Metal and Hardcore

Anvil: Heavy metal's obscure teddy bears

Metal on Fire

The World According to Danzig

Swedish Skull Crush

Long Live the Queen

Immigrant Songs

The Skyflakes -- and the piNoisepop Festival -- put Filipino-American indie music on the map

Track of the Day: Julian Priester

One secret ingredient in the elephantine new Sunn O))) record, Monoliths & Dimensions, is Julian Priester. The murky, dirgey album's coda comes from the trombonist, who adds free jazz to "Alice" after a record's worth of metal, drone, and other bone-compressing free for alls. (He also plays a ... More >>

High on Fire Prepping New Album

​Oakland metalheads High on Fire are hard at work on a new collection of music that frontman Matt Pike promises will share with the masses "the dark seas of our new riffs and tragic stories." Next month they hit the studio to record their fifth album, working with producer Greg Fidelman (Metallica ... More >>

Sunn O))) slowly inverts expectations

​Oakland metalheads High on Fire are hard at work on a new collection of music that frontman Matt Pike promises will share with the masses "the dark seas of our new riffs and tragic stories." Next month they hit the studio to record their fifth album, working with producer Greg Fidelman (Metallica ... More >>

Jersey Boys

Bruce Springsteen and Danzig battle for Garden State supremacy

Blaze of Glory

High on Fire reignites interest in Bay Area metal

Halloween Clips: The Ten Scariest Music Videos of All Time

1. Alice Cooper - "Welcome To My Nightmare"You can't have Halloween without Alice Cooper. From his decapitation-happy live shows to his self-mocking sense of humor, he's rock's king demon. (Sorry, Marilyn--we know how hard you try.) But was Cooper ever better than when accompanied by the Muppets? ... More >>

Last Night: Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High on Fire

​Metalocalypse Tour with Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High on Fire Nov. 21, 2009 San Jose State Event Center Better than: Getting your ass whupped by Glenn Danzig's cartoon twin. It takes a pretty stellar concert lineup to coax even the most fanatical San Francisco music fan all the way to S ... More >>

Hatebreed’s fan-friendly model for survival

​Metalocalypse Tour with Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High on Fire Nov. 21, 2009 San Jose State Event Center Better than: Getting your ass whupped by Glenn Danzig's cartoon twin. It takes a pretty stellar concert lineup to coax even the most fanatical San Francisco music fan all the way to S ... More >>

Listomania: Top Metal Picks For 2009

This year was such a good one for heavy music, I wound up having to cheat when putting this list together. I just couldn't settle on ten albums that kicked my ass the hardest in 2009; there were dozens of candidates. The best I could do was fourteen, so each of my top four slots are ties. ​Mastod ... More >>

High on Fire polishes its metal weaponry

This year was such a good one for heavy music, I wound up having to cheat when putting this list together. I just couldn't settle on ten albums that kicked my ass the hardest in 2009; there were dozens of candidates. The best I could do was fourteen, so each of my top four slots are ties. ​Mastod ... More >>

R.I.P Slipknot's Paul Gray

On Monday, Slipknot's bassist Paul Gray, aka No. 2 or "The Pig" was found dead in a hotel room in suburban Iowa. The nu metal band famous for their growling vocals and concealed identities, showed up unmasked to a Des Moines press conference last night to express their loss: In the video, frontm ... More >>

Danzig, All Shall Perish and Toxic Holocaust at the Regency Ballroom

M. Nunez​DanzigAll Shall PerishToxic Holocaust@The Regency BallroomJune 27, 2010 Better than: The Backstreet Boys show happening around the corner. The photo you see above, of Glen Danzig brooding with his eponymous band during a live performance, is not from the Regency Ballroom last night. The ... More >>

Slayer's Kerry King Talks Messing Up Guitar Solos, the New Metallica, and Playing with the Beastie Boys

Mark SeligerSlayer, with Kerry King at far right​Los Angeles thrash-metal juggernaut Slayer has been kicking ass so ferociously for so long that the word "fucking" has practically been appended to the front of the band's name. Raising the metal bar for brutality and blasphemy over the course of ne ... More >>

Sleep plays stoner metal for an angsty generation

Mark SeligerSlayer, with Kerry King at far right​Los Angeles thrash-metal juggernaut Slayer has been kicking ass so ferociously for so long that the word "fucking" has practically been appended to the front of the band's name. Raising the metal bar for brutality and blasphemy over the course of ne ... More >>

In Burglary, Machine Head Frontman Loses Guitar Given to Him by Dimebag Darrell

Alex SolcaMachine Head, with Flynn second from right​Robb Flynn, frontman for the Grammy-nominated Oakland metal band Machine Head, had a very bad day Tuesday: He returned home from up picking up his son from school to find his Martinez home ransacked -- and two valuable guitars, including one giv ... More >>

The Sword: Show Preview

Alex SolcaMachine Head, with Flynn second from right​Robb Flynn, frontman for the Grammy-nominated Oakland metal band Machine Head, had a very bad day Tuesday: He returned home from up picking up his son from school to find his Martinez home ransacked -- and two valuable guitars, including one giv ... More >>

Metallica May Be Planning (Especially) 'Theatrical' Tour

Who you callin' theatrical?​At first, when we heard that Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich told a New Zealand newspaper that his Bay Area metal band is working on a "theatrical" new tour, were kinda confused. Did he mean a tour of smaller theaters (which would be rad, although likely impossible t ... More >>

Metallica Might Possibly Begin Work on New Album Next Year, Maybe

"This is boring, let's write some songs!"​After nearly two years of touring in support of the 2008 album Death Magnetic -- the return-to-form-of-sorts that followed the musical and image disaster of 2003's St. Anger -- the Bay Area's own Metallica is discussing plans to record its next album. Of c ... More >>

Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, Megadeth Announce Plans to Play Together. Once. In Indio.

