This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2012.

Bands disbanded

A Plea for Purging A Plea for Purging was a Christian metalcore band based out of Nashville, Tennessee. During their time active, they released four full-length albums on Facedown Records and two EPs. Their final release, ''The Life & Death of A Plea for Purging' ...

* Ajattara * Anterior * Averse Sefira * Blind Witness * The Carrier *

Cathedral A cathedral is a church that contains the '' cathedra'' () of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually specific to those Christian denominatio ...

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 ...

Dead and Divine Dead and Divine was a five-piece post-hardcore band out of Burlington, Ontario, Canada. Their initial success spawned from their 2005 EP ''What Really Happened at Lover's Lane'' on Verona Records (a label created by the band themselves, and ...

Decadence The word decadence, which at first meant simply "decline" in an abstract sense, is now most often used to refer to a perceived decay in standards, morals, dignity, religious faith, honor, discipline, or skill at governing among the members ...

* Defiance *

Elis Elis or Ilia ( el, Ηλεία, ''Ileia'') is a historic region in the western part of the Peloponnese peninsula of Greece. It is administered as a regional unit of the modern region of Western Greece. Its capital is Pyrgos. Until 2011 it was ...

Heavy Heavy Low Low Heavy Heavy Low Low is an American mathcore band from San Jose, California. Biography Formed in early 2004 in San Jose, California, they played shows throughout the West Coast and developed a significant following, becoming known in the early ...

* Hevein * In the Midst of Lions * Nahemah *

Norther Norther was a Finnish melodic death metal band from Espoo formed in 1996 and broke up in 2012. History Norther formed under the name Requiem (Lindroos, Korpas, Hallio) in 1996 after various early stage band formations. The band's debut effort w ...

* One Man Army and the Undead Quartet *

The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza was an American mathcore band from Murfreesboro, Tennessee. The band was founded (sans a vocalist) in Monroe, Louisiana by members Layne Meylain, Mason Crooks, Brad Thompson, and Mike Butler. They relocated ...

Underoath Underoath (stylized as Underøath or UnderOath) is an American rock band from Tampa, Florida. It was founded by lead vocalist Dallas Taylor and guitarist Luke Morton on November 30, 1997, in Ocala, Florida; subsequently, its additional memb ...

Unearthly Trance Unearthly Trance is a sludge metal/doom metal trio from Long Island composed of guitarist-vocalist Ryan Lipynsky, bassist Jay Newman, and drummer Darren Verni. They were formed in 2000 and have released material on leading labels of the genre li ...

Bands formed

* Infant Annihilator *

Khemmis Akhmim ( ar, أخميم, ; Akhmimic , ; Sahidic/Bohairic cop, ) is a city in the Sohag Governorate of Upper Egypt. Referred to by the ancient Greeks as Khemmis or Chemmis ( grc, Χέμμις) and Panopolis ( grc, Πανὸς πόλις and Π� ...

The Skull ''The Skull'' is a 1965 British horror film directed by Freddie Francis for Amicus Productions, and starring the frequently paired horror actors Peter Cushing and Christopher Lee, alongside Patrick Wymark, Jill Bennett, Nigel Green, P ...

* Slugdge * United Forces

Bands reformed

Broken Hope Broken Hope is an American death metal band from Chicago, Illinois. History Broken Hope was founded in 1988. They were known as an accomplished mid-paced style death metal band with low-pitched growling vocals. As a band, they were active for ...

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 ...

Coal Chamber Coal Chamber is an American nu metal band formed by Dez Fafara and Meegs Rascón in Los Angeles, California in 1993. Prior to Coal Chamber, the two had also created the band She's in Pain, in 1992. The original lineup also consisted of bassist ...

Confide Confide is an encrypted instant messaging application for most major operating systems. It was first released in 2013 on iOS, and is known for its self-destructing messaging system that deletes messages immediately after reading. The platform offe ...

* Eternal Oath *

Extol Extol are a Christian metal band from Bekkestua, Norway that was formed in 1993. The band is known for playing a variety of different styles of heavy metal music, metal which include progressive metal, death metal, black metal and thrash metal. ...

