upcoming gig

Bristol's Metal Scene

The wealth of metal events in Bristol is drawn from a rich metal heritage in the city, classic local bands include: Onslaught, Gonga, Jaguar and Evita. A lot of the best events are in underground pubs like the Gryphon and Mother's Ruin where you can hear big riffs and roared vocals most nights of the week - with strong support from the metal scene elsewhere in the West of England.

As well as older cover-style bands at German boozer Bierkeller, you can see larger international acts at Bristol's bigger venues like O2 Academy and Colston Hall. The city's Old Market area is full of old biker-gang hangouts like the Packhorse - with various shops selling metal memorabilia and records - perfect for the morning after a big gig.

Buy tickets for metal events in Bristol

Our recent metal recommendations

Sell out warning! Norwich’s super-underrated Algae Bloom take a final Bristol bow with a playthrough of their now-classic debut release. The skramz duo are masters of dark transcendental bliss brewed through yelpy bursts of energy, scattershot rhythms and spindly arpeggios. Unmissable ferocity FFO: Snowing, Dreamwell, Unwound, Algernon Cadwallader. Algae Bloom 10 Year Anniversary Show at Cafe Kino.

Sabbath / Pentagram / Cathedral worshippers proceed to the Temple of Doom, where 8 seasoned covens of downtuned amp witches and warlocks assemble for black mass fuzz bass, desecrated sludge riffing and screeching stoner sermons. 8 hours of ritual headbanging awaits thee – make sure your chiropractor’s on speed dial. TEMPLE OF DOOM VOL. II at Loco Klub.

Sell out warning! Windmill-tastic old skool metalcore as it should be: emotionally fraught and utterly punishing. A Mourning Star kick down the door then set it alight with Crowquill’s skramzy mathcore chaos and can’t-see-em-enough local emoviolence miscreants Cainhurst. Blowout blowouts are the best blowouts FFO: Undying, 7 Angels 7 Plagues, Your Spirit Dies, Converge. A Mourning Star at The Croft.

Can you see Bad Breeding enough? Well, it depends what’s for starters eh? One of the most crucial outfits of the last decades bring their sandpaper-abrasion hxc death-knells to bear again, with Shitty Futures sponsored support from Zenocide’s face-slashingly dark punk metal, Shishu’s primitive feedback pounding and dungeon drone folk from the Bruxism-adjacent unit Say God. Sign us the fuck up then… Bad Breeding, Zenocide, Shishu, & Say, God at The Golden Lion.

What our editors say

“Monochrome returns to once again celebrate ugliness and excess. Set in the heart of Bristol, you'll find a diverse lineup of weirdo metal, gnarled punk and ear splitting noise, in a welcoming and inclusive environment. Lineup and venues TBA but early bird tickets on sale now if you want to grab a bargain”
From: Festival of Ugly Music

“An influential New Orleans sludge metal outