2023 in heavy metal music
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This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2023.
Bands disbanded
Bands formed
Bands reformed
- 3 Inches of Blood[16]
- Agalloch[17]
- Blessthefall[18]
- Creed[19]
- Crimson Glory[20]
- The Dillinger Escape Plan[21]
- Extol[22]
- Forbidden[23]
- For My Pain...[24]
- Haste the Day[25]
- Lord Kaos[26]
- Martyr[27]
- Newsted[28]
- A Plea for Purging[29]
- Poisonblack[30]
- Savatage[31]
- Tarot[32]
- Terrorizer[33]
- Thousand Foot Krutch[34]
- Training for Utopia[25]
- Wrathchild[35]
Events
- On January 26, Twisted Sister reunited for a one-off performance following their induction into the Metal Hall of Fame. It was the band's first live performance since disbanding in 2016.[36]
- On February 3, Furnace Fest 2023 has been announced to take place on September 23 and 24 at the Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham, Alabama. Among many bands announced to perform, several of them are reuniting for the festival after having previously split up, including Haste the Day, A Plea for Purging, and Training for Utopia.[25] On February 22, it was announced that Symphony in Peril, who reformed last year, will play at the festival's preshow, their first show in 18 years.[37]
- On February 27, Marty Friedman performed three songs with Megadeth at the Budokan in Japan. This marked his first performance with the band in 23 years.[38]
- In February, after years of speculation and rumors since being unveiled as the "unidentified vocalist named "Xer0" of Static-X in 2019, Edsel Dope officially confirmed in an interview that he indeed was Xer0.[39]
- On March 31, an EF1 tornado caused the roof of the Apollo Theater in Belvediere, Illinois, United States, to collapse while the venue was hosting Morbid Angel, Crypta, Revocation, and Skeletal Remains, resulting in one casualty and injuring 28 others.[40]
- On May 7, Vulvodynia fired founding vocalist Duncan Bentley after he allegedly tried to kill their drummer Thomas Hughes.[41]
- On June 7, Slipknot announced the departure of longtime sampler and keyboardist Craig Jones.[42]
- On October 25, Dream Theater announced the departure of drummer Mike Mangini and the return of the band's original drummer, Mike Portnoy, after a 13-year absence.[43]
- On November 5, Slipknot announced the band was parting ways with drummer Jay Weinberg. Weinberg joined the band in 2014, replacing founding member Joey Jordison.[44]
- On November 28, guitarist Kiko Loureiro announced his departure from Megadeth.[45]
- On December 1 and 2, Kiss concluded their End of the Road World Tour with a set of back-to-back final shows in their hometown of New York City at Madison Square Garden.[46][47][48]
- On December 30, Arch Enemy announced the departure of longtime guitarist Jeff Loomis. Subsequently, Joey Concepcion was announced as his replacement.[49]
Deaths
- January 1 – Sebastian Marino, former guitarist of Overkill and Anvil, died from a heart attack at the age of 57.[50]
- January 9 – Justin Bartlett, artist who created album cover art for Sunn O))), Trap Them, Cadaver, and Hooded Menace, died from stage 4 colorectal cancer at the age of 45.[51][52]
- January 18 – TJ de Blois, former drummer of A Life Once Lost, died from undisclosed reasons.[53]
- January 27 – Zbigniew "Vika" Wróblewski, former guitarist of Vader, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 60.[54]
- February 14 – Tim Aymar, vocalist of Pharaoh and former vocalist of Control Denied, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 59.[55]
- February 16 – Michael "Majk Moti" Kupper, former guitarist of Running Wild, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 65.[56]
- March 8 – Jim Durkin, guitarist of Dark Angel, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 58.[57]
- March 8 – Josua Madsen, drummer of Artillery, died after being hit by a bus at the age of 45.[58]
- March 22 – Wayne Swinny, guitarist of Saliva, died from a brain hemorrhage at the age of 59.[59]
- April 7 – John Regan, former bassist of Frehley's Comet, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 71.[60]
- April 23 – John Rae, former drummer of Wykked Wytch, died from alcoholism at the age of 51.[61]
- May 1 – Jordan Blake, vocalist of A Skylit Drive, died from undisclosed reasons.[62]
- May 17 – Algy Ward, vocalist of Tank, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 63.[63]
- May 22 – Kirk Arrington, former drummer of Metal Church, died from an unspecified illness at the age of 61.[64]
- May 23 – Mark Adams, former bassist of Saint Vitus, died from Parkinson's disease at the age of 64.[65]
- May 27 – Toshihiro Niimi, drummer of Bow Wow, died from cancer at the age of 66.[66]
- June 19 – Ryan Siew, guitarist of Polaris, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 26.[67]
- June 23 – Lee Rauch, former drummer of Megadeth and Dark Angel, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 58.[68]
- June 25 – Erik Ferro, drummer of T.T. Quick, died from undisclosed reasons.[69]
- July 14 – Anthony Meo, former drummer of Biohazard, died from cancer.[70]
- July 26 – James Harvey IV, former bassist of Goatwhore, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 35.[71]
- August 5 – Cláudio Lopes, bassist of Dorsal Atlântica, died from a heart attack at the age of 59.[72]
- August 9 – Brad Thomson, former guitarist of The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, died from undisclosed reasons.[73]
- August 24 – Bernie Marsden, former guitarist of Whitesnake, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 72.[74]
- August 24 – Sakevi Yokoyama, vocalist of G.I.S.M., died from undisclosed reasons.[75]
- September 15 – Axel Blaha, drummer of Paradox, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 59.[76]
- September 26 – Jon Kennedy, former bassist of Cradle of Filth and former vocalist of Hecate Enthroned, died from injuries sustained in a car crash at the age of 46.[77][78]
- October 24 – Steve Riley, drummer of Riley's L.A. Guns and former drummer of L.A. Guns, W.A.S.P., and Keel, died from pneumonia at the age of 67.[79]
- October 29 – Hiroshi "Heath" Morie, bassist of X Japan, died from colon cancer at the age of 55.[80]
- November 13 – Dave Corsile, former bassist of Thrown into Exile and former guitarist of downset., died from a heart attack.[81]
- November 17 – Charlie Dominici, former vocalist of Dream Theater, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 72.[82]
- November 29 – Quint Meerbeek, former drummer of Bodyfarm, died from an unspecified illness at the age of 41.[83]
- December 4 – Andreas Herz, former bassist of Kreator, died from undisclosed reasons.[84]
- December 10 – Cayle Sain, drummer of Twitching Tongues and Ghostemane, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 31.[85]
- December 26 – Jarbas "Jabá" Alves, former bassist of Ratos de Porão, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 60.[86]
- December 27 – Michael Gibbons, former guitarist of Leeway, died from undisclosed reasons.[87]
Albums released
January
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 13 | Ahab | The Coral Tombs[88] |
| Beyond the Black | Beyond the Black[89] | |
| Eisregen | Grenzgänger[90] | |
| Obituary | Dying of Everything[91] | |
| Turmion Kätilöt | Omen X[92] | |