* Malice *

The Obsessed The Obsessed is an American heavy metal band from Potomac, Maryland, led by Scott "Wino" Weinrich. The band combines elements of doom metal, stoner rock, and punk rock. Formed in 1980, they recorded a few demos and played a handful of live ...

Otyg Otyg are a folk metal band from Sweden, featuring Andreas Hedlund, the frontman for Vintersorg. During their existence, Otyg released two albums with songs written in traditional Scandinavian folk style, featuring traditional Scandinavian instr ...

* Riot *

Sonic Syndicate Sonic Syndicate is a Swedish metalcore band from Falkenberg. They were formerly influenced by Swedish melodic death metal bands such as In Flames and Soilwork and American metalcore bands like Killswitch Engage and All That Remains. The band w ...

Events

* On January 4, American metalcore act

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 ...

have decided to continue without Howard Jones (ex-

Blood Has Been Shed Blood Has Been Shed was an American metalcore band based in Granby, Connecticut. The band came together in 1997 and has featured members of Killswitch Engage, Diecast, Light the Torch, Red Tide, Terror, Walls of Jericho, Bury Your Dead and ...

). On February 6, the band announced that original singer

Jesse Leach Jesse David Leach (born July 3, 1978) is an American musician from Providence, Rhode Island, and is the lead vocalist of the metalcore band Killswitch Engage. He is also a vocalist for Times of Grace and The Weapon. Leach co-founded Killswitch En ...

has taken Jones' place. * On January 9, it was announced that

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock music, rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward (musician), Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy met ...

guitarist

Tony Iommi Anthony Frank Iommi () (born 19 February 1948) is a British musician. He co-founded the pioneering heavy metal band Black Sabbath, and was the band's guitarist, leader and primary composer and sole continuous member for nearly five decades. I ...

has been diagnosed with

lymphoma Lymphoma is a group of blood and lymph tumors that develop from lymphocytes (a type of white blood cell). In current usage the name usually refers to just the cancerous versions rather than all such tumours. Signs and symptoms may include enla ...

. However, the band have stated that they will continue recording their new album. Within a month, the band announced that drummer Bill Ward has decided to leave the band. *

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

an grindcore act

Wormrot Wormrot is a Singaporean grindcore band that formed in 2007, immediately after the founding members had completed their mandatory two years of national service. The band have released four studio albums to date, as well as a number of EPs and sp ...

were detained in

Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federation, federal constitutional monarchy consists of States and federal territories of Malaysia, thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two r ...

by the Selangor Islamic Religious Department. The reasoning for their arrest was "it is wrong for unmarried Muslim men and women to be in

he same He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...

room." *

Cryptopsy Cryptopsy is a Canadian technical death metal band from Montreal, formed in 1988. History Necrosis (1988–1992) Necrosis was formed in April 1988 by drummer Mike Atkin, guitarist Steve Thibault and vocalist Dan "Lord Worm" Greening, initially ...

announced their new bassist is Olivier Pinard ( Neuraxis). * After 16 years with the band, Anvil bassist Glenn Gyorffy (aka Glen Five) leaves the band to "broaden ishorizons". *

Graveworm Graveworm is an Italian extreme metal band from Brunico formed in 1992. History Before Graveworm even released a demo, they were signed by Serenades Records after a performance close to their hometown of Brunico, northern Italy. Graveworm was ...

announced the return of founding member/guitarist Stefan Unterpertinger after a 10-year absence. *

Warbringer Warbringer is an American thrash metal band formed in 2004. Century Media Records signed Warbringer after seeing them at a local show in LA. Originally, a Century Media rep was at the show to see another LA thrash metal band but decided to sign W ...

announced the departure of founding member/guitarist Adam Carroll, and his replacement as Andrew Bennett. * After previously working with the band,

Byron Stroud Byron Stroud (born February 12, 1969) is a Canadian bassist. He is the former bassist for metal bands Fear Factory, Imonolith and Strapping Young Lad, current bassist for metal bands City of Fire and Zimmers Hole, and studio bassist for 3 In ...

(

Fear Factory Fear Factory is an American heavy metal band formed in Los Angeles in 1989. Throughout the band's career, they have released ten full-length albums and have evolved through a succession of sounds, all in their main style of industrial metal. ...

