The Negative One has been named the best rift of 2014 by readers of Total Guitar magazine.

The piece from comeback album .5: The Gray Chapter tops a poll ahead of work by Slash, Mastodon, Royal Blood, Steel Panther and others. Total Guitar say: “The return of Iowa’s finest following the passing of founding member Paul Gray was always going to be a raw one. The Gray Chapter certainly lived up to that. It’s absolutely encapsulated in The Negative One’s riff onslaught – it’s Slipknot at their thrilling best.”

The track is also nominated for 2015’s Best Metal Grammy, with the winner to be named in February – while the album was voted release of the year by Metal Hammer readers.

TOTAL GUITAR READERS’ BEST RIFFS OF 2014
Slipknot: The Negative One (.5: The Gray Chapter)
Slash: Withered Delilah (World On Fire)
Mastodon: The Motherload (One More ‘Round The Sun)
Royal Blood: Little Monster (Royal Blood)
Steel Panther: Gloryhole (All You Can Eat)
Jack White: Lazaretto (Lazaretto)
Rival Sons: Electric Man (Great Western Valkyrie)
Machine Head: Beneath The Slit (Bloodstone & Diamonds)
The Black Keys: Turn Blue (Turn Blue)