Metal Blade Records is an American

independent record label An independent record label (or indie label) is a record label that operates without the funding or distribution of major record labels; they are a type of small- to medium-sized enterprise, or SME. The labels and artists are often represented ...

founded by

Brian Slagel Brian Slagel (born February 14, 1961) is an American music executive. He is the founder and CEO of the independent record label Metal Blade Records. Slagel is known for having initiated the ''Metal Massacre'' series of compilation albums in 1982 ...

in 1982. The US office for Metal Blade is located in

Agoura Hills, California Agoura Hills () is a city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, United States. Its population was 20,330 at the 2010 census, which decreased to 20,299 in 2020. It is in the eastern Conejo Valley between the S ...

. It also has offices in Germany, Japan, Canada, and the UK. The label is distributed in the US by

RED Distribution RED Music, stylized RED MUSIC, formerly RED Distribution, LLC (Relativity Entertainment Distribution) was a Sony-owned sales and marketing division that merged under The Orchard in 2017. RED previously handled releases for more than sixty i ...

, and in Canada by

Sony Music Entertainment Sony Music Entertainment (SME), also known as simply Sony Music, is an American multinational music company. Being owned by the parent conglomerate Sony Group Corporation, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is owned by Sony Entertainment ...

. It was distributed by

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (formerly Warner Bros. Records Inc.) is an American record label. A subsidiary of the Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division of the ...

in the United States from 1988 to 1993.

History

Metal Blade Records was founded by

, who at the time was a record store employee in suburban Los Angeles, as a way to increase the recognition of local metal bands. The label's first release was a compilation album called ''The New Heavy Metal Revue presents Metal Massacre'', and included

Metallica Metallica is an American heavy metal band. The band was formed in 1981 in Los Angeles by vocalist/guitarist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, and has been based in San Francisco for most of its career. The band's fast tempos, instrume ...

Ratt Ratt is an American glam metal band formed in San Diego, California, in the 1970s, that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is bes ...

, and

Black 'n Blue Black 'N Blue is an American heavy metal band from Portland, Oregon, United States. The current members are lead vocalist Jaime St. James, bassist Patrick Young, drummer Pete Holmes, and guitarists Brandon Cook and Doug Rappoport . The band ...

. Metal Blade artists that have appeared on the ''Billboard'' 200 chart include

Goo Goo Dolls The Goo Goo Dolls are an American rock band formed in 1986 in Buffalo, New York, by guitarist/vocalist John Rzeznik, bassist/vocalist Robby Takac, and drummer George Tutuska. After starting off as a cover band and then developing a punk sound, ...

, Amon Amarth,

Trouble Trouble may refer to: Film and television * ''Trouble'' (1922 film), an American silent comedy-drama film directed by Albert Austin * ''Trouble'' (1933 film), a British comedy film * ''Trouble'' (1977 film), a Soviet drama film * ''Trouble'' ...

As I Lay Dying ''As I Lay Dying'' is a 1930 Southern Gothic novel by American author William Faulkner. Faulkner's fifth novel, it is consistently ranked among the best novels of 20th-century literature.The New Lifetime Reading Plan: The Classical Guide to Wor ...

, Behemoth, the Black Dahlia Murder, Cannibal Corpse, Fates Warning (the first Metal Blade band to have achieved this), Lizzy Borden,

Anvil An anvil is a metalworking tool consisting of a large block of metal (usually forged or cast steel), with a flattened top surface, upon which another object is struck (or "worked"). Anvils are as massive as practical, because the higher th ...

Gwar Gwar, often stylized as GWAR, is an American heavy metal band formed in Richmond, Virginia in 1984, composed of and operated by a frequently rotating line-up of musicians, artists and filmmakers collectively known as Slave Pit Inc. After th ...

King Diamond Kim Bendix Petersen (born 14 June 1956), better known by his stage name King Diamond, is a Danish rock musician. As a vocalist, he is known for his powerful and wide-ranging countertenor singing voice, in particular his far-reaching falsetto ...

, Job for a Cowboy,

Whitechapel Whitechapel is a district in East London and the future administrative centre of the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is a part of the East End of London, east of Charing Cross. Part of the historic county of Middlesex, the area formed ...

, Armored Saint,

The Red Chord The Red Chord is an American metal band from Revere, Massachusetts, formed in 1999. The group comprises vocalist Guy Kozowyk, guitarist/vocalist Mike "Gunface" McKenzie, bassist Greg Weeks and drummer Jon Rice. The band gained a fanbase with its ...

Unearth Unearth is an American metalcore band from Boston, Massachusetts. Formed in 1998, the group has released seven studio albums. History Early career (1998–2002) Unearth was formed by Trevor Phipps, Buz McGrath, Ken Susi, Mike Rudberg, an ...

