Deathcore is an extreme metal subgenre that combines death metal with metalcore. The genre consists of death metal guitar riffs, blast beats, and metalcore breakdowns. While there are some precursors to the concept of death metal fused with metalcore/hardcore elements seen in the 1990s, deathcore itself emerged in the early 2000s and gained prominence beginning in the mid-2000s within the southwestern United States, especially Arizona and inland southern California, which are home to many notable bands and various festivals.
Unearth is an American metalcore band formed in Boston, Massachusetts, in 1998. The group consists of lead guitarist Buz McGrath, vocalist Trevor Phipps, bassist Chris O'Toole, drummer Mike Justian and rhythm guitarist Peter Layman. They are currently signed to Century Media Records and have released eight studio albums. Their most recent studio album, The Wretched; the Ruinous, was released on May 5, 2023.
All Shall Perish is an American deathcore band from Oakland, California, formed in 2002. The band was signed to Nuclear Blast and have released four full-length albums through the label. Their final album, This Is Where It Ends, was released on July 26, 2011.
Winds of Plague is an American deathcore band from Upland, California. Formed in 2002, the band is known for being the first of several deathcore bands to incorporate symphonic elements into their music.
The Summer Slaughter Tour is an annual heavy metal music tour held every year since 2007. It originated in North America in 2007 and has toured in Canada in 2008, Europe in 2008, and Australia and New Zealand in 2009. Billed as "The Most Extreme Tour of the Year", Summer Slaughter has earned a reputation as being one of the few summer tours to cater exclusively to fans of extreme forms of metal music. Starting in 2012, Summer Slaughter began to add more progressive metal bands to their lineups, seeing Between the Buried and Me co-headline with Cannibal Corpse. Periphery also played Summer Slaughter 2012, and came back during Summer Slaughter 2013, along with progressive metal bands Animals as Leaders and The Ocean. The focus on progressive metal that year was controversial and many people were "into" heavy metal music, and death metal focused lineups returned in 2014, seeing Morbid Angel headline.
Emmure is an American metalcore band formed in 2003. Originally based in New Fairfield, Connecticut, before moving to Queens, New York, the group has released eight albums, with their first public release being a 2006 EP entitled The Complete Guide to Needlework.
Carnifex is an American deathcore band from San Diego County, California. Formed in 2005, they are currently signed to Nuclear Blast after having been signed to Victory Records. They have released nine studio albums and three EPs. Since 2022, the band has consisted of founding members, lead vocalist Scott Ian Lewis and drummer Shawn Cameron, along with rhythm guitarist Cory Arford, bassist Fred Calderon and lead guitarist Neal Tiemann.
The Faceless are an American technical death metal band from the Encino neighborhood of Los Angeles. They released their debut album, Akeldama, in November 2006, and a follow-up, Planetary Duality, in November 2008. The band's third album, Autotheism, was released on August 14, 2012. On December 1, 2017, the band released their fourth album, In Becoming a Ghost.
Born of Osiris is an American progressive metalcore band formed in 2003 in Palatine, Illinois, a suburb of Chicago. The band currently consists of lead vocalist Ronnie Canizaro, lead guitarist/backing vocalist Lee McKinney, bassist/rhythm guitarist//keyboardist Nick Rossi, and drummer Cameron Losch. Born of Osiris has played at various festivals including the Summer Slaughter Tour and the Music as a Weapon Tour 4.
Chelsea Grin is an American deathcore band from Salt Lake City, Utah. Formed in 2007, the group have released two EPs and seven full-length albums. Since 2018, no founding members remain in the band. Despite not being in the original line-up, bassist David Flinn has been the only constant member on all the group's studio albums.
Within the Ruins is an American metalcore band formed in Westfield, Massachusetts in 2003. The group currently consists of guitarist Joe Cocchi, drummer Kevin McGuill, bassist Paolo Galang, and vocalist Steve Tinnon. They are currently signed to eOne Music and Good Fight Music. The band has released six studio albums and three EPs.
Betraying the Martyrs were a French metalcore band formed in Paris in 2008. The band's final lineup consisted of vocalist Rui Martins, guitarists Steeves Hostin and Baptiste Vigier, bassist Valentin Hauser, drummer Boris le Gal, and keyboardist Victor Guillet. At the time of their breakup in 2023, they were signed to Out of Line Music. Through their previous label, Sumerian Records, Betraying the Martyrs released four studio albums: Breathe in Life (2011), Phantom (2014), The Resilient (2017), and Rapture (2019). They also released two EPs: The Hurt the Divine the Light (2009) and Silver Lining (2022).
Lorna Shore is an American deathcore band formed in New Jersey in 2009. The group currently consists of lead guitarist Adam De Micco, drummer Austin Archey, rhythm guitarist Andrew O'Connor, vocalist Will Ramos, and bassist Michael Yager. The band is most known for their 2021 single "To the Hellfire". They have released four studio albums Psalms (2015), Flesh Coffin (2017), Immortal (2020), and Pain Remains (2022). The band has also released four EPs. No original members remain in the band.
Black Crown Initiate is an American extreme metal band from Reading, Pennsylvania, United States, currently signed to Century Media. The band formed in 2012 and self-released their first EP Song of the Crippled Bull, which was met with positive reviews. They began touring in early 2014 with fellow extreme metal bands such as Goatwhore, Behemoth, and 1349; this led to them being signed by eOne Music in June 2014. With eOne, they released both The Wreckage of Stars, released on September 30, 2014, and Selves We Cannot Forgive, released on July 22, 2016. Their third studio album, Violent Portraits of Doomed Escape, was released with Century Media on August 7, 2020.
Dark Sermon was an American blackened death metal band from Tampa, Florida. The band was formed in 2009 under the name "In Reference to a Sinking Ship" and later changed their name to "Dark Sermon" in 2012. The band went on an indefinite hiatus in 2017.
Brandon Kellum, is an American musician, author, philanthropist from Phoenix, Arizona best known as the vocalist of the metalcore band American Standards. He is characterized for his charismatic live performances and philosophical lyrical content.
Entheos is an American progressive metal super-group formed in 2015 by ex-members of Animosity, Animals as Leaders, and The Faceless. They released their debut EP Primal in March 2015 and their debut album The Infinite Nothing in April 2016. The band announced their return to the studio in March 2017 and released Dark Future in November of the same year.
Slaughter to Prevail is a Russian deathcore band from Yekaterinburg, Sverdlovsk Oblast. They are currently based in Orlando, Florida. The group debuted with an EP entitled Chapters of Misery in 2015, followed by a full-length album, Misery Sermon, in 2017. Their second album, Kostolom, was released in 2021. The band is currently signed to Sumerian Records and have toured throughout the US, Europe, Canada, and Asia. The band has had numerous line-up changes over the years, with vocalist Alex Terrible and guitarist Jack Simmons as the sole consistent members.
Ingested is an English death metal/deathcore band from Manchester, formed in 2006. The band consists of vocalist Jason Evans, guitarist Sean Hynes and drummer Lyn Jeffs. The band has released seven studio albums since formation, with the latest being “The Tide of Death and Fractured Dreams” in 2024 via Metal Blade Records.
Left to Suffer is an American deathcore band formed in Atlanta, Georgia in 2019. The band consists of vocalist Taylor Barber, bassist Christian Nowatzki, guitarists Peter Higgs and Jacob Gordon, and drummer Alex Vavra. Left to Suffer released their debut album, A Year of Suffering, in 2020. In 2023, they released Feral, their second full-length album.