Strapping Young Lad Strapping Young Lad was a Canadian extreme metal band formed by Devin Townsend in Vancouver in 1994. The band started as a one-man studio project; Townsend played most of the instruments on the 1995 debut album, '' Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing ...

) announced he is joining

3 Inches of Blood 3 Inches of Blood was a Canadian heavy metal band formed in 1999 in Victoria, British Columbia, last consisting of Cam Pipes, Justin Hagberg, Shane Clark, and Ash Pearson, none of whom were original members of the band. Their music was strong ...

as their new permanent bassist. * Founding member/guitarist of

crossover thrash Crossover thrash (often abbreviated to crossover) is a fusion genre of thrash metal and hardcore punk. The genre lies on a continuum between heavy metal and hardcore punk. Other genres on the same continuum, such as metalcore and grindcore, ...

act D.R.I., Spike Cassidy, was rushed to the hospital due to complications with a

colectomy Colectomy ('' col-'' + '' -ectomy'') is bowel resection of the large bowel ( colon). It consists of the surgical removal of any extent of the colon, usually segmental resection (partial colectomy). In extreme cases where the entire large intest ...

. * The Haunted founding member/vocalist

Peter Dolving Peter Dolving (born 24 October 1969) is a Swedish vocalist now living in Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. He is most commonly known as the former frontman of the metal band The Haunted. Career Dolving began as a singer-songwriter playing in cafes in ...

abruptly departs from the band via

Facebook Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin Mosk ...

. On October 16, founding lead guitarist

Anders Björler Anders Björler (born 26 February 1973) is a Swedish musician, composer and film director. He is best known as the guitar player in the metal bands The Haunted and At the Gates, alongside his bass-playing twin brother Jonas Björler. Björle ...

leaves the band for the second time along with drummer

Per Möller Jensen The Haunted is a Swedish heavy metal band from Gothenburg, formed in 1996. The original members were Anders and Jonas Björler, Peter Dolving, Adrian Erlandsson and Patrik Jensen. Both of the Björler brothers and Erlandsson were members of th ...

. * Death metal band Suffocation parted ways with founding drummer Mike Smith due to musical differences. *

Christopher Amott Christopher Amott (born 23 November 1977) is a Swedish guitarist, younger brother of Michael Amott and founding member of the metal bands Arch Enemy and Armageddon. He is currently the guitarist for Dark Tranquillity. Biography Amott was bor ...

, founding guitarist/vocalist leaves

Arch Enemy Arch Enemy is a Swedish melodic death metal band, originally a supergroup from Halmstad, formed in 1995. Its members were in bands such as Carcass, Armageddon, Carnage, Mercyful Fate, Spiritual Beggars, The Agonist, Nevermore, and Eucharis ...

because "Christopher simply isn't into playing extreme metal anymore." * Brazilian Metal Open Air festival takes place, but is cancelled after severe logistical and financial problems. * Michael Keene of technical death metal band

The Faceless 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 a ...

announced through Twitter that founding guitarist Steve Jones has departed from the band. This leaves Keene as the only original member left. Wes Hauch will be filling Steve's spot as the newest member. * The

Sonisphere Festival The Sonisphere Festival was a touring rock music festival which took place across Europe between the months of June and August. The festival was owned by John Jackson and Kilimanjaro Live. It was jointly promoted by K2 and Kilimanjaro Live. It ...

in Knebworth, UK was cancelled due to their weak economy. *

Mikael Åkerfeldt Lars Mikael Åkerfeldt (; born 17 April 1974)Mikael Åkerfeldt
, Op ...

( Opeth) quits

Bloodbath Bloodbath is a Swedish death metal supergroup from Stockholm, formed in 1998. The band has released six full-length albums, two EPs and two DVDs depicting their performances at Wacken Open Air (in 2005) and Bloodstock Open Air (in 2010). The gr ...

due to lack of interest in the death metal scene. *

Threat Signal Threat Signal is a Canadian heavy metal band from Hamilton, Ontario. The band has had numerous lineup changes, with only Jon Howard remaining from the original incarnation. Their music is often classified as metalcore, melodic death metal, groo ...