| VV | Neon Noir[93] | |
| 20 | Atrocity | Okkult III[94] |
| Dark Princess | Phoenix[95] | |
| Imperium Dekadenz | Into Sorrow Evermore[96] | |
| Katatonia | Sky Void of Stars[97] | |
| Riverside | ID.Entity[98] | |
| Sabaton | Heroes of the Great War (EP)[99] | |
| Twilight Force | At the Heart of Wintervale[100] | |
| 27 | ...And Oceans | As in Gardens, So in Tombs[101] |
| Ablaze My Sorrow | The Loss of All Hope (EP)[102] | |
| Ronnie Romero | Raised on Heavy Radio (covers album)[103] | |
| Steve Vai | Vai/Gash[104] | |
| Uriah Heep | Chaos & Colour[105] | |
February
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | All Out War | Celestial Rot[106] |
| Korn | Requiem Mass (EP)[107] | |
| Memoriam | Rise to Power[108] | |
| Russkaja | Turbo Polka Party[109] | |
| Victor Smolski | Guitar Force[110] | |
| Xandria | The Wonders Still Awaiting[111] | |
| 10 | Aphyxion | Ad Astra[112] |
| Delain | Dark Waters[113] | |
| Dream Theater | Distance Over Time Demos (2018) (compilation album)[114] | |
| In Flames | Foregone[115] | |
| Narrow Head | Moments of Clarity[116] | |
| Pierce the Veil | The Jaws of Life[117] | |
| Wig Wam | Out of the Dark[118] | |
| 17 | Avatar | Dance Devil Dance[119] |
| Bridear | Aegis of London... Live! (live album)[120] | |
| Clint Lowery | Ghostwriter (EP)[121] | |
| Code Orange | What Is Really Underneath? (remix album)[122] | |
| Hellripper | Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags[123] | |
| Jason Bieler | Postcards from the Asylum[124] | |
| Man Must Die | The Pain Behind It All[125] | |
| Oceanhoarse | Heads Will Roll[126] | |
| Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs | Land of Sleeper[127] | |
| Robin McAuley | Alive[128] | |
| See You Next Tuesday | Distractions[129] | |
| Skinflint | Hate Spell[130] | |
| 22 | Lovebites | Judgement Day[131] |
| 24 | Azaghal | Alttarimme on Luista Tehty[132] |
| Dope | Blood Money, Part Zer0[133] | |
| Godsmack | Lighting Up the Sky[134] | |
| Hammerhedd | Nonetheless[135] | |
| Hed PE | 70's Hits from the Pit (covers album)[136] | |
| Heidevolk | Werdekeer[137] | |
| Hypno5e | Sheol[138] | |
| Insomnium | Anno 1696[139] | |
| Kauan | ATM Revised[140] | |
| Märvel | Double Decade (compilation album)[141] | |
| Necrovation | Storm the Void/Starving Grave (EP)[142] | |
| Steel Panther | On the Prowl[143] | |
| Venomous Concept | The Good Ship Lollipop[144] | |
March
April
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | Angel Vivaldi | Away with Words, Pt. 2 (EP)[217] |
| Cultura Tres | Camino de Brujos[218] | |
| Kiss | Off the Soundboard: Poughkeepsie, New York, 1984 (live album)[219] | |
| Paul Gilbert | The Dio Album (covers album)[220] | |
| Powerwolf | Interludium[221] | |
| Rise of the Northstar | Showdown[222] | |
| Tribulation | Hamartia (EP)[223] | |
| 14 | Atreyu | The Hope of a Spark (EP)[224] |
| Dødheimsgard | Black Medium Current[225] | |
| Holy Moses | Invisible Queen[226] | |
| Infected Rain | The Devil's Dozen (live album)[227] | |
| Jesus Piece | ...So Unknown[228] | |
| L.A. Guns | Black Diamonds[229] | |
| Magnus Karlsson's Free Fall | Hunt the Flame[230] | |
| Metallica | 72 Seasons[231] | |
| Mike Tramp | Songs of White Lion (covers album)[232] | |
| Overkill | Scorched[233] | |
| 20 | Portrayal of Guilt | Devil Music[234] |
| 21 | The 69 Eyes | Death of Darkness[235] |
| Angus McSix | Angus McSix and the Sword of Power[236] | |
| Anthem | Crimson & Jet Black[237] | |
| As Everything Unfolds | Ultraviolet[238] | |
| Axel Rudi Pell | The Ballads VI (compilation album)[239] | |
| Bell Witch | Future's Shadow Part 1: The Clandestine Gate[240] | |
| Dorthia Cottrell | Death Folk Country[241] | |
| Enter Shikari | A Kiss for the Whole World[242] | |
| Liv Kristine | River of Diamonds[243] | |
| Magnus Rosén Band | It's Time to Rock the World Again[244] | |
| Texas Hippie Coalition | The Name Lives On[245] | |
| 28 | Cradle of Filth | Trouble and Their Double Lives (live album)[246] |
| Crown the Empire | Dogma[247] | |
| Disciple | Skeleton Psalms[248] | |
| Elvenking | Reader of the Runes – Rapture[249] | |
| Graveworm | Killing Innocence[250] | |
| Iced Earth | Hellrider/I Walk Among You (EP)[251] | |
| IGNEA | Dreams of Lands Unseen[252] | |
| Majesty | Back to Attack[253] | |
| Necronomicon | Constant to Death[254] | |
| Runemagick | Beyond the Cenotaph of Mankind[255] | |
| Smoulder | Violent Creed of Vengeance[256] |
May
June
July
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 7 | 1476 | In Exile[339] |
| Bangalore Choir | Center Mass[340] | |
| Better Lovers | God Made Me an Animal (EP)[341] | |
| Blackbraid | Blackbraid II[342] | |
| Blaze Bayley | Damaged Strange Different and Live (live album)[343] | |
| Bloodbound | Tales from the North[344] | |
| Butcher Babies | Eye for an Eye... / ...'Til the World's Blind[345] | |
| Fen | Monuments to Absence[346] | |
| Nita Strauss | The Call of the Void[347] | |
| Snuffed on Sight | Smoke[348] | |
| The Raven Age | Blood Omen[349] | |
| Will Haven | VII[350] | |
| 14 | Edge of Paradise | Hologram[351] |
| Eleine | We Shall Remain[352] | |
| Evile | The Unknown[353] | |
| Fallstar | Sacred Mirrors[354] | |
| Freedom Call | The M.E.T.A.L. Fest (live album)[355] | |
| Kim Dracula | A Gradual Decline in Morale[356] | |
| Vendetta | Black as Coal[357] | |
| Voyager | Fearless in Love[358] | |
| 16 | Omega Anima | Cosmos (single)[359] |
| 21 | Akercocke | Decades of Devil Worship (live album)[360] |
| Cadaver | The Age of the Offended[361] | |
| Soil | Restoration (compilation album)[362] | |
| Voivod | Morgöth Tales[363] | |
| The Zenith Passage | Datalysium[364] | |
| 26 | Hanabie. | Reborn Superstar![365] |
| 28 | Contrarian | Demos & Oddities: 1995–1999 (compilation album)[366] |
| From Ashes to New | Blackout[367] | |
| Girlschool | WTFortyfive?[368] | |
| Mutoid Man | Mutants[369] | |
| Panzerchrist | Last of a Kind[370] | |
| Sevendust | Truth Killer[371] | |
| Signs of the Swarm | Amongst the Low & Empty[372] | |
| Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats | Slaughter on First Avenue (live album)[373] |
August
September
October
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | Carnifex | Necromanteum[465] |
| Heavy Load | Riders of the Ancient Storm[466] | |
| Heretoir | Nightsphere[467] | |
| Iron Savior | Firestar[468] | |
| October Tide | The Cancer Pledge[469] | |
| Of Mice & Men | Tether[470] | |
| Prong | State of Emergency[471] | |
| Svalbard | The Weight of the Mask[472] | |
| 13 | Amorphis | Queen of Time (Live at Tavastia 2021) (live album)[473] |
| Beartooth | The Surface[474] | |
| Krieg | Ruiner[475] | |
| Laster | Andermans Mijne[476] | |
| On Thorns I Lay | On Thorns I Lay[477] | |
| Oni | The Silver Line[478] | |
| Ronnie Atkins | Trinity[479] | |
| Sulphur Aeon | Seven Crowns and Seven Seals[480] | |
| Sven Gali | Bombs and Battlescars[481] | |
| Theocracy | Mosaic[482] | |
| Varg | Ewige Wacht[483] | |
| 20 | The Amenta | Plague of Locus (EP)[484] |
| Angelus Apatrida | Aftermath[485] | |
| Bloodred Hourglass | How's the Heart?[486] | |
| The Callous Daoboys | God Smiles Upon the Callous Daoboys (EP)[487] | |
| Cirith Ungol | Dark Parade[488] | |
| Dog Eat Dog | Free Radicals[489] | |
| Lynch Mob | Babylon[490] | |
| Myrkur | Spine[491] | |
| Night Ranger | 40 Years and a Night with the Contemporary Youth Orchestra (live album)[492] | |
