After five straight years of sold-out devastation, Melbourne Dethfest returns in 2027 with its most colossal edition yet. Australia's premier extreme metal festival will descend upon The Croxton, Thornbury for the first time, transforming the venue into a two-stage, all-day celebration of everything heavy, brutal and uncompromising. Leading the charge are none other than Swedish death metal titans BLOODBATH, making their long-awaited return to Australia to headline an absolutely monstrous lineup. With three international artists set to appear alongside the country's finest extreme metal acts, Melbourne Dethfest 2027 promises the biggest lineup, biggest production and biggest day of underground metal the festival has ever assembled.

PALEFACE SWISS are the fastest rising force in heavy music today. Anyone who has borne witness to their live shows, critics and fans alike, can attest that their dominance is unassailable. Their trajectory unstoppable.

As Australia and New Zealand prepare to surrender to the might of AUGUST BURNS RED this September and October, the GRAMMY Award-nominated stalwarts have announced today that while Sydney's BLOOM are unfortunately no longer able to perform later this year, Melbourne cinemacore outfit THE GLOOM IN THE CORNER and Melbourne post-hardcore quartet FALLWEATHER will be joining proceedings, alongside I PROMISED THE WORLD (USA) on Australian dates only.

Extreme metal history collides in April 2027 as Norway’s blackened thrash masters Aura Noir and American Black 'n' Roll maniacs MIDNIGHT unite for a special co-headlining appearance at Brutefest 2027 at The Tote in Melbourne.

Due to incredible demand, Killswitch Engage have added second show at Powerstation in Auckland and a brand new in Newcastle show at Bar On The Hill. Legends of modern heavy music, Killswitch Engage return to Australia and New Zealand in 2026, bringing more than two decades of genre-defining metal to the stage with their biggest Antipodean headline shows yet, joined by special guests, British heavyweights, Sylosis.

Off the back of last year’s fully sold-out Australian tour supporting thrown, Germany’s fastest-rising heavy exports Half Me will return to Australia in October for their ever first Headline tour of the country.

For the first time in an ever evolving 21 year history, the explosive and genre defying French act IGORRR at last cast their unclassifiable magic across Australia. Created and spearheaded by French multi-instrumentalist Gautier Serre, the IGORRR name has expanded from one man's pseudonym to become a full group identity, which has brought a new level of intensity into the live representations.

VINDICTA support bands announced for their first Aussie tour. Support the local bands with their discounted access codes. Use the code word SUPPORT at checkout and you will receive a $10 discount.

Set amongst the bushland confines of Dashville, at Lower Belford in the Hunter Valley, Thrashville is ready to return at the darkest time of year, Saturday 27th June 2026. An incredible one day explosion of punk, rock, metal and all in between, lead by American punk pioneers FEAR, who will travel to Australia for the first time (and perhaps their last time?) in their fifty-year career.

Set to heat up Australian stages this July and August like the thick and humid swamps of their hometown, Florida juggernauts WAGE WAR announce that due to overwhelming demand, Melbourne's venue for Saturday 2 August has been upgrade to the Forum, with Brisbane and Sydney shows also selling fast.

Melbourne has spoken! Killswitch Engage’s first Forum show is now sold out, and we’re adding a second night. Monday, November 9 @ The Forum.

In the world of prog metal, few bands are spoken of in such hushed tones and reverence as SOEN. Renowned for their cinematic soundscapes, intricate musicianship, and emotionally charged and intense performances; they have carved out a distinctive space in the music world. Their music blends atmospheric prog, heavy riffs, and introspective lyrics, earning them a dedicated global following and universal critical praise.

Australian deathcore juggernauts To The Grave will return home this September for the Nail Australia To The Walls Australian Tour, delivering eight shows across the country as they prepare to unleash the next chapter of their already formidable career.

In 2026, New Jersey hell-raisers LORNA SHORE will return to Australian shores, with an arena headline tour locked in this October, along with the announcement today of their first ever New Zealand performances. Joined by special guests and fellow American deathcore merchants WHITECHAPEL for all Australian shows, Massachusetts heavy hitters THE ACACIA STRAIN will also support throughout the entire run. Additionally, local New Zealand death metallers ORGANECTOMY will open on NZ dates only.

In 2026, the Oddworld returns to home soil, with OCEAN GROVE today announcing their Oddworld Underground Australian Tour this August, joined by special guests CANE HILL (USA), who will return to Australia for the first time in a decade this year, as well as DEFICIT and BLINDER.