announced the departure of drummer

Alex Rüdinger Alex Rüdinger (born November 18, 1991) is an American drummer. He started playing drums at the age of 13, and since then he has played for numerous metal bands including Conquering Dystopia, the Faceless and Threat Signal. He has also done a ...

due to his interest to pursue other projects. * Slayer have announced that

Jeff Hanneman Jeffrey John Hanneman (January 31, 1964 – May 2, 2013) was an American musician, best known as a founding member and guitarist of the thrash metal band Slayer. Hanneman composed both music and lyrics for every Slayer album until his death in 20 ...

will me taking more time off from the band to concentrate on his rehabilitation. Back in 2011, Jeff contracted

necrotizing fasciitis Necrotizing fasciitis (NF), also known as flesh-eating disease, is a bacterial infection that results in the death of parts of the body's soft tissue. It is a severe disease of sudden onset that spreads rapidly. Symptoms usually include red or p ...

(flesh-eating disease) on his right arm from a spider bite, and has been struggling in recovery since then. Gary Holt (

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

) will continue to fill Jeff's spot until he is well enough to return. Slayer said "How long will that be? The best and most honest answer we can give you is 'as long as it takes.'"Slayer Gives Update On Jeff Hanneman, Gary Holt To Continue Filling In On Tour
/ref> *

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 ...

signed a three album record deal with Century Media Records. * Drummer Patrice Hamelin of Canadian death metal band

Martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an externa ...

has quit the band. "

is on hold for now." * Marduk were banned from Minsk, Belarus. "Pavel Radzivonaw, a departmental head at the Prosecutor General's Office, told reporters on Monday that Marduk's concert, scheduled for May 22, would not take place. 'The band preaches Satanism, which has nothing to do with art,' he says. 'This is an affront to Christian values, they preach the ideas of death, of the Third Reich.'" * Angra vocalist

Edu Falaschi Eduardo Teixeira da Fonseca Vasconcellos, known as Eduardo "Edu" Falaschi (born May 18, 1972), is a Brazilian musician. He is best known as the former lead singer and songwriter of São Paulo-based heavy metal band Angra. With Angra, Falaschi r ...

announced his departure from the band. Bassist

Felipe Andreoli Felipe Andreoli (born March 7, 1980) is a Brazilian musician best known as the bassist for the heavy metal band Angra. Andreoli first started playing the bass at age 13, when a school band needed a bass player. After joining Angra at age 20, ...

also announced his departure from

Almah ''Almah'' ( ''‘almā'', plural: ''‘ălāmōṯ''), from a root implying the vigour of puberty, is a Hebrew word meaning a young woman ripe for marriage; despite its importance to the account of the virgin birth of Jesus in the Gospel of Ma ...

. *

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris. While fluid in the early years of the band, the lineup for most of the band's history has consisted of Harri ...

's 1982 album The Number of the Beast won 9.2% of the 30,000 votes cast in the UK for their favorite British album of the past 60 years. *

's founding member/guitarist ''Roger Sjunnesson'' quits the band. *

Queensrÿche Queensrÿche is an American heavy metal band. It formed in 1982 in Bellevue, Washington, out of the local band the Mob. The band has released 16 studio albums, one EP, and several DVDs, and continues to tour and record. The original lineup ...

parts ways with founding member/vocalist

Geoff Tate Geoff Tate (born Jeffrey Wayne Tate, January 14, 1959; he later changed his first name to Geoffery or Geoffrey) (Pp. 11, 48). is an American singer and songwriter. He rose to fame with the progressive metal band Queensrÿche, who had commercial ...

. The band also announced Crimson Glory singer Todd La Torre hired as his replacement. *

Kamelot Kamelot is an American power metal band from Tampa, Florida, formed by Thomas Youngblood, in 1987. The Norwegian vocalist Roy Khan joined for the album '' Siége Perilous'', and shared songwriting credit with Youngblood until his departure in A ...

announced their new vocalist as

Tommy Karevik Tommy Karevik (born 1 November 1981) is a Swedish metal vocalist, best known as the singer for Seventh Wonder and Kamelot. He also appeared on Ayreon's 2013 album '' The Theory of Everything'', in which he portrayed the main character. He appe ...

