Explore California Metal
Featured Album
Dead Bodies Everywhere (2021)
Featured Heavy Metal Album
Metallica (Remastered Deluxe Box Set) (2021)
Featured Artist with an Upcoming Show
Featured Groove Metal Album
Outside The Box (2021)
Featured Artist with an Upcoming Show
Browse California Metal Bands
1987 bands found
San Diego death metal act with impressive longevity, spanning 2007 to 2020. Famine of A Thousand Frozen Years established their epic approach to the genre, while the much later Allies of a Fallen Empire shows a band still committed to their dark vision after over a decade.
Concord, California melodic death metal and thrash outfit active since 2012. Their EPs Sensory Overload and They All Carry Ghosts blend Scandinavian melodeath influences with Bay Area thrash energy, the apothecary-inspired name suggesting music as medicine — or poison.
Orange County, California doom metal project shrouded in mystery. Their untitled debut channels the genre's most spectral qualities, the name evoking ghostly visitations rendered in crushing heaviness.
Los Angeles symphonic metal project from the California underground.
Fresno, California NWOTHM project whose 2016 single channels classic heavy metal from California's Central Valley. A grassroots contribution to the state's vast traditional metal ecosystem.
California / New York black metal project.
Laguna Beach, California black metal project whose 2016 EP The Lucifer Effect — referencing Philip Zimbardo's study of human evil — channels psychological horror through black metal from one of Southern California's most affluent coastal towns.
Dublin, California thrash metal act whose French-titled albums — Pour semer la confusion ('to sow confusion') — bring Continental flair to Bay Area thrash since 2017. The Three Musketeers reference adds literary dimension to their aggressive sound.
Los Angeles thrash metal project. The name's philosophical implications — of randomness and subjectivity — add an unexpectedly cerebral dimension to their contribution to LA's thrash lineage.
Enter the Inferno
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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.