Between the Buried and Me Between the Buried and Me, often abbreviated as BTBAM, is an American progressive metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina. Formed in 2000, the band consists of Tommy Giles Rogers Jr. (lead vocals, keyboards), Paul Waggoner (lead guitar, backing ...

Dirty Rotten Imbeciles Dirty Rotten Imbeciles (often abbreviated and referred to as D.R.I.) is an American crossover thrash band that formed in Houston, Texas in 1982. The band is currently composed of two of its founding members, vocalist Kurt Brecht and guitarist S ...

Corrosion of Conformity Corrosion of Conformity (also known as COC) is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina, formed in 1982. The band has undergone multiple line-up changes throughout its existence, with guitarist Woody Weatherman as the sole const ...

and

Cattle Decapitation Cattle Decapitation is an American deathgrind band from San Diego, California, formed in 1996. The band's current lineup includes vocalist Travis Ryan, guitarists Josh Elmore and Belisario Dimuzio, bassist Olivier Pinard, and drummer David McGr ...

. From 1985 to 1998, Metal Blade had a sublabel called Death Records, which released recordings by, and signed bands like D.R.I., Corrosion of Conformity, Civilian Terrorists, Mission of Christ, School of Violence,

Cryptic Slaughter Cryptic Slaughter is an American crossover thrash band based in Santa Monica, California, and originally formed in 1984. Biography Cryptic Slaughter was formed in 1984 by Les Evans (age 17), Scott Peterson (age 14), and Adam Scott (age 15), wh ...

The Mentors The Mentors are an American heavy metal band, known for their deliberate shock rock lyrics. Originally formed in Seattle, Washington in May 1976, they relocated to Los Angeles, California in 1979. The band garnered attention both from noted h ...

, Cannibal Corpse,

Atheist Atheism, in the broadest sense, is an absence of belief in the existence of deities. Less broadly, atheism is a rejection of the belief that any deities exist. In an even narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there no ...

, Angkor Wat, Loss for Words, Dr. Know, Beyond Possession, and

Dark Funeral Dark Funeral is a Swedish black metal band from Stockholm, founded by guitarists Blackmoon and Lord Ahriman in 1993. They emerged during the second wave of black metal. Their lyrical themes have traditionally pertained to Satanism and anti-C ...

. In 2010 Metal Blade Records joined the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

. IronClad Recordings is an

imprint Imprint or imprinting may refer to: Entertainment * ''Imprint'' (TV series), Canadian television series * "Imprint" (''Masters of Horror''), episode of TV show ''Masters of Horror'' * ''Imprint'' (film), a 2007 independent drama/thriller film ...

. On January 18, 2017 Metal Blade Records was inducted into the Hall of Heavy Metal History for their large contribution to the Heavy Metal library. Brian was inducted by special guest

Kerry King Kerry Ray King (born June 3, 1964) is an American musician, best known for being the co-lead guitarist and songwriter of thrash metal band Slayer. He co-founded the band with Jeff Hanneman in 1981 and remained a member for nearly four decades. ...

of Slayer. On August 29, 2017,

BMG Rights Management BMG Rights Management GmbH (also known simply as BMG) is an international music company based in Berlin, Germany. It combines the activities of a music publisher and a record label. BMG was founded in October 2008 after Bertelsmann sold its ...

published ''The Sake of Heaviness: the History of Metal Blade Records'', a book on the label's history, co-written by Mark Eglington and the label's founder Brian Slagel.

Notable artists

Current

Abnormality Abnormality refers to any deviation from the normal, the noun form of the adjective ''abnormal''. Abnormality may refer to: __NOTOC__ Medicine and physiology *Chromosome abnormality, atypical number of chromosomes or a structural abnormality in ...

Act of Defiance Act of Defiance is an American heavy metal supergroup from Los Angeles, California, formed in 2014 by guitarist Chris Broderick and drummer Shawn Drover of Megadeth after they both resigned from the band on the same day, vocalist Henry Der ...

Aeon The word aeon , also spelled eon (in American and Australian English), originally meant "life", "vital force" or "being", "generation" or "a period of time", though it tended to be translated as "age" in the sense of "ages", "forever", "timele ...

Allegaeon Allegaeon is an American extreme metal band from Fort Collins, Colorado, formed in 2008. They have released one EP and six studio albums. History Allegaeon was formed in 2007. They initially played small shows, at bars and houses in and arou ...

* Amon Amarth *

Anaal Nathrakh Anaal Nathrakh are a British extreme metal band formed in 1999 in Birmingham by multi-instrumentalist Mick Kenney and vocalist Dave Hunt. They are currently signed to Metal Blade Records. The band's name is Irish for ''snake's breath'' ( anál ...

Anima Anima may refer to: Animation * Ánima (company), a Mexican animation studio founded in 2002 * Córdoba International Animation Festival – ANIMA, in Argentina Religion and philosophy * Animism, the belief that objects, places, and creatur ...