| Temperance | Hermitage – Daruma's Eyes Pt. 2[493] | |
| Within Temptation | Bleed Out[494] | |
| 27 | Autopsy | Ashes, Organs, Blood and Crypts[495] |
| Dokken | Heaven Comes Down[496] | |
| Doro | Conqueress Forever Strong and Proud[497] | |
| End | The Sin of Human Frailty[498] | |
| Icarus Witch | No Devil Lived On[499] | |
| In This Moment | Godmode[500] | |
| King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard | The Silver Cord[501] | |
| Mark Tremonti | Christmas Classics New & Old (covers album)[502] | |
| Obscura | A Celebration I – Live in North America (live album)[503] | |
| Of Virtue | Omen[504] | |
| Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs | Live in New York (live album)[505] | |
| Poppy | Zig[506] | |
| Sorcerer | Reign of the Reaper[507] |
November
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Angra | Cycles of Pain[508] |
| Atreyu | A Torch in the Dark (EP)[509] | |
| Bad Wolves | Die About It[510] | |
| Dying Wish | Symptoms of Survival[511] | |
| Green Lung | This Heathen Land[512] | |
| Insomnium | Songs of the Dusk (EP)[513] | |
| Kontrust | Madworld[514] | |
| Mortuary Drape | Black Mirror[515] | |
| Serenity | Nemesis AD[516] | |
| Silent Planet | Superbloom[517] | |
| Spiritbox | The Fear of Fear (EP)[518] | |
| Suffocation | Hymns from the Apocrypha[519] | |
| Watain | Die in Fire – Live in Hell (Agony and Ecstasy Over Stockholm) (live album)[520] | |
| 8 | Nemophila | The Initial Impulse (EP)[521] |
| 10 | Diviner | Avaton[522] |
| Gama Bomb | Bats[523] | |
| Helmet | Left[524] | |
| Hinayana | Shatter and Fall[525] | |
| Secret Sphere | Blackened Heartbeat[526] | |
| Sodom | 1982 (EP)[527] | |
| Tarja | Dark Christmas (cover album)[528] | |
| Vastum | Inward to Gethsemane[529] | |
| 11 | Mike Mangini | Invisible Signs[530] |
| 17 | Aeternus | Philosopher[531] |
| Celeste | Epilogue(s) (EP)[532] | |
| Corroded | Plague[533] | |
| DGM | Life[534] | |
| Eldritch | Innervoid[535] | |
| Lacey Sturm | Kenotic Metanoia[536] | |
| Nonpoint | Heartless (EP)[537] | |
| Racetraitor | Creation and the Timeless Order of Things[538] | |
| Sadus | The Shadow Inside[539] | |
| Texas in July | Without Reason (EP)[540] | |
| 20 | Impending Doom | Last Days (EP)[541] |
| 24 | Bernie Marsden | Working Man[542] |
| Cruciamentum | Obsidian Refractions[543] | |
| 29 | Panopticon | The Rime of Memory[544] |
December
| Day | Artist | Album |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Demoncy | Black Star Gnosis[545] |
| Extortionist | Devoid (EP)[546] | |
| Ghost | 13 Commandments (compilation album)[547] | |
| Omega Diatribe | Deviant[548] | |
| Paradise Lost | Icon 30[549] | |
| Visions of Atlantis | A Pirate's Symphony[550] | |
| 4 | Serein (MX) | Earthward (single)[551] |
| Xibalba | Aztlán (EP)[552] | |
| 8 | Atreyu | The Beautiful Dark of Life[553] |
| Dimmu Borgir | Inspiratio Profanus (covers album)[554] | |
| Ektomorf | Vivid Black[555] | |
| Judicator | I Am the Void (EP)[556] | |
| Polkadot Cadaver | Echoes Across the Hellscape[557] | |
| Porcupine Tree | Closure/Continuation.Live (live album)[558] | |
| Trick or Treat | A Creepy Night Live (live album)[559] | |
| 15 | Children of Bodom | A Chapter Called Children of Bodom (The Final Show in Helsinki Ice Hall 2019) (live album)[560] |
| Evergrey | From Dark Discoveries to Heartless Portraits (compilation album)[561] | |
| Hed PE | Detox[562] | |
| Rob Arnold | Menace[563] | |
| Therion | Leviathan III[564] | |
| Troll | Trolldom[565] | |
| 26 | Die Apokalyptischen Reiter | Die Mutter des Teufels (EP)[566] |
| 29 | Lord of the Lost | Weapons of Mass Seduction (covers album)[567] |