(

Seventh Wonder Seventh Wonder is a Swedish progressive metal band from Stockholm, formed in 2000. History Seventh Wonder was formed in 2000 by bass player Andreas Blomqvist, guitarist Johan Liefvendahl and drummer Johnny Sandin after their previous band fel ...

). * Guitarist ''Liem N'Guyen'' leaves Benighted after 14 years with the band. His replacement is said to be ''Adrien Guerin''. *

Peter Wichers Peter Wichers is a Swedish guitarist, songwriter and record producer best known as one of the founding members of melodic death metal band Soilwork. From 1995 until late 2005, when he announced his departure from the band, and again from 2008 un ...

leaves Soilwork again due to "musical differences". * Atheist announced the return of bassist Tony Choy. * Lamb of God vocalist

Randy Blythe Randy is a given name, popular in the United States and Canada. It is primarily a masculine name. It was originally derived from the names Randall, Randolf, Randolph, as well as Bertrand and Andrew, and may be a short form (hypocorism) of them ...

was arrested on June 28, 2012, by Czech Police for causing a fan's death by pushing him off stage in Prague, Czech Republic. The band's publicists, have stated that Blythe is "wrongfully accused". Blythe was released on bail for 4,000,000 Czech Koruna (US$200,000), and has been held in the country because he was "considered a flight risk by the judge". Blythe posted bail, but due to the prosecutor's complaint, his bail was doubled to 8,000,000 Czech Koruna (US$400,000). Due to his jail-time being longer than expected, Lamb of God's tour with

Dethklok Dethklok is a fictional melodic death metal band featured in the Adult Swim animated television series ''Metalocalypse''. The first official Dethklok album was released on September 25, 2007, entitled '' The Dethalbum''. The album debuted at n ...

and Gojira was cancelled. On August 3 Randy was released from prison after 5 weeks, Lamb of God was confirmed for

Knotfest Knotfest is a music festival created in 2012 by American heavy metal band Slipknot. The event has been held both as a touring festival and a destination festival in several countries including the United States, Canada, Japan, Germany, Mexico, C ...

. * Frontman/guitarist Alexi Laiho of

Children of Bodom Children of Bodom was a Finnish melodic death metal band from Espoo. Formed in 1993 as Inearthed, the final line-up of the group upon their split in 2019 consisted of Alexi Laiho (lead guitar, lead vocals), Jaska Raatikainen (drums), Henkka Sepp ...

was rushed to the hospital with stomach pains. He was released July 11 to continue the rest of the tour. * The frontman/guitarist Josef "Humanoid" Vesely of death metal band !T.O.O.H.! was diagnosed with

Schizophrenia Schizophrenia is a mental disorder characterized by continuous or relapsing episodes of psychosis. Major symptoms include hallucinations (typically hearing voices), delusions, and disorganized thinking. Other symptoms include social wit ...

. *

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 ...

parts ways with female vocalist Sophia Aslanidou. In December she is replaced by ''Kiki'', "What makes her so unique and talented is to be able to handle both clean voice and scream voice." * Dagoba guitarist ''Izakar'' leaves the band due to "musical differences" and to focus on his other project ''Blazing War Machine''. *

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 ...

"quit the copyright case" against 80 alleged file-sharers for sharing the

All Shall Perish All Shall Perish was 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 releas ...

album "

This Is Where It Ends ''This Is Where It Ends'' is the fourth and final studio album by American deathcore band All Shall Perish. It was released on July 26, 2011, through Nuclear Blast. The majority of the follow-up to the previous record, ''Awaken the Dreamers'', wa ...

". The label went ahead with the charges without the band's permission. *

Ministry Ministry may refer to: Government * Ministry (collective executive), the complete body of government ministers under the leadership of a prime minister * Ministry (government department), a department of a government Religion * Christian ...

front-man

Al Jourgensen Alain David Jourgensen (born Alejandro Ramírez Casas; October 9, 1958) is a Cuban-American singer, musician and music producer. Closely related with the independent record label Wax Trax! Records, his musical career spans four decades. He is b ...

collapsed on stage during a live performance. The doctors said, "he was examined by numerous physicians and diagnosed to have had a full-system collapse due to extreme dehydration and heat exhaustion intensified by the lack of ventilation on stage at the venue. Doctors confirm via blood tests conducted that Jourgensen's alcohol blood levels were well below normal and no narcotics were found in his system." The remainder of the weeks tour dates were canceled, until Al was feeling well enough to continue the "DeFiBriLlaTouR European tour". *