Arch/Matheos Arch/Matheos is an American progressive metal project. History Arch/Matheos began as a reunion between founding Fates Warning members John Arch and Jim Matheos, who had not collaborated since Arch's 2003 EP ''A Twist Of Fate'' and had not fu ...

* Armored Saint *

Battlecross Battlecross was an American heavy metal band from Canton, Michigan. The band has described their sound as "Blue Collar Thrash Metal". To date, they have released three albums through their label, Metal Blade Records. History The band was f ...

* Behemoth *

Beyond the Sixth Seal Beyond the Sixth Seal is a side-project band of Mike McKenzie and Greg Weeks of The Red Chord. They were formed as a thrash metal band in the suburbs of Boston in 1998 and released a few demos. In the summer of 2000, bassist Adam Wentworth (The ...

Bitch Bitch may refer to: * A female dog or other canine * Bitch (slang), a vulgar slur for a human female Bitch or bitches may also refer to: Arts and media Film and television * ''The Bitch'' (film), a 1979 film starring Joan Collins * ''Bitc ...

* The Black Dahlia Murder *

Blood Stain Child Blood Stain Child (stylised as BLOOD STAIN CHILD) is a Japanese melodic death metal band from the city of Osaka. The band's musical style combines melodic death metal with electronic and trance. The band formed under the name "Visionquest" in 19 ...

* Brainstorm *

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

Candiria Candiria are an American progressive metal band from Brooklyn, New York. Formed in 1992, the band was part of the second wave of New York hardcore, but subsequently expanded its performance to also play jazz, hip hop and progressive rock. The ...

* Cannibal Corpse *

Cataract A cataract is a cloudy area in the lens of the eye that leads to a decrease in vision. Cataracts often develop slowly and can affect one or both eyes. Symptoms may include faded colors, blurry or double vision, halos around light, trouble ...

Charred Walls of the Damned Charred Walls of the Damned is an American heavy metal supergroup formed in 2009 consisting of drummer Richard Christy, bassist Steve Di Giorgio, vocalist Tim "Ripper" Owens and guitarist Jason Suecof. The band was formed by Christy after a fiv ...

Church of Misery is a Japanese doom metal band from Tokyo, formed in 1995. Church of Misery's musical style melds early Black Sabbath-style doom with psychedelic rock; most of the band's songs are about serial killers and mass murderers. Bassist Tatsu Mikami ...

The Crown The Crown is the state in all its aspects within the jurisprudence of the Commonwealth realms and their subdivisions (such as the Crown Dependencies, overseas territories, provinces, or states). Legally ill-defined, the term has different ...

Cult of Luna Cult of Luna is a Swedish heavy metal band from Umeå founded in 1998. They are known for post-metal music similar to the contemporary bands Neurosis and Isis. The band was signed to Earache Records in the early 2000s and released five albums, i ...

Cut Up Cut Up is a Swedish death metal band formed by former members of Vomitory (band), Vomitory in 2014, and is currently signed to Metal Blade Records. Members * Erik Rundqvist – bass guitar, vocals * Andreas Björnson – guitar, vocals * And ...

* Dawn of Ashes * Desaster * Destrage *

The Devil's Blood The Devil's Blood was a Dutch occult rock band from Eindhoven, formed in 2006. Their style is hard rock in the vein of Black Widow, Coven, Black Sabbath, and a plethora of 1970s underground progressive and psychedelic rock. Their sound has be ...

* Dew-Scented * Disillusion * Don Jamieson *

Downfall of Gaia Downfall of Gaia are a German extreme metal band formed in 2008 by Dominik Goncalves dos Reis (vocals, guitar) and Anton Lisovoj (vocals, bass). Their current lineup is completed by drummer Michael Kadnar and guitarist Marco Mazzola. Transforming ...

DragonForce DragonForce are a British power metal band from London, England. The band was formed in 1999 by guitarists Herman Li and Sam Totman, and are known for their long and fast guitar solos, fantasy-themed lyrics and retro video game-influenced ...

Entheos Entheos is an American progressive metal super-group formed in 2015 by ex-members of Animosity (band), Animosity. Including that some of the members were part of well known groups such as Animals as Leaders, The Faceless. They released their deb ...

* Ensiferum *

Exumer Exumer is a German thrash metal band formed in Wiesbaden in 1985 by singer/bassist Mem V. Stein and guitarist Ray Mensh. The band broke up in 1991 after two demos and two albums. Exumer appeared for a one-off show at Wacken Open Air in 2001 and w ...

* Falconer * Fates Warning *

Fleshcrawl Fleshcrawl is a German death metal band formed in Illertissen, Bavaria, in 1987. Their most recent album, ''Into the Catacombs of Flesh'', was released in 2019 under Apostasy Records. History 1987–1997 Fleshcrawl was formed by Stefan Ha ...

* Fleshwrought *

Flotsam and Jetsam In maritime law, flotsam'','' jetsam'','' lagan'','' and derelict are specific kinds of shipwreck. The words have specific nautical meanings, with legal consequences in the law of admiralty and marine salvage. A shipwreck is defined as the r ...

