Arctic Monkeys and Haim lead NME nominations

Arctic Monkeys lead the field for this year’s NME Awards with eight nominations.

The annual music bash sees the Sheffield quartet competing for a haul of top awards, with nearest rivals Haim - the Californian all-sister trio - up for six prizes.

Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke are among the figures nominated for the "villain of the year" title, alongside David Cameron, Vladimir Putin, Harry Styles and Russell Brand.

The event is being staged at the O2 Academy in Brixton, south London, on February 26 and sees Arctic Monkeys up for best British band, best live band, best album for fifth release AM and best track for single Do I Wanna Know?.

In addition, Why'd You Only Call Me When You're High? is up for best video, their Glastonbury Festival headline slot is up for music moment of the year, singer Alex Turner is shortlisted for hero of the year and they are nominated for best fan community.

Other multiple nominees include Queens Of The Stone Age, Lily Allen and Arcade Fire, who are each in the running for three prizes.

Challenging Arctic Monkeys for best British band are Foals, Palma Violets, Biffy Clyro, Disclosure and Two Door Cinema Club, and lining up against them for best album are Queens Of The Stone Age with ... Like Clockwork, In Love by Peace, Kanye West's Yeezus, Silence Yourself by Savages and and Drenge with their self-titled debut.

The awards - sponsored not by a brand but by the city of Austin in Texas, which has strong rock and roll links as the base for the annual South By South West festival - are largely chosen by readers of the music weekly.

David Bowie, who made his comeback a year ago following a decade-long silence, is among the nominees for hero of the year, along with his old collaborator Lou Reed, who died last year.

NME editor Mike Williams says: "The past 12 months of music have had everything — returning legends, era-defining singles, more albums with a claim to be modern classics than any year in recent memory and tons of massive live moments to celebrate."

The main nominees include:

Best British band:

Arctic Monkeys

Foals

Palma Violets

Biffy Clyro

Disclosure

Two Door Cinema Club

Best international band:

Haim

Arcade Fire

Queens Of The Stone Age

Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds

Phoenix

Vampire Weekend

Best solo artist:

Lorde

Lily Allen

Jake Bugg

Sir Paul McCartney

Kanye West

David Bowie

Best new band:

Drenge

Swim Deep

Chvrches

Jagwar Ma

Wolf Alice

Courtney Barnett

Best live band:

Arctic Monkeys

Palma Violets

Biffy Clyro

Haim

Queens Of The Stone Age

Savages

Best album:

Arctic Monkeys — AM

Queens Of The Stone Age — ...Like Clockwork

Peace — In Love

Kanye West — Yeezus

Savages — Silence Yourself

Drenge — Drenge

Best track:

Arctic Monkeys — Do I Wanna Know?

Lily Allen — Hard Out Here

Disclosure — White Noise

Arcade Fire — Reflektor

Primal Scream — 2013

Daft Punk — Get Lucky

Best music video:

Arctic Monkeys — Why’d You Only Call Me When You’re High?

Pharell — Happy

Arcade Fire — Reflektor

Lily Allen — Hard Out Here

Eagulls — Nerve Endings

Haim — Falling

Best festival:

Glastonbury

Reading & Leeds

T In The Park

Latitude

Bestival

V

Best fan community:

Hurts

Haim

Arctic Monkeys

Muse

Peace

Morrissey

Music moment of the year:

Pussy Riot are freed

Arctic Monkeys headline Glastonbury

Noel Gallagher and Damon Albarn come together for Teenage Cancer Trust concert

Rolling Stones headline Glastonbury

Morrissey’s autobiography is released

Kanye West brings Jesus on stage

Worst band:

One Direction

The Wanted

The 1975

Imagine Dragons

30 Seconds To Mars

Muse

Hero of the year:

Alex Turner

David Bowie

Este Haim

Russell Brand

Pussy Riot

Lou Reed

Villain of the year:

Miley Cyrus

Robin Thicke

Harry Styles

David Cameron

Vladimir Putin

Russell Brand