Voivod is a Canadian heavy metal band from Jonquière, Quebec. The band's current line-up consists of Denis "Snake" Bélanger (vocals), Daniel "Chewy" Mongrain (guitar), Dominic "Rocky" Laroche (bass) and Michel "Away" Langevin (drums). Their musical style has changed several times since the band's origin in the early 1980s. Starting out as a speed metal band, Voivod have added a mix of progressive metal and thrash metal to create their own unique metal style, and they are credited as one of the "big four" Canadian thrash metal bands, along with Sacrifice, Razor, and Annihilator.
Gorgoroth is a Norwegian black metal band based in Bergen. It was formed in 1992 by guitarist Infernus, who is also the only original member remaining, and the band have since released nine studio albums. Gorgoroth are a Satanic band and have drawn controversy due to some of their concerts, which have featured impaled sheep heads and mock crucifixions. The band is named after the dead plateau of darkness in the land of Mordor from J. R. R. Tolkien's fantasy novel The Lord of the Rings.
Epica is a Dutch symphonic metal band, founded by guitarist and vocalist Mark Jansen after his departure from After Forever.
Pig Destroyer is an American grindcore band formed in 1997 in Alexandria, Virginia. The band was formed by vocalist J.R. Hayes, guitarist Scott Hull, and drummer John Evans. Throughout the band's earlier history, they were a three-piece group until sampler Blake Harrison joined in 2006, notably had no bassist until the inclusion of John Jarvis in 2013, and went through 2 past drummers with the role currently held by Adam Jarvis. Pig Destroyer is one of the most well-known grindcore bands in the genre due to Hayes's poetic lyrics, Hull's incorporation of thrash, punk, and doom influences in songwriting, and technical drum work.
Leaves' Eyes is a symphonic metal band from Germany and Norway. They were formed in 2003 by Liv Kristine, formerly the lead singer of Theatre of Tragedy, and the entire line-up of Atrocity. To date, the band has released seven studio albums, a single, six EPs, one live album and a DVD.
Protest the Hero is a Canadian progressive metal band from Whitby, Ontario. Originally named Happy Go Lucky, the band changed their name to Protest the Hero, then released their debut EP, Search for the Truth, in 2002. In 2005, the band released their first album Kezia on Canadian indie label Underground Operations.
Today Is the Day is an American noise rock / grindcore band originally formed in Nashville, Tennessee. The band's diverse sound combines influences from areas such as noise music, avant-garde metal, grindcore, post-hardcore, and alternative rock among other genres. Most of the band's recordings make extensive use of dissonance and sampling, as well as unusual production techniques and psychedelic overtones. Lyrical themes include depression, warfare, violence, altered states of consciousness, and mental disorders.
Circle of Dead Children is a deathgrind group which formed on October 24, 1998, in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. After the release of a self-titled demo that was put out the same year they formed, Circle of Dead Children signed on with Willowtip Records to release their debut full-length album, Starving the Vultures, which comprised the demo tracks as well as several new ones.
Black Stone Cherry is an American hard rock band, formed in 2001 in Edmonton, Kentucky, United States. They were signed to Roadrunner Records until 2015; the band is now signed to Mascot Label Group. The band consists of Chris Robertson, Ben Wells, Jon Lawhon, and John Fred Young. Black Stone Cherry has released eight studio albums as well as three EPs, and have charted eight singles on the US Mainstream Rock Tracks charts. Their latest album, The Human Condition, was released on October 30, 2020.
Evil Masquerade is a Scandinavian heavy metal band formed in 2003. Their wide range of musical influences make them difficult to categorize. Evil Masquerade themselves claim to be playing 'Devilish Rock'n'Roll'. But since that is a self-invented genre they are usually filed under heavy metal by the music industry.
Sylvia Lenore Massy is an American record producer, mixer, engineer, and author. Massy is perhaps best recognized for her work on 1993's Undertow, the full-length triple platinum-selling debut for Los Angeles alternative metal band Tool as well as her work with System of a Down, Johnny Cash, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Brazilian band South Cry.