Goatwhore Goatwhore is an American extreme metal band formed in New Orleans, Louisiana in 1997. Biography Goatwhore was formed by guitarist/backing vocalist Sammy Duet, who was previously the lead guitarist for Louisiana sludge metal band Acid Bath. Th ...

God Dethroned God Dethroned is a Dutch extreme metal band from Beilen, originally formed in 1990. Biography God Dethroned was formed in 1990 by singer and guitar player Henri Sattler, with Hans Leegstra (guitar) and Ard de Weerd. Sattler and Leegstra had pr ...

Hail of Bullets Hail of Bullets was a Dutch old school death metal supergroup from Rotterdam. The band's lyrical content deals with the Second World War, and is based upon the research of vocalist Martin van Drunen, who has been described as the band's "reside ...

Hammers of Misfortune Hammers of Misfortune is an American heavy metal band from San Francisco, California. The band's style has varied from album to album, at times incorporating different elements of folk metal, doom metal, NWOBHM, black metal, 1970s rock, and th ...

* Harms Way *

Hate Hatred is an intense negative emotional response towards certain people, things or ideas, usually related to opposition or revulsion toward something. Hatred is often associated with intense feelings of anger, contempt, and disgust. Hatred is ...

If These Trees Could Talk If These Trees Could Talk is an instrumental post-rock band from Akron, Ohio. The band self-released their self-titled debut EP in 2006. Independent record label The Mylene Sheath re-released the EP on vinyl in 2007, and went on to release the ba ...

* Igorrr *

In Solitude In Solitude was a Swedish heavy metal band from Uppsala. History The band formed in 2002 with Henrik Helenius, Niklas Lindström, Gottfrid Åhman, and Uno Bruniusson. Pelle Åhman (Gottfrid's brother) joined the band as their lead vocalist in ...

Ingested Ingestion is the consumption of a substance by an organism. In animals, it normally is accomplished by taking in a substance through the mouth into the gastrointestinal tract, such as through eating or drinking. In single-celled organisms inges ...

Intronaut Intronaut is an American progressive metal band from Los Angeles, California, that incorporates complex polyrhythms, progressive rock, and jazz. History Intronaut formed in 2004, and their initial line-up included guitarist/vocalist Sacha Dunabl ...

Jim Breuer James E. Breuer (born June 21, 1967) is an American stand-up comedian, actor, musician, and radio host. He was a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' from 1995 to 1998 and starred in the film '' Half Baked'' (1998). Early life Breuer was born ...

Jim Florentine James Florentine (born August 18, 1964) is an American comedian, actor, author and television personality. He is best known for co-hosting '' That Metal Show'' on VH1 Classic and voicing several characters on ''Crank Yankers'', including Cra ...

* Job for a Cowboy *

Killswitch Engage Killswitch Engage is an American metalcore band from Westfield, Massachusetts, formed in 1999 after the disbanding of Overcast and Aftershock. Killswitch Engage's current lineup consists of vocalist Jesse Leach, guitarists Joel Stroetzel an ...

* King of Asgard *

Lightning Swords of Death Lightning Swords of Death is an American black metal band formed in 2003 by vocalist Autarch and guitarist Roskva in Los Angeles, California. Lightning Swords of Death signed a record deal with Metal Blade Records in 2009 and continued to push ...

* Lizzy Borden *

Malefice Malefice was an English heavy metal band from Reading, Berkshire, formed in 2003. They disbanded in 2017. History The original members consisted of college friends Dale Butler, Alex Vuskans, Craig Thomas and Craig Fenner. After formation t ...

Mercyful Fate Mercyful Fate is a Danish heavy metal band from Copenhagen, formed in 1981 by vocalist King Diamond and guitarist Hank Shermann. Influenced by progressive rock and hard rock, and with lyrics dealing with Satan and the occult, Mercyful Fat ...

* Mother Feather * Neaera *

Negligence Negligence (Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate and/or ethical ruled care expected to be exercised amongst specified circumstances. The area of tort law known as ''negligence'' involves harm caused by failing to act as a ...

The Ocean Collective The Ocean (also known as the Ocean Collective) is a German progressive metal band started in 2000 by German guitarist Robin Staps. Loïc Rossetti has been the band's vocalist since the 2010 albums ''Heliocentric'' and ''Anthropocentric''. Hi ...

OSI OSI may refer to: Places * Osijek Airport (IATA code: OSI), an airport in Croatia * Ősi, a village in Veszprém county, Hungary * Oši, an archaeological site in Semigallia, Latvia * Osi, a village in Ido-Osi, Ekiti State, Nigeria * Osi, Ekiti ...

* Paths of Possession *

Pentagram A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha, pentangle, or star pentagon) is a regular five-pointed star polygon, formed from the diagonal line segments of a convex (or simple, or non-self-intersecting) regular pentagon. Drawing a circle arou ...

