Abstracter is a blackened crust, sludge, and doom metal band from Oakland, California. Across six releases from 2012 to 2021, the band has refined a devastating sound that collapses d-beat urgency into walls of blackened sludge, with the 2015 EP "Wound Empire" marking a high point of crushing atmospheric extremity.

Los Angeles death metal project. The name's hostility channels LA's darker undercurrents through extreme music.

Adeptus is a raw black metal project from Los Angeles, California. With five releases, the project maintains the lo-fi, uncompromising aesthetic of raw black metal amid the sprawl of Southern California.

Agowilt is a drone/doom metal and crust project from Long Beach, California. Their 2012 single "Clocks Made Of Their Own Bones" hints at a band operating at the crushing intersection of drone doom and crust punk.

Los Angeles doom metal project plumbing the depths of darkness since 2014. Four releases including Devoured by Darkness and The Haunting Despair deliver crushing, morbid doom that channels LA's long history of occult heavy music.

Orange County doom and heavy metal project whose 2024 demo Demos That Tell The Same Tales hints at a band mining the past for eternal truths. Irvine may be synonymous with suburban sprawl, but Ancient Ruins finds weight and darkness in the gaps between the strip malls.

Los Angeles black/doom project debuting in 2025 with The Implications of Ascendancy. The EP blends black metal tremolo with doom metal's crushing pace, suggesting a band equally versed in both genres' darkest traditions.

San Francisco thrash metal act with six releases since 2018, including the Connecticut-referencing Connecticut Casual series. Their prolific output and the cryptic King Of Gods. No Second demonstrate a band with both the ambition and work ethic to stand out in the Bay Area's crowded thrash field.

Walnut, California doom metal and grindcore hybrid with ten releases since 2024. Their catalog — including Anhedonic Empires and Cryptomnesis — blends seemingly incompatible genres at a feverish pace from suburban Los Angeles.