Darkthrone is a black metal band from Kolbotn, Norway, formed in 1986 as a death metal band under the name Black Death. In 1991, the band embraced a black metal style influenced by Bathory and Celtic Frost and became one of the leading bands in the Norwegian black metal scene.
Hear 'n Aid was a charity record recorded by a large ensemble of 40 heavy metal musicians, and released in 1986. The project was organized by Ronnie James Dio, Jimmy Bain, and Vivian Campbell, all from the band Dio. Proceeds from the album were used to raise money for famine relief in Africa.
Southern Lord is an American heavy metal record label that was founded in 1998 by Greg Anderson. Initially, Southern Lord specialized in what could broadly be classified as experimental metal, particularly the slow-moving doom metal, stoner rock, and drone metal subgenres. Some of the more notable artists on the label include Baptists, Earth, Om, Goatsnake, Khanate, Obliterations, Pelican, Sleep and Sunn O))), among others. More recently, the label expanded its line-up to include artists from the black metal subgenre, including releases by Twilight, Wolves in the Throne Room, Xasthur, and Striborg. They have also released albums by hardcore punk and crust punk bands like Burning Love, Agrimonia, and Wolfbrigade.
Beherit is a black metal band from Finland. The band was formed in 1989 by Nuclear Holocausto, Black Jesus and Sodomatic Slaughter, with the purpose of performing "the most primitive, savage, hell-obsessed black metal imaginable". "Beherit" is the Syriac word for Satan. Through the uncommercial nature of their music, visuals, and live performances, the band quickly attracted a cult following. Besides the "raw" sound, the band's music is noted for its avant-garde side and emphasis on atmosphere. Beherit are now regarded as a pioneer in their genre.
Thunderstone is a power metal band from Helsinki, Finland. The band was formed in 2000 by guitarist Nino Laurenne, and the line-up became full the following year. After the release of the band's self-titled debut album, Thunderstone, the band toured Europe supporting Stratovarius and Symphony X. Thunderstone released the first four of their albums through Nuclear Blast; however, their album Dirt Metal was released in October 2009 under Sony Music.
Antestor is a Norwegian unblack metal band formed in 1990 in Jessheim. Credited for starting the northern European Christian black metal scene, Antestor is the only Christian band to have an album released by Cacophonous Records, which has also released records by bands such as Dimmu Borgir, Sigh, and Cradle of Filth. The band's only release on Cacophonous, The Return of the Black Death, proved influential for the Christian black metal movement, and has sold over 10,000 copies.
Dispatched were a Swedish melodic death metal band from Södertälje formed in 1992.
A demo is a song or group of songs recorded for limited circulation or reference use rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed format, such as cassette tape, compact disc, or digital audio files, and to thereby pass along those ideas to record labels, producers, or other artists.
Eths was a French metalcore band from Marseille.
Gama Bomb is a thrash metal band based in Northern Ireland. Their 2009 album Tales from the Grave in Space was one of the first albums ever released as a completely free download while signed to a record label.
Displeased Records was a Dutch independent record label, founded by Lars Eikema and Ron Veltkamp. The label had many Dutch and other extreme metal bands on its roster, but has also re-released many classic albums, including albums by Agathocles, Cryptopsy, Infernäl Mäjesty, Sadus, Toxik and Whiplash. The label also had a large mail order division called Discorder.com.
Xasthur is the project of American musician Scott "Malefic" Conner. Conner formed Xasthur in 1995 and released eight studio albums of black metal by 2010, when he announced the end of the project. However, he revived it in 2015 to focus on acoustic neofolk music, releasing a ninth album, Subject to Change, in 2016.
Roger Tiegs, better known by his stage name Infernus, is a Norwegian black metal musician and Satanist. He is the sole founding member and chief ideologist of the Norwegian black metal band Gorgoroth, which was formed in 1992, as well as the founder and head of Forces of Satan Records. He is mainly a guitarist, but has also participated as bassist, drummer and vocalist on several recordings released both by Gorgoroth and other bands.
Nox Arcana is an American neoclassical dark wave, dark ambient musical duo of Joseph Vargo and William Piotrowski, formed in 2003. Their name in Latin translates to "mysteries of the night." All of Nox Arcana's music is released independently on the Monolith Graphics label, a publishing company owned by Joseph Vargo. With their third album, Nox Arcana became a Billboard Top Ten charting artist in the holiday genre.
Vrangsinn is a Norwegian musician, best known as the bassist of Carpathian Forest (1999–2014).
m:A Fog is a heavy metal musician.
Anders Odden, is a Norwegian musician. He is the co-founder and guitarist of the Norwegian death metal band Cadaver, and is the bass player for Norwegian black metal band Satyricon (2009–present). He is founder and guitarist of the old school black metal band ORDER and the industrial rock band Magenta. He played live guitar for Celtic Frost (2006–2007) and has had several guest appearances with bands such as The Young Gods and Ministry, among others.
Orcustus is a Norwegian black metal band formed in 2002.
Demo 2002 was the first release by the Norwegian black metal band Orcustus, founded by Taipan and with Infernus and Tormentor of Gorgoroth and Dirge Rep of Enslaved and Gehenna. It was limited to 1,000 copies on CD. This demo was deemed a significant and important release by several well-known musicians from the Norwegian black metal scene, such as Fenriz of Darkthrone and Frost of Satyricon, and led to the band being signed to the US record label Southern Lord Records.
Janus is an American alternative metal band based in Chicago. They formed in 1992 in North East, Maryland and have released five studio albums, “Orifice” (1994),Influx (1998), Armor (2004), Red Right Return (2008), and Nox Aeris (2012). They mix alternative metal with non-traditional rock instruments, such as auxiliary percussion, and electronic sounds. The band gained popularity on rock radio stations across the US due to their single "Eyesore," and has toured with bands such as All That Remains, Breaking Benjamin, Chevelle, Sevendust, and Sick Puppies. The band is known for wearing custom made red and black 1920s Russian-inspired militaristic uniforms both on stage, and in their music video for "Eyesore."