Baroness Baron is a rank of nobility or title of honour, often hereditary, in various European countries, either current or historical. The female equivalent is baroness. Typically, the title denotes an aristocrat who ranks higher than a lord or knig ...

were caught in a terrible bus accident, where the bus fell 30 feet from a viaduct near Bath. A Facebook page statement was released as follows, "The band members of

and their crew are recovering from injuries sustained after their tour bus crashed outside of Bath

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

early on Wednesday morning.

John Baizley John Dyer Baizley is an American musician and painter most notable for being the vocalist and rhythm guitarist of Savannah, Georgia heavy metal band Baroness. He has also achieved critical praise for his artworks, some of which have been incorpo ...

has broken his left arm and left leg. ''Allen Blickle'' and ''Matt Maggioni'' each suffered fractured vertebrae. All three remain in the hospital as of this writing. ''Pete Adams'' has been treated and released from the hospital. Three of the five crew members who were on the bus have also been treated and released. One member is still undergoing testing." * Anthrax's song "Got The Time" was the first heavy metal song played on the planet

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Roman god of war. Mars is a terrestrial planet with a thin at ...

. The song "was one of several songs on NASA's wake-up playlist for the

Mars Rover A Mars rover is a motor vehicle designed to travel on the surface of Mars. Rovers have several advantages over stationary landers: they examine more territory, they can be directed to interesting features, they can place themselves in sunny pos ...

Curiosity Curiosity (from Latin '' cūriōsitās'', from ''cūriōsus'' "careful, diligent, curious", akin to ''cura'' "care") is a quality related to inquisitive thinking such as exploration, investigation, and learning, evident by observation in humans ...

, that touched down on the Red Planet August 5th." *

Decapitated Decapitation or beheading is the total separation of the head from the body. Such an injury is invariably fatal to humans and most other animals, since it deprives the brain of oxygenated blood, while all other organs are deprived of the i ...

drummer ''Kerim "Krimh" Lechner'' quits the band due to "personal differences". *

Eluveitie Eluveitie ( ; )Chrigel Glanzmann: "...According to current research, it is pronounced in Bernese German as, i.e. ''"Elvèyti"''. But I don't know if this is correct. The gods know that.:: Metalist Magazine :: Interviews :: Eluveitie is a Swiss f ...

lead guitarist ''Simeon Koch'' leaves the band after 8 years. ''Rafael Salzmann'' will be his replacement for live performances. *

Hydra Head Records Hydra Head Records was an independent record label that specializes in extreme metal music, founded in New Mexico by Aaron Turner (the frontman of Isis) in 1993. It had another imprint, Hydra Head Noise Industries, which specialized in experiment ...

has indefinitely closed its doors. * Nightwish lead singer

Anette Olzon Anette Ingegerd Olsson (born 21 June 1971), known by the stage name Anette Olzon, is a Swedish singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish from 2007 to 2012. She is also the vocalist of Swedish class ...

parts ways with the band after 5 years.

Floor Jansen Floor Jansen (; born 21 February 1981) is a Dutch singer and songwriter. She is the lead vocalist of Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish. Jansen first became known as a member of symphonic metal band After Forever, standing as their lead vo ...

(ex-

After Forever After Forever was a Dutch symphonic metal band with strong progressive metal influences. The band relied on the use of both soprano vocals and death growls. In February 2009, it was announced that After Forever had disbanded. Singer Floor Jans ...

) will replace her for the remainder of the band's

Imaginaerum World Tour ''Imaginaerum World Tour'' was the fifth world tour by Finnish symphonic metal band Nightwish, in support of their seventh studio album, '' Imaginaerum''. The tour started in Los Angeles, USA, on January 21, 2012, and then the band played an ar ...