The Beast is the sixth album by the Polish death metal band Vader. It was released on September 8, 2004 in Japan by Marquee/Avalon, September 20 in Poland via Metal Mind Productions, and a day later in Europe and the United States by Metal Blade Records.
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.
Quantos Possunt ad Satanitatem Trahunt is the eighth studio album by Norwegian black metal band Gorgoroth. It was released on 21 October 2009 by Regain Records. This album marked the return of Pest on vocals, as well as the debut of Tomas Asklund on drums and Bøddel on bass.
Demonic Resurrection is a blackened death metal band from Mumbai, India formed in 2000. Their current line-up consists of Sahil "The Demonstealer" Makhija on vocals and rhythm guitar and Virendra "Viru" Kaith on drums. Since its formation, the band has released four studio albums and one EP. The band has enjoyed National TV (India) airing of their video "The Unrelenting Surge of Vengeance". The band's fourth album, The Demon King, was released on 13 July 2014 in India, 14 July in Europe, and 15 July in the USA by Candlelight Records and distributed in India by Universal Music.
Infestissumam is the second studio album by the Swedish rock band Ghost. It was recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, produced by Nick Raskulinecz and released on April 10, 2013. It was released in North America by Loma Vista Recordings on April 16 in partnership with Republic Records, a division of Universal Music Group, marking the band's major label debut. The album was generally well-received, with several music publications placing it on their list of the best heavy metal albums of the year, and won the 2014 Grammis Award for Best Hard Rock/Metal Album. In late 2013, the band released a special edition of the album, called Infestissumam Redux.
The Wild Hunt is the fifth studio album by Swedish black metal band Watain. It was released through Century Media on 19 August 2013 in Europe and 20 August 2013 in USA. The cover art was painted "in oil and mixed materials" by Zbigniew M. Bielak, who was also responsible for the artwork of Lawless Darkness. The album sold around 2,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release, and was the best-selling album in their home country of Sweden on the week of its release, making it the band's highest sales and chart debut to date. Stylistically the album represents a development of Watain's established black metal sound, incorporating influences from heavy metal, doom metal, and progressive metal. It is also the first Watain album to feature vocalist Erik Danielsson performing clean vocals.
A Hill To Die Upon is an American blackened death metal band from the Monmouth-Galesburg area of Illinois, formed in 2004 by the brothers Adam and R. Michael Cook. The brothers initially founded the band as hardcore project, but eventually started listening to death and black metal, which led them to transform their band's sound. Over the years, various musicians have filled out the band's lineup, which currently consists of the Cook brothers and Nolan Osmond. Signed to Bombworks Records, A Hill to Die Upon has released four albums – Infinite Titanic Immortal in 2009, Omens in 2011, Holy Despair in 2014, and Via Artis, Via Mortis in 2017 - all to a positive critical reception. In 2013, the band also released a stand-alone single, "Manden med Leen". Musically, the band is compared primarily to Behemoth as well as Immortal, Naglfar, and Old Man's Child, all of which the brothers cite as among their major influences. The brothers are Christian, but they distance themselves from calling A Hill to Die Upon a Christian metal band. Lyrical themes include mythology, war, philosophy, and despair, with references drawn from the Bible and numerous literary works and authors.
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 relentlessly in early 2014 with fellow extreme metal bands such as Goatwhore, Behemoth, and 1349, and lead 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 7th, 2020.
Dark Sermon was an American blackened death metal band from Tampa, Florida signed to eOne Music in North America and Nuclear Blast Records in Europe. 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's most recent effort, The Oracle, was released on August 21, 2015 worldwide through eOne Music and Nuclear Blast Records. Dark Sermon has toured and played with many metal acts including Aborted, Chimaira, Sepultura, Behemoth, and Cattle Decapitation.
