; Doug Biro & Joe Mardin, video RUSH - Rush: Beyond The Lighted Stage (Sam Dunn & Scot McFadyen, video directors; Sam Dunn & Scot McFadyen, video producers)

THE WHITE STRIPES - Under Great White Northern Lights (Emmett Malloy, video director; Ian Montone & Mike Sarkissian, video producers)

A complete list of nominees can be found at this location.