. *

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 ...

announces their newest lead guitarist ''Pustulus Maximus'' on October 1. * Metallica announces the launch of their own record label "Blackened Recordings", and have taken ownership of all their previous mastered tracks. * Megadeth end their contract with Roadrunner Records after 5 years and 3 albums. * On November 9, 2012,

Amberian Dawn Amberian Dawn is a Finnish symphonic power metal band, formed in 2006 by Tuomas Seppälä and Tommi Kuri. Their fifth album '' Re-Evolution'' (a re-recorded compilation with a new singer) was released on KHY Suomen Musiikki & Encore Music in sum ...

announced on their official site, that they are parting ways with singer Heidi Parviainen, along with drummer Heikki Saari and guitarist Kasperi Heikkinen. The replacement members are new vocalist Päivi "Capri" Virkkunen, and ex-members Joonas Pykälä-aho (drums) and Emil "Emppu" Pohjalainen (guitar). Parviainen explained via Facebook, "Early this year we noticed that we had reached the point where we didn't have much to offer to each other any more, and my own ambitions and Amberian Dawn's goals weren't coinciding any longer."

Deaths

* January 3 – Joey Lombard (a.k.a. Fingers), former bassist of

Incantation An incantation, a spell, a charm, an enchantment or a bewitchery, is a magical formula intended to trigger a magical effect on a person or objects. The formula can be spoken, sung or chanted. An incantation can also be performed during ceremo ...

, died from committing suicide at the age of 42. * January 5 – Nicole Bogner, former vocalist of

Visions of Atlantis Visions of Atlantis is an Austrian metal band from Styria, founded in 2000. Inspiration came both from successful symphonic metal band Nightwish and from the myth of Atlantis. History ''Eternal Endless Infinity'' and lineup changes ( ...

, died from an undisclosed disease at the age of 27. * January 14 – Robbie France, former drummer of Diamond Head,

UFO An unidentified flying object (UFO), more recently renamed by US officials as a UAP (unidentified aerial phenomenon), is any perceived aerial phenomenon that cannot be immediately identified or explained. On investigation, most UFOs are id ...

and

Wishbone Ash Wishbone Ash are a British rock band who achieved success in the early and mid-1970s. Their popular albums included '' Wishbone Ash'' (1970), ''Pilgrimage'' (1971), '' Argus'' (1972), '' Wishbone Four'' (1973), ''There's the Rub'' (1974), and ...

, died from ruptured aorta at the age of 52. * January 25 –

Mark Reale Mark Reale (June 7, 1955 – January 25, 2012) was an American guitarist who was the sole consistent and founding member of the heavy metal band Riot (now known as Riot V). Biography Reale was born in Brooklyn, New York City, in 1955. He gr ...

, guitarist and founding member of Riot, died from complications with Crohn's disease at the age of 57. * February 14 –

Tonmi Lillman Tonmi Lillman (born Tommi Kristian Lillman, 3 June 197313 February 2012) was a Finnish musician, best known as Otus, the former drummer of the Finnish hard rock band Lordi. Lillman died on 13 February 2012 after an illness. Career Lillman's fat ...

(a.k.a. Otus), former drummer of

To/Die/For To/Die/For (often abbreviated TDF) are a gothic metal band from the town of Kouvola in southeast of Finland, originally assembled in 1993 as a hard rock band under the name Mary-Ann. In 1999, they decided to change their musical style to gothi ...

Sinergy Sinergy was a Finnish/Swedish heavy metal band started in 1997 by American musician Kimberly Goss. The idea for a "balls-out female-fronted metal band" was first formed when Kimberly Goss of Dimmu Borgir met Jesper Strömblad of In Flames w ...

, Ajattara, drummer of

Lordi Lordi () is a Finnish hard rock/ heavy metal band, formed in 1992 by the band's lead singer, songwriter and costume maker, Mr Lordi (Tomi Petteri Putaansuu). In addition to their melodic metal music, Lordi are also known for wearing monster ma ...

, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 38. * February 15 – Hans Jørgen Andersen , former guitarist of

Mercenary A mercenary, sometimes also known as a soldier of fortune or hired gun, is a private individual, particularly a soldier, that joins a military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any ...

, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 36. * March 3 –

Ronnie Montrose Ronald Douglas Montrose (November 29, 1947 – March 3, 2012) was an American guitarist who founded and led the rock bands Montrose and Gamma. He also performed and did session work with a variety of musicians, including Van Morrison, Herbie H ...