Shat out of hell? Indeed. The epically unpronounceable, utterly indecipherable and altogether uncompromising gore merchants, Sanguisugabogg, are returning to Australia next month with special guests PeelingFlesh.

Legends of modern heavy music, Killswitch Engage return to Australia and New Zealand in 2026, bringing more than two decades of genre-defining metal to the stage with their biggest Antipodean headline shows yet, joined by special guests, British heavyweights, Sylosis.

‘’To all our fans in Australia, unfortunately our airline has cancelled all of our return flights due to the routing through the Middle East. We booked these flights back in December, but due to the current conflict, all our flights have been cancelled. This is a huge blow to us and is beyond our control, we tried many other ways to get Down Under, but with only weeks to go until the shows, this has become impossible. The band, management and the promoter have exhausted all options, there simply isn't anything we can do at such a late stage. Fear not, we are still coming. We have rescheduled the shows to April 2027, so please hang onto your tickets they will remain valid, if the new dates don’t suit you, full refunds will be given. We thank you for your support and we will see you at the new shows.’’

GAEREA is one of the rare bands where the boundaries between life and art not merely intertwine but forge a totality that you not only hear on record but one that also plays out in the band’s explosive live performance. Swathed entirely in black with their distinct sigil occupying the space where their faces should be, there’s both a totality and anonymity that’s transcendent and binding when the fivesome takes stage; a distinct, hermetic code that connects all aspects of the band from the musical to the spiritual.

For the first time ever down under, US thrash metal legends Flotsam and Jetsam will join forces with Australian thrash pioneers Mortal Sin for a devastating co-headline tour across Australia this September and October.

One can’t overstate the size of the FEAR FACTORY boot print on the neck of heavy metal. Unleashing influential albums with devastating anthems for 35 years now, they are widely recognized as both crucial and innovative in extreme metal circles. FEAR FACTORY manufactured, demanufactured, and remanufactured a sound that reverberates across several subgenres. They perfected an explosive blend of staccato paint-stripping riffs, industrial-tinged drums, electronic flourishes, and a scream/sing dichotomy, all of which became staples in heavy music, ever since the group first emerged in L.A

Ferocious and uncompromising in their execution, CARCASS’s ability to intricately dissect the innards of death metal, and display them for us to sonically understand has been their point of excellence for nearly four decades. Whether it was inventing gore-grind or creating the template for melodic death metal, CARCASS has always made records by which bars were set and rules were broken.

Australia, get set to step into oblivion and mosh until the world goes cold this October when GRAMMY Award-nominated metal pioneers LAMB OF GOD team up with fellow modern metal lords TRIVIUM for a mammoth national co-headline run, joined by special guests BLEED FROM WITHIN.

Australia, some spectacular savagery is headed your way this July and August, with Florida metalcore juggernauts WAGE WAR bringing the 'It Calls Me By Name' world tour down under, joined by special guests ORTHODOX (USA) and HEAVENSGATE.

Gothenburg, Sweden's finest export, Evergrey, have unfortunately had to postpone their Australian tour which was due to begin on April 28 in Perth due to their inbound flights being cancelled by Qatar Airlines.

The highly successful resurrection of THE KOVENANT sees them hurtling through Australia for the very first time with a special performance of their much revered and critically acclaimed album ‘Nexus Polaris’.

Australia will finally witness one of the most influential names in extreme metal when Brazilian cult pioneers Sarcófago make their long-awaited Australian debut in August 2026. Led by original bassist Geraldo Minelli and performing alongside his band The Laws, the project will bring the raw, uncompromising sound that helped define early black and death metal to Australian audiences for the first time. The performances will take place in Sydney and Melbourne, delivering a ferocious set drawn from the band’s landmark catalogue.

Australia and New Zealand, prepare to surrender to the might of AUGUST BURNS RED this September and October, with the GRAMMY Award-nominated stalwarts set to return to our shores joined by special guests BLOOM, as well as I PROMISED THE WORLD (USA) on Australian dates only.

One of the most influential acts in modern metal and hardcore, in 2026 Florida heavyweights POISON THE WELL will head down under this June for their first Australian performances since 2009 performing 'The Opposite Of December' in its entirety with Boston chaos merchants HAYWIRE and Melbourne's IRON MIND.