Poison Headache Poison Headache is an American thrash metal band that formed in 2010. The band consists of guitarist, bassist, and vocalist Phil Sgrosso, vocalist and guitarist Andy Kukta and drummer Kyle Rosa. History The band began in 2010 as a project of Phi ...

* Primordial *

Revocation Revocation is the act of recall or annulment. It is the cancelling of an act, the recalling of a grant or privilege, or the making void of some deed previously existing. A temporary revocation of a grant or privilege is called a suspension. Con ...

Rivers of Nihil Rivers of Nihil is an American technical death metal band from Reading, Pennsylvania. They are currently signed to Metal Blade Records. To date the band has released two EPs and four studio albums. Their most recent release is 2021's '' The Wor ...

Sacrifice Sacrifice is the offering of material possessions or the lives of animals or humans to a deity as an act of propitiation or worship. Evidence of ritual animal sacrifice has been seen at least since ancient Hebrews and Greeks, and possibly exi ...

Satan Satan,, ; grc, ὁ σατανᾶς or , ; ar, شيطانالخَنَّاس , also known as Devil in Christianity, the Devil, and sometimes also called Lucifer in Christianity, is an non-physical entity, entity in the Abrahamic religions ...

Serpentine Dominion Serpentine Dominion is an American death metal supergroup consisting of Killswitch Engage lead guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz, Cannibal Corpse vocalist George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher and former The Black Dahlia Murder drummer Shannon Lucas. They rel ...

Shai Hulud Shai Hulud is an American metalcore band formed in Pompano Beach, Florida, in 1995, and later based in Poughkeepsie, New York. The band is named after the giant sandworms in Frank Herbert's novel ''Dune''. The two mainstay members of Shai Hul ...

* Six Feet Under *

Skyforger Skyforger is a heavy metal band from Latvia which was formed in 1995 out of the remains of doom metal band Grindmaster Dead. Musical style and lyrical themes Most of their songs are about Baltic mythology and warfare; they also play Latvia ...

* Slough Feg *

Soilent Green Soilent Green is an American extreme metal band formed in 1988 in Chalmette/ Metairie on the suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana. Described as a sludge metal and grindcore band, the group blends elements of death metal, black metal, hardcor ...

System Divide Oracles (formerly known as System Divide) is a Belgian melodic death metal band formed by the couple Sven de Caluwé (of Aborted) and Miri Milman (of Distorted) and featuring members from Israel, Netherlands, Greece and the US. On 13 March 2014 ...

Transatlantic Transatlantic, Trans-Atlantic or TransAtlantic may refer to: Film * Transatlantic Pictures, a film production company from 1948 to 1950 * Transatlantic Enterprises, an American production company in the late 1970s * ''Transatlantic'' (1931 film) ...

Tombs A tomb ( grc-gre, τύμβος ''tumbos'') is a repository for the remains of the dead. It is generally any structurally enclosed interment space or burial chamber, of varying sizes. Placing a corpse into a tomb can be called ''immureme ...

Twitching Tongues Twitching Tongues is an American metal band from California, founded in 2009 by brothers Colin and Taylor Young. The band has released four full-length albums'': Sleep Therapy'' in 2012, ''In Love There Is No Law'' in 2013, ''Disharmony'' in 2015 ...

Týr (; Old Norse: , ) is a god in Germanic mythology, a valorous and powerful member of the and patron of warriors and mythological heroes. In Norse mythology, which provides most of the surviving narratives about gods among the Germanic people ...

Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats (written as Uncle Acid and the deadbeats or simply Uncle Acid) are an English rock band, formed in Cambridge by Kevin Starrs. The band have released five albums – the most recent, ''Wasteland'', was released in Octob ...

Vio-lence Vio-lence is an American thrash metal band formed in 1985 in the San Francisco Bay Area. Throughout its existence, they released demo tapes, one EP and three studio albums. Vio-lence is best-known for their association with the 1980s Bay Area ...

* Vomitory *

Wovenwar Wovenwar is an American metal band from Southern California, formed in 2013. They released their self-titled debut album in 2014. The band's musical style on the album has been described as hard rock, alternative metal, melodic metalcore and ...

Former

* 3 *

Abiotic In biology and ecology, abiotic components or abiotic factors are non-living chemical and physical parts of the environment that affect living organisms and the functioning of ecosystems. Abiotic factors and the phenomena associated with them under ...

* The Absence *

Akercocke Akercocke are an English extreme metal band from London, formed in 1997 by Jason Mendonça and David Gray. The band also features Paul Scanlan and Nathanael Underwood. History Akercocke's first album, '' Rape of the Bastard Nazarene'', was sel ...

