Borknagar is a Norwegian heavy metal band from Bergen, founded in 1995 by Øystein Garnes Brun. The band's style combines black metal and folk metal with progressive and melodic elements. Borknagar's lyrics often deal with philosophy, paganism, nature and the cosmos.
The Black Dahlia Murder is an American melodic death metal band from Waterford, Michigan, formed in 2001. Their name is derived from the 1947 unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short, often referred to as Black Dahlia. Currently, the band consists of lead vocalist Brian Eschbach, bassist Max Lavelle, drummer Alan Cassidy, and guitarists Brandon Ellis and Ryan Knight. The Black Dahlia Murder has undergone various lineup changes, with Trevor Strnad and Eschbach remaining the only constant members, until the former's death in 2022, which then saw Eschbach take over lead vocals and Knight replacing him on rhythm guitar.
Rotting Christ is a Greek black metal band formed in 1987. They are noted for being one of the first black metal bands within this region, as well as a premier act within the European underground metal scene. They are also responsible for creating the signature Greek black metal sound prevalent in the early 1990s.
Between the Buried and Me, often abbreviated as BTBAM, is an American progressive metalcore band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Formed in 2000, the band consists of Tommy Giles Rogers Jr., Paul Waggoner, Dan Briggs, Dustie Waring (guitar) and Blake Richardson (drums).
Arsis is an American death metal band from Virginia Beach, Virginia, formed in 2000. The band is currently signed to Nuclear Blast.
Simen Hestnæs, better known by his stage name ICS Vortex or simply Vortex, is a Norwegian musician. He is the vocalist of the similarly named band ICS Vortex, the avant-garde metal band Arcturus and the doom metal band Lamented Souls. He is also a vocalist and the bass guitarist to the heavy metal band Borknagar, and the former bass guitarist and backing vocalist for the symphonic black metal band Dimmu Borgir.
MetalDays is a heavy metal music festival held annually in Lake Velenje, Velenje, Slovenia. From 2004 till 2022 it was held in Sotočje, Tolmin, Slovenia. The festival has been more popular every year with more media coverage, and has seen bands like Megadeth, Slayer, Amon Amarth, Volbeat and Sabaton and many more play at the festival. In 2010 the tickets were limited to 12,000, but with the new location, the limit has been increased to 25,000. MetalDays is also known for its sustainability and ecology initiatives and has won a greener future award 5 years in a row.
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.
Abigail Williams is an American black metal band, originally from Phoenix, Arizona, but now based in Olympia, Washington. Since their formation in 2004, the group has suffered near-constant changes to their line-up. The band even disbanded in 2007 for a short time before reforming and writing their debut full-length album. Shortly after an eight-week tour in support of their debut full-length album In the Shadow of a Thousand Suns (2008), vocalist Ken Sorceron would become the only original member remaining.
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.
Becoming is the third album by American black metal band Abigail Williams. It was released on January 24, 2012, via Candlelight Records. The album was met with highly positive reviews. Becoming was initially planned to be the band's final album as they announced their disestablishment soon after, but Abigail Williams would later decide to continue.
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.
In Becoming a Ghost is the fourth studio album by The Faceless. It was released on December 1, 2017 through Sumerian Records. It is the only album with Abigail Williams' Ken Sorceron on vocals, The Zenith Passage's Justin McKinney on guitar and Chason Westmoreland, formerly of Hate Eternal, session drumming. The album debuted at #66 on the Billboard Top Current Albums chart.
Oathbreaker is a Belgian band from Flanders, formed in 2008 and currently signed to Deathwish Inc. The band consists of guitarists Lennart Bossu and Gilles Demolder, drummer Wim Coppers, and vocalist Caro Tanghe who performs both screamed and sung vocals. They are a part of Church of Ra, an artistic collective started by Amenra, a band of which Lennart and Caro are also members. Like Amenra, Oathbreaker emerged from the Belgian underground hardcore punk scene but integrated extreme metal and art music aesthetics.
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.
Gidim is the fifth studio album by American deathcore band Rings of Saturn. It was released on October 25, 2019, through Nuclear Blast. The album features the return of Dingir and Lugal Ki En guitarist Joel Omans According to figures provided by MetalInsider, the album sold 4,850 units in its first week. The album debuted at #22 on the Billboard Top Current Albums chart.
Imperial Triumphant is an American experimental metal band formed in 2005 in New York City.
Midgardsblot is an annual extreme metal and folk music festival in Borre, Norway. The festival has been organised since 2015 and takes place at Midgard Viking Centre, museum in a former Viking settlement and largest burial mound site in Northern Europe. The programme of Midgardsblot includes tours of the area, battle reenactments, documentary screenings, lectures and panel discussions, as well as a Viking village, a Viking market and a games arena for archery, axe-throwing, and other activities.
96 Bitter Beings is an American alternative metal band from Los Angeles. Formed in 2016 by former CKY frontman Deron Miller, the group was originally known as MechaCKY and intended to serve as the vocalist and guitarist's own continuation of the group following his departure in 2011. Miller completed the band's initial lineup with the same three members as had been in the relaunched Foreign Objects – lead guitarist Kenneth Hunter, bassist Shaun Luera and drummer Tim Luera. Later that year, MechaCKY was renamed 96 Bitter Beings, after the CKY song "96 Quite Bitter Beings".
The Accuser is the fourth album by American black metal band Abigail Williams. It was released on October 30, 2015, via Candlelight Records, and features a one-time lineup that includes guitarist Jeff Wilson, drummer Charlie Fell, and bassist Will Lindsay, along with additional vocals by Neill Jameson. Cover art was made by Stevie Floyd.
