Explore California Metal
Featured Album
Necromanteum (2023)
Featured Black Metal Album
Vertigo (Sunbather: 10th Anniversary Remix / Remaster) (2023)
Featured Artist with an Upcoming Show
Featured Power Metal Album
We Three Kings (Metal Holiday) (2015)
Featured Artist with an Upcoming Show
Browse California Metal Bands
654 bands found
Chico, California's Kattattak blur the line between melodic death metal and metalcore, bringing driving rhythms and melodic hooks together with enough extremity to satisfy fans of both worlds since 2016.
Santa Cruz, California's Kavalkade marry melodic death metal's lead-driven drama to metalcore's rhythmic punch, carving out a sound with both melodic ambition and heavy impact since their 2022 formation.
Keen of the Crow occupy the mournful territory where doom metal and death metal converge, a Los Angeles act formed in 2020 with a sound steeped in crushing grief and slow-burning heaviness.
San Francisco's Kerasphorus are steeped in the most blasphemous traditions of black/death metal, channeling a chaotic, bestial energy since 2016 that puts them squarely in the lineage of war metal extremity.
Oxnard, California's Kermz specialize in the most physically punishing end of the death metal spectrum — slam-heavy and brutal, with song structures built to maximize impact and bodily devastation since 2014.
Los Angeles death metal act Leaf started out in ambient territory before pivoting to full brutality — a trajectory that lends their heaviness an unusual textural depth.
Sacramento's Legion of Malice have been thrashing the Northern California death and grind underground since forming in 2023, spitting out short, venomous bursts of noise with maximum hostility. Two minutes at a time, they leave little standing.
Los Angeles death metal outfit Lepra have been rotting through the City of Angels' underground since 2019, offering no melodic concessions and no apologies. Old-school in instinct, unrelenting in practice.
Two-plus decades deep in the Oxnard underground, Lesion grind out a raw hybrid of thrash and death metal that carries the working-class grit of Southern California's surf-and-steel coast.
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California Metal Index indexes hundreds of California heavy metal bands across every subgenre — death metal, black metal, thrash metal, doom metal, metalcore, hardcore punk, grindcore, sludge, stoner metal, and more. Browse heavy metal bands by genre, city, or state.
Yes — browse California death metal bands in our index. Filter by genre to find death metal, technical death metal, and melodic death metal bands. We also index black metal, thrash metal, doom metal, and all heavy metal bands.
Use the genre filter to browse California black metal bands. We index black metal, atmospheric black metal, and related subgenres alongside death metal, thrash metal, doom metal, and all heavy metal bands.
Browse our index for California thrash metal bands. Filter by genre to discover thrash metal, crossover thrash, and speed metal bands. Our index covers all heavy metal bands including death metal, black metal, doom, and metalcore.
Yes — we index metalcore bands, doom metal bands, and every heavy metal subgenre. Browse California metalcore, doom metal, sludge metal, stoner metal, progressive metal, power metal, and more.
Yes — browse California hardcore punk bands alongside heavy metal bands. We cover hardcore punk, crust punk, D-beat, grindcore, metalcore, and all heavy music subgenres.
Filter by city and state to find heavy metal bands near you. Each band page includes streaming links, genre tags, and upcoming metal concerts. Discover death metal, black metal, thrash, doom, and all heavy metal bands in your area.
Visit our shows page for California metal concerts — death metal shows, black metal concerts, thrash metal shows, doom concerts, and all heavy metal events. Updated daily with ticket links from Ticketmaster and SeatGeek.
California Metal Index is an index of California heavy metal bands — death metal, black metal, thrash metal, doom metal, metalcore, hardcore punk, and all heavy music. Browse bands by genre, find metal concerts near you, and discover the California metal scene.