Aletheian Aletheian are a Christian progressive/melodic death metal band. They formed in Lebanon, Pennsylvania in 1997 under the name Crutch, and then changed their name to "Aletheian" prior to the 2003 album ''Apolutrosis''. Guitarist Alex Kenis joined ...

Anacrusis In poetic and musical meter, and by analogy in publishing, an anacrusis (from , , literally: 'pushing up', plural ''anacruses'') is a brief introduction (distinct from a literary or musical introduction, foreword, or preface). It is a set of ...

(active) *

Ancient Ancient history is a time period from the History of writing, beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian language, Sumerian c ...

(active) * Anterior (disbanded 2012) *

(active) *

Angel Witch Angel Witch are a British heavy metal band which formed in London in 1976 as part of the new wave of British heavy metal (NWOBHM) movement. Biography Formation The band formed, originally under the name of Lucifer, of guitarist and vocalist ...

John Arch John Arch (born John Maurice Archambault; May 15, 1959) is an American singer most well known for his work with the progressive metal band Fates Warning. Fates Warning Arch co-wrote the majority of the band's songs with guitarist Jim Mathe ...

(inactive) *

Artch Artch is a heavy metal band from Sarpsborg, Norway. Initially formed in 1983 by guitarist Cato André Olsen and bass player Bernt Jansen, in 1984 guitarist Geir Nilssen, drummer Jørn Jamissen and vocalist Lars Fladeby all joined the band but the ...

(active) *

(active, with

Nuclear Blast Nuclear Blast is a record label and mail order record distributor with subsidiaries in Germany, the United States and Brazil. The label was founded in 1987 by Markus Staiger in Germany. Originally releasing hardcore punk records, the label mov ...

) *

(active) * Austrian Death Machine (on hiatus) * Autumn * Believer (active, Independent) *

(active, with Sumerian) *

Beyond the Embrace Beyond The Embrace was an American melodic death metal band. They formed in New Bedford, Massachusetts in 2000. The band has released two albums to date, '' Against the Elements'' in 2002 and '' Insect Song'' in 2004. They were signed to Metal B ...

(inactive) * Bison B.C. *

Bolt Thrower Bolt Thrower were an English death metal band from Coventry. They formed in 1986 and released their first album with Vinyl Solution in 1988. The band then shifted to a new record label, Earache Records, soon becoming one of the best selling b ...

* Born from Pain *

Brain Drill Brain Drill was an American technical death metal band formed in 2005 from Ben Lomond, California founded by guitarist and songwriter Dylan Ruskin. They released 2 albums while signed to Metal Blade Records and self released their final third a ...

* Callenish Circle (disbanded 2007) *

Cellador Cellador is an American power metal band based in Denver, Colorado. Originally from Omaha, Nebraska, the band was founded in 2003 by Chris Petersen, the band's primary songwriter, as a direct contrast to the overcrowded metalcore and death me ...

Chemlab Chemlab is an American industrial rock band formed in Washington D.C. in 1989 by Dylan Thomas More, Joe Frank, and Jared Louche (then known as Hendrickson). Influenced by the pioneers of the industrial genre, such as Throbbing Gristle, Chemla ...

(active) *

Cirith Ungol In J. R. R. Tolkien's fictional world of Middle-earth, Mordor (pronounced ; from Sindarin ''Black Land'' and Quenya ''Land of Shadow'') is the realm and base of the evil Sauron. It lay to the east of Gondor and the great river Anduin, and ...

(disbanded 1992; reformed 2016) * Cradle of Filth (active, with

) *

The Crimson Armada The Crimson Armada was an American metalcore band formed in Westerville, Ohio in 2007 by Kyle Barrington and David Puckett. Following a one-year hiatus in 2008, the band returned to increased popularity, releasing its first EP, ''Behold the Arc ...

(disbanded 2012) *

Cycle Sluts from Hell The Cycle Sluts from Hell were an American heavy metal band from the late 1980s to early 1990s. The band was made up of four women singing under the stage names Queen Vixen, She-Fire of Ice, Honey One Percenter, and Venus Penis Crusher, backed ...

Dance Club Massacre Dance Club Massacre was an American deathcore band from Chicago, Illinois. Formed in 2004, the group originated as a simple recording project between founding members Nick Seger and Kurt Latos. After recording three songs described as "Halloween- ...

* Darkness Dynamite *

Demiricous Demiricous is a death/thrash metal band from Indianapolis, Indiana formed by Nate Olp, Scott Wilson, Ben Parrish (of Upheaval), and Christopher Cruz. In 2005, they self-released a demo which caught the attention of Metal Blade. After the release ...

(active) *

Eidolon In ancient Greek literature, an eidolon (; grc, εἴδωλον 'image, idol, double, apparition, phantom, ghost'; plural: eidola or eidolons) is a spirit-image of a living or dead person; a shade or phantom look-alike of the human form. Liter ...