Hardline Media are proud present a dual headline tour, from the Cold Dark Depths of Norway and Siberia featuring MORTIIS and NYTT LAND, with special guest TiR from Türkiye, performing their SOUTHERN RITUAL in late November across Australia.

Gold Coast metal icons Sunk Loto return to the stage in August playing their first shows since 2023. Hitting the Crowbars and the Corner with new single Dead Shadows front and centre.

Australia… you thought they forgot! They did not. They waited. They sharpened their claws. They let the forest grow wilder, darker, hungrier. Three years is a blink in eternity, yet long enough for the trees to learn your secrets. Now they return not as visitors, but as conquerors. Bring your torches. Bring your madness. Bring your soul laid bare.

SOILENT GREEN from New Orleans, USA, are well known as one of the world's premiere Grindcore/Sludge Metal bands. The band's 1990s and early-2000s albums are regarded as trendsetting for the Grindcore genre, with a Rolling Stone article listing Soilent Green as one of the "ten most important hard and heavy bands" of the late 1990s.

Shat out of hell? Indeed. The epically unpronounceable, utterly indecipherable and altogether uncompromising gore merchants, Sanguisugabogg, are returning to Australia in June 2026 with special guests PeelingFlesh.

CANDLEMASS will bring their monumental sound to Australian shores this September and October for a long-awaited debut tour in Melbourne, Sydney and Perth.

This August, Tasmania's finest export, extreme metal pioneers, Psycroptic join like-minded-and-saxophone-wielding US progressive death wizards Rivers of Nihil for a co-headline tour that brings together two elite bands operating at the highest tier of modern death metal.

When British extreme metal legends CRADLE OF FILTH and American metal titans DEVILDRIVER, two of heavy music’s most iconic and ferocious bands - each with a stellar reputation for incredible live shows - joined forces for a North American tour in 2023 the results were predictably amazing and the synergy undeniable.

GAEREA is one of the rare bands where the boundaries between life and art not merely intertwine but forge a totality that you not only hear on record but one that also plays out in the band’s explosive live performance.

Shat out of hell? Indeed. The epically unpronounceable, utterly indecipherable and altogether uncompromising gore merchants, Sanguisugabogg, are returning to Australia in June 2026 with special guests PeelingFlesh.

One of the most influential acts in modern metal and hardcore, in 2026 Florida heavyweights POISON THE WELL will at long last again be at arm's length for Aussie fans, heading down under for their Australian headline tour in June, joined by special guests HAYWIRE (USA).

Paradise Lost remain the undisputed monarchs of metal’s dark frontier. Formed in Halifax in 1988, they quickly carved out their legacy as pioneers of gothic metal; a brooding fusion of crushing heaviness and shadow‑drenched melody.

Finnish progressive metal legends AMORPHIS will return to Australian shores for the first time in 13 years this September 2026, bringing their atmospheric power and mythic storytelling to Brisbane, Canberra, Melbourne, and Sydney.

September 2026 – Prepare your necks and brace your ears — SHRED FEST 2026 is coming! The renowned travelling metal festival will storm across Australia and New Zealand, delivering an unmatched celebration of technical excellence, intensity, and musical precision.

Gore Metal kings EXHUMED (USA) hit the blood-soaked road in 2026, announcing their long-awaited return to Australia and New Zealand in support of their brand-new album Red Asphalt, out February 20, 2026 via Relapse Records.

Hardline Media are stoked to announce the inaugural and triumphant Reckoning tour of VINDICTA. Adelaide, Melbourne, Sydney & Brisbane, it’s your turn…Born from the ruins of greatness, VINDICTA rise, more original and even greater than before. Australian believers, we heard your call…vocalist Grace Pasturini (Lilith) and guitarists Amber Maldonado (Lamia) and Patri Grief (Rusalka) will be descending down under in June 2026

Australia, prepare for impact — American technical death metal legends ORIGIN are returning to obliterate stages across the country for the first time in over a decade. Being hailed as one of the most ferociously technical and forward-thinking bands in extreme metal; ORIGIN Return to Australia in June 2026 to obliterate stages in the cities of Adelaide, Brisbane, Canberra, Frankston, Melbourne and Sydney

Shat out of hell? Indeed. The epically unpronounceable, utterly indecipherable and altogether uncompromising gore merchants, Sanguisugabogg, are returning to Australia in June 2026 with special guests PeelingFlesh.