, guitarist and leader of Montrose and Gamma, died from a self-inflicted gunshot wound at the age of 64. * April 5 – Jim Marshall "Lord of Loud" the founder of Marshall Amplification died at the age of 88. * April 10 – Richie Teeter, drummer of

the Dictators The Dictators are an American punk rock band formed in New York City in 1973. Critic John Dougan said that they were "one of the finest and most influential proto-punk bands to walk the earth." Origins The band was formed in 1972 by Andy "Adn ...

and former drummer of

Twisted Sister Twisted Sister was an American heavy metal band originally from Ho-Ho-Kus, New Jersey, and later based on Long Island, New York. Their best-known songs include " We're Not Gonna Take It" and " I Wanna Rock", both of which were associated with ...

, died from esophageal cancer at the age of 61. * April 21 – Rob Cranny (a.k.a. Balfabar Nosugref the Almighty), owner of Canadian Northern Storm Records and vocalist of Detsörgsekälf, died from a heart attack at the age of 27. * May 4 – Rob Doherty, former guitarist and vocalist of Into Eternity, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 41. * May 13 – Trondr Nefas, guitarist and singer of

Urgehal Urgehal () is a black metal band from Norway. It was formed in Hønefoss in 1992 by lead guitarist/vocalist Trond Bråthen ('Trondr Nefas') and rhythm guitarist 'Enzifer'. Before their split up in 2016, they released seven full-length albums, four ...

, died from natural causes on his sleep at the age of 34. * May 20 – Steeve Hurdle, former guitarist of

Gorguts Gorguts is a Canadian death metal band from Sherbrooke, Quebec, formed in 1989. The band has been through many personnel changes since its inception; its only constant member has been guitarist and vocalist Luc Lemay, who remains the primary cr ...

, died of post-surgical complications at the age of 41. * May 31 – Michael Grant, singer of Crescent Shield, Onward, Legend Maker and Cypher Seer, died of unidentified illness at the age of 39. * June 29 – Teddy Mueller, former drummer of

AXE An axe ( sometimes ax in American English; see spelling differences) is an implement that has been used for millennia to shape, split and cut wood, to harvest timber, as a weapon, and as a ceremonial or heraldic symbol. The axe has ma ...

, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 57. * July 16 –

Jon Lord John Douglas Lord (9 June 194116 July 2012) was an English orchestral and rock composer, pianist, and Hammond organ player known for his pioneering work in fusing rock with classical or baroque forms, especially with the British rock band Deep ...

, composer, pianist and Hammond organ player of Deep Purple and

Whitesnake Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own en ...

, died from a cancer at the age of 71. * November 1 – Mitch Lucker, singer of

Suicide Silence Suicide Silence is an American deathcore band from Riverside, California. The band was established in 2002, and has released six studio albums, three EPs, and nineteen music videos. They were awarded the ''Revolver'' Golden God award for "Bes ...

, died from a motorcycle accident at the age of 28. * December 8 –

Huw Lloyd-Langton Richard Hugh "Huw" Lloyd-Langton (6 February 1951 – 6 December 2012) was an English musician, best known as the guitarist for the rock band HawkwindStrong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Rock Discography'', Canongate, , p. 466 at various times. ...

, guitarist of

Hawkwind Hawkwind are an English rock band known as one of the earliest space rock groups. Since their formation in November 1969, Hawkwind have gone through many incarnations and have incorporated many different styles into their music, including hard ...

and the Meads of Asphodel, died from a cancer at the age of 61. * December 23 –

Mike Scaccia Michael Ralph Scaccia (June 14, 1965 – December 22, 2012) was an American musician, best known as a guitarist for several heavy metal and alternative rock acts, including Rigor Mortis, Ministry and Revolting Cocks. Life and career Scaccia wa ...

, guitarist of

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 ...

and

died after collapsing on stage during Rigor Mortis' performance for vocalist Bruce Corbitt's 50th birthday at the age of 47.Rest In Peace Mike Scaccia
/ref>

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References

Metal A metal (from Greek μέταλλον ''métallon'', "mine, quarry, metal") is a material that, when freshly prepared, polished, or fractured, shows a lustrous appearance, and conducts electricity and heat relatively well. Metals are typicall ...