(on hiatus) *

Enthroned Enthroned is a Belgian black metal band formed in Charleroi. It is one of the premier acts of the Belgian black metal scene. History The band was founded in 1993 by drummer Cernunnos. He soon recruited guitarist Tsebaoth and a vocalist from g ...

Epidemic An epidemic (from Greek ἐπί ''epi'' "upon or above" and δῆμος ''demos'' "people") is the rapid spread of disease to a large number of patients among a given population within an area in a short period of time. Epidemics of infectious ...

Evergreen Terrace Evergreen Terrace is a five-piece American metalcore band from Jacksonville, Florida. Formed in 1999, they are named after the street inhabited by the Simpsons. The band's sixth and latest studio album '' Dead Horses'' was released on Decembe ...

(active, with Rise Records) *

(active, Driven Music Group) *

Fragments of Unbecoming Fragments of Unbecoming is a melodic death metal band from Laudenbach, Germany. The band's guitarist Sascha Ehrich is also a renowned artist in the metal world, having designed album covers for bands such as Necrophagist. The band's name was tak ...

Galactic Cowboys Galactic Cowboys are an American heavy metal band based in Houston, Texas. They combine progressive metal with a vocal style influenced by The Beatles and the heavy playing style of thrash bands such as Anthrax. They have been described as " ...

(disbanded 2000) *

(active, with

) *

Hatchet A hatchet (from the Old French , a diminutive form of ''hache'', ' axe' of Germanic origin) is a single-handed striking tool with a sharp blade on one side used to cut and split wood, and a hammerhead on the other side. Hatchets may also be us ...

Hate Eternal Hate Eternal is a death metal band from St. Petersburg, Florida. The band currently consists of founding guitarist/vocalist Erik Rutan and bassist J. J. Hrubovcak. To date, Hate Eternal has released seven studio albums: ''Conquering the Throne' ...

Haunted Garage Haunted Garage was a horror punk and heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1985. Fronted by singer and B-movie actor Dukey Flyswatter, the band were recognized for their campy horror and science fiction-inspired songs and outrageous shock ...

* Hecate Enthroned (active; signed to M-Theory Audio) *

Helstar Helstar is an American heavy metal band formed in Houston, Texas, in 1982 by guitarist Larry Barragan. They were an influential force in the American power metal genre emerging in the mid-1980s. History Early days and Combat-era (1982–1986) H ...

(active, with

AFM Records AFM Records GmbH is a music label based in Schwalmstadt, Germany. They focus on the heavy metal musical genre, signing bands such as U.D.O., Doro, Lordi, Kotipelto, Masterplan, Nostradameus, and Annihilator. In 2005, Candlelight Records si ...

) *

Hirax The Hydrogen Intensity and Real-time Analysis eXperiment (HIRAX) is an interferometric array of 1024 6-meter (20 ft) diameter radio telescopes, operating at 400-800MHz, that will be deployed at the Square Kilometer Array site in the Karoo regi ...

(active, with Black Devil Records) * I Killed the Prom Queen (active, with Epitaph Records) * Impious *

In Battle In Battle is an extreme metal band from Sundsvall, Sweden. The main lyrical themes of the band focus on Norse mythology and war. History The original line-up consisted of John Frölén on guitar and bass, John Odhinn Sandin on vocals, Håkan Sj� ...

(active, with Nocturnal Art Production/

Candlelight Records Candlelight Records is a British record label based in England and founded by former Extreme Noise Terror bassist Lee Barrett, though it has had a division in the United States since January 2001. Candlelight Records specialises in black metal ...

) * Into the Moat * Jacobs Dream *

King's X King's X is an American rock band that originated in 1979 in Springfield, Missouri. They were first called The Edge and later became Sneak Preview before settling on its current name in 1985. The band's current lineup has remained intact for m ...

(active, with

Inside Out Music Inside Out Music is a German independent record label originally based in Kleve, North Rhine-Westphalia, and dedicated to the publication of progressive rock, progressive metal and related styles. In 2009, it formed a partnership with Century Med ...

) * Lazarus A.D. (disbanded 2015 ) * Liege Lord (disbanded 1990) (reformed 2013) *

Lord Belial Lord Belial is a Swedish black metal band. History The band formed in 1992 and released their debut album in 1995; placing them among the pioneers of Swedish black metal. Their sound has been compared with bands such as Dissection. In January ...

(disbanded, then reactivated) * Manowar (active, with

Magic Circle Music Magic Circle Music was founded by Manowar bassist Joey DeMaio in 2005 named after Richard Wagner's ''Der Ring des Nibelungen''. The purpose of the label is to give the band (Manowar) creative control. Furthermore, it is stated on their website t ...

) *

Mentors Mentorship is the influence, guidance, or direction given by a mentor. A mentor is someone who teaches or gives help and advice to a less experienced and often younger person. In an organizational setting, a mentor influences the personal and p ...