​It's called the Big 4 Tour -- Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, and Megadeth, together on one bill -- and finally, after seven shows in Europe, it's coming to the U.S. Only problem is the date and time -- and the fact that as of today's announcement, the long-awaited Big 4 Tour (sorry, make that " ... More >>

Get Your Leather and Chains Ready: It's Motorhead Week in S.F.

​Ladies, gentlemen, and heathens, it is Motorhead week here in San Francisco.It is Motorhead week because the trio itself (consisting, as it long has, of bassist/singer Lemmy Kilmister and a rotating set of guitarists and drummers), is playing the Warfield tomorrow night. This is a chance to see o ... More >>

Rotten Sound on the Future of Metal, Grindcore Vs. Crust Punk, and the Joys of Napalm Death

Mira BornProbably not the most comfy angle from which to have a bunch of grindcore dudes looking at you.​According to a Google search I did about a minute ago, Finland's primary exports include timber, paper products, and meteorological equipment. Assuming that there's some validity to that list, ... More >>

Sizzle & Fizzle: Highs and Lows from the Last Week in S.F. Music

Mira BornProbably not the most comfy angle from which to have a bunch of grindcore dudes looking at you.​According to a Google search I did about a minute ago, Finland's primary exports include timber, paper products, and meteorological equipment. Assuming that there's some validity to that list, ... More >>

Photos from the Big Four Show, with Metallica, Anthrax, Slayer, and Megadeth

Richard HaickMetallica at the Big Four fest​ The Big Four Festival: Metallica Megadeth Anthrax Slayer Empire Polo Grounds, Indio, CA April 24, 2011 Well, the Big Four show -- featuring metal titans Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax -- finally arrived in the U.S for a one-off show. The ... More >>

Big 4 Tour: Are More U.S. Dates Likely for Metallica, Slayer, Anthrax, and Megadeth?

Richard HaickWide-eyed Kirk Hammet, coming soon to a major city near you?​ Pretty much since the moment we heard about the Big 4 tour, we've been wanting to see it hit the U.S. Interstate system. Metallica, Megadeth, Slayer, and Anthrax have played dates all over Europe, so when they announced ... More >>

So Metallica's Cliff Burton Inspired Joseph Gordon-Levitt's Character in Hesher

​Which isn't totally surprising: The Bay Area foursome was pretty darn hesher, especially back in the days when bassist Cliff Burton was in the band, before he died tragically in a 1986 bus accident. Back then, Metallica was drink, grow hair, play metal. Repeat. Maybe add a little drugs and wo ... More >>

Lou Reed on Metallica Project: 'Maybe the Best Thing Done by Anyone, Ever'

Reed with Metallica's James Hetfield: The creation of a new planetary system?​ Lou Reed is not one for modesty, ladies and gentlemen. We told you last week about his new collaboration with Metallica, which was recorded right up the road from S.F. at Metallica's studio in San Rafael. The as-ye ... More >>

Metallica to Celebrate 30 Years with Fan Club-Only Shows at the Fillmore

Metallica: Pushing 30.​ Metallica, the biggest heavy metal band in the world, turns 30 years old this December. How old does that make you feel? Considering we were young enough when ...And Justice For All came out to be truly frightened by the "One" video (like, call our mom at work scared), ... More >>

New Book Murder in the Front Row Tells the Story of Bay Area Thrash Metal in Pictures

Metallica, way back when.​ Everyone knows Metallica. But not everyone knows that Metallica was the product of a full-blown '80s thrash metal scene in the Bay Area -- a scene that fostered other notable local bands like Testament, Death Angel, and Exodus. These weren't the makeup-wearing pretty ... More >>

Anthrax's Scott Ian on Making a Brilliant New Album and Possibly Bringing the Big Four Tour to S.F.

Anthrax, with Scott Ian at the far right.​ California may have been the epicenter of the emerging thrash-metal scene at the dawn of the 1980s, but the NYC headbangers of Anthrax unquestionably earned their place in the genre's history. As an East Coast counterpart and early ally of Metallica, ... More >>

Sizzle & Fizzle: Highs and Lows from the Last Week in S.F. Music

Anthrax, with Scott Ian at the far right.​ California may have been the epicenter of the emerging thrash-metal scene at the dawn of the 1980s, but the NYC headbangers of Anthrax unquestionably earned their place in the genre's history. As an East Coast counterpart and early ally of Metallica, ... More >>

Sunday: Anthrax, Testament, and Death Angel Obliterate the Warfield with Help From Metallica's Kirk Hammett

Richard HaickAnthrax at the Warfield on Sunday.​ Anthrax Testament Death Angel Chimaira Oct. 23, 2011 The Warfield Better than: Listening to the new Loutallica album online. Bay Area thrash-metal fans still waiting for Metallica to bring the Big 4 Tour to their hometown got to enjoy a neck- ... More >>

Beavis and Butt-Head Return Tonight. Here Are Six of Their Greatest Musical Insights

They're back! The horror!​The world-at-large is bound to associate a few things with Beavis and Butt-Head: the '90s, a ballsier MTV, low-grade animation, juvenile delinquency, crude sex talk, and two idiots who loved fire, cappuccinos, and causing mayhem. Another major B&B element that should ... More >>

R.I.P. GWAR Guitarist Cory Smoot, AKA Flattus Maximus

GWAR's Flattus Maximus (Cory Smoot)​ GWAR lead guitarist Cory Smoot, aka Flattus Maximus, was found dead by his bandmates yesterday as their tour bus prepared to cross the Canadian border. His age and the cause of death are currently unknown. Smoot's passing is especially unfortunate as it c ... More >>

GWAR Cancels Friday, Nov. 11, Show at Regency Ballroom

GWAR​ Looks like there'll be no onstage dismemberment for you, Bay Area metalheads: Not even a week after GWAR's guitarist, Cory Smoot, died suddenly in his tour bus bunk, the venerable costumed metal band everyone knows canceled the San Francisco show scheduled for this Friday at Regency Ball ... More >>

We're Looking for a Few Metallica Superfans in the Bay Area -- Are You One?

These your boys? Prove it.​ Does this ever happen to you? In a casual conversation, you nonchalantly mention that, despite Napster, Lulu, and James Hetfield not having long hair anymore, you still like Metallica. Then the person you're talking to goes, "You still like Metallica? Who likes Meta ... More >>

We're Celebrating Metallica's 30th Anniversary All This Week

Metallica fans lined up outside the Fillmore on Monday afternoon.​ See also: We're Looking for a Few Metallica Superfans in the Bay Area -- Are You One? Can't Make It to Metallica's 30th Anniversary Concerts? Celebrate at These Shows Instead All this week, we're excited to bring you special ... More >>

Six Signs of Metallica's Pervasive Influence on Pop Culture

​ See more of our Metallica Week coverage: Metallica Kicks off Its 30th Anniversary Week with Notable Guests, Rare Songs, and Lots of Talking Sad But True: How the Black Album Both Made and Ruined Metallica Can't Make It to Metallica's 30th Anniversary Concerts? Celebrate at These Shows In ... More >>

Author Brian Lew on the Early Days of Metallica and the Bay Area Thrash Metal Scene

Brian Lew Cliff Burton playing live with Metallica for the first time at the Stone in San Francisco, 1983​ See more of our Metallica Week coverage: Six Signs of Metallica's Pervasive Influence on Pop Culture Metallica Kicks off Its 30th Anniversary Week with Notable Guests, Rare Songs, and L ... More >>

Metallica Brings Out Lou Reed, Kid Rock, Mercyful Fate, and More as the 30th Anniversary Party Continues

Metallica at the Fillmore Wednesday night. Notice that James Hetfield isn't wearing a shirt.​ See more of our Metallica Week coverage: Author Brian Lew on the Early Days of Metallica and the Bay Area Thrash Metal Scene Six Signs of Metallica's Pervasive Influence on Pop Culture Metallica Ki ... More >>

'James Hetfield Is a Rapper,' and Other Awesomely Blasphemous Metallica Mashups

Onemoredisco.comOne More Disco's Metallica remix contest drew intriguing entries.​ See more of our Metallica Week coverage: Metallica Brings Out Lou Reed, Kid Rock, Mercyful Fate, and More as the 30th Anniversary Party Continues Author Brian Lew on the Early Days of Metallica and the Bay Ar ... More >>

10 Actually Good Songs on Metallica's Despised Load and Reload Albums

It's not that bad. Really.​ As we celebrate Metallica's 30th Anniversary, it's time to reexamine a popular mindset among critics and fans of the most enduringly popular band in metal history: Many believe that that all four of Metallica's 1980s albums were unimpeachable classics, and that afte ... More >>

Metallica Turns 30 with Ozzy, Danzig, Rob Halford, and a Roomful of Fanatics

Metallica performing with Glenn Danzig Friday night at the Fillmore.​ Metallica (plus guests) Dec. 9 and 10, 2011 The Fillmore Better than: Turning 30 alone, we're assuming. The birthday party for the biggest metal band in the world came to its finale this weekend with classic songs and surp ... More >>

Assessing Metallica After 30 Years and Four Nights at the Fillmore

Metallica performing with Glenn Danzig Friday night at the Fillmore.​ Metallica (plus guests) Dec. 9 and 10, 2011 The Fillmore Better than: Turning 30 alone, we're assuming. The birthday party for the biggest metal band in the world came to its finale this weekend with classic songs and surp ... More >>