(active) * Molotov Solution (on hiatus) * Mount Salem * Omen (active, with

DSN Music DSN Music is an American record label and music licensing company that was founded in 2003 as a subsidiary of Arizona-based Digital Syndicate Network (DSN). DSN Music was founded by former EMusic executive Guy Giuliano. DSN issues music in the h ...

) *

Overcast Overcast or overcast weather, as defined by the World Meteorological Organization, is the meteorological condition of clouds obscuring at least 95% of the sky. However, the total cloud cover must not be entirely due to obscuring phenomena near t ...

Powerwolf Powerwolf, often stylized as POWERWOLF, is a German power metal band founded in 2003 in Saarbrücken by members of Red Aim. The band consists of vocalist Karsten Brill as "Attila Dorn", lead guitarist Benjamin Buss as "Matthew Greywolf", bassist/ ...

(active, now signed to

Napalm Records Napalm Records is an Austrian independent record label focused on heavy metal and hard rock. Originally, Napalm focused on black metal bands, such as Abigor and Summoning, and folk metal bands, such as Falkenbach and Vintersorg. The label l ...

) *

Psyopus Psyopus (sometimes written as PsyOpus) was an American mathcore band from Rochester, New York. History Formed in 2002, the band is noted for the unorthodox and extremely technical guitar techniques of Christopher Arp, often referred to as "Arp ...

(disbanded 2012) *

Pyrithion Timothy Peter Lambesis (born November 21, 1980) is an American musician and producer, best known as the founding member and lead vocalist of American metalcore band As I Lay Dying. He also had a solo/side thrash metal project in tribute to ac ...

The Red Death The Red Death was an American extreme metal band from Bath, New York. History Formed in 2002 after the demise of Another Day Forgotten by singer Paul Hamblin, guitarist Josh Williammee, and drummer Graham Mitchell, the original lineup was round ...

Rigor Mortis Rigor mortis (Latin: ''rigor'' "stiffness", and ''mortis'' "of death"), or postmortem rigidity, is the third stage of death. It is one of the recognizable signs of death, characterized by stiffening of the limbs of the corpse caused by chemic ...

The Rotted ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the ...

* Sacred Reich (active, with

Hollywood Records Hollywood Records is an American record label of the Disney Music Group. The label focuses in pop, rock, alternative, hip hop, and country genres, as well as specializing in mature recordings not suitable for the flagship Walt Disney Records l ...

) *

(active) * Slayer (disbanded 2019) * Sonic Reign *

Spock's Beard Spock's Beard is an American progressive rock band formed in Los Angeles. The band was formed in 1992 by brothers Neal (lead vocals, keyboards) and Alan Morse (vocals, guitars), John Ballard (bass) and Nick D'Virgilio (drums). Ballard was r ...

(active, independent) * Symphorce (disbanded 2011) *

Taramis Taramis was an Australian heavy metal group, which began as Prowler in 1983. Initially they played covers of other artists' work; in 1985 they developed more original material and changed their name. By that time their line-up was Dave Browne ...

(disbanded 1993)McFarlane
'Taramis'
entry. Archived fro
the original
on August 3, 2004. Retrieved March 21, 2013. * This Ending *

Thought Industry Thought Industry, formerly known as Desacrator, was an American progressive metal band. It was founded in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1989 by vocalist/bassist Brent Oberlin, drummer Dustin Donaldson (who formed I Am Spoonbender in 1997), guitarist ...

* Tommy Giles Rogers *

Torture Killer Torture Killer is a Finnish death metal band from Turku, formed in 2002. The band consists of five members: guitarists Jari Laine and Tuomas Karppinen, bassist Kim Torniainen, drummer Tuomo Latvala and the current vocalist Pessi Haltsonen. T ...

(active, with Dynamic Art Records) *

Tourniquet A tourniquet is a device that is used to apply pressure to a limb or extremity in order to stop the flow of blood. It may be used in emergencies, in surgery, or in post-operative rehabilitation. A simple tourniquet can be made from a stick an ...

, (active, with Pathogenic Records) *

Trigger the Bloodshed Trigger the Bloodshed are a British death metal band from Bath, England, formed in 2006. The band comprises guitarist Rob Purnell, vocalist Jonny Burgan, bassist Dave Purnell and drummer Dan Wilding. Trigger the Bloodshed has released three st ...

(active, with Century Media Records) *

* Vader (active, with

) *

Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...

(disbanded 1990, reformed 2011, currently unsigned) * Voivod (active, with Century Media Records) *

Woe of Tyrants Woe of Tyrants is an American death metal band from Chillicothe, Ohio, which formed in 2004. History Woe of Tyrants released their critically acclaimed debut album, ''Behold the Lion'', through Tribunal Records in June 2007, and they were soon ...

* Yob (active, with Profound Lore Records)

References

External links

*
Official YouTube Channel
{{Authority control American record labels Record labels established in 1982 Heavy metal record labels 1982 establishments in the United States

History

Notable artists

Current

Former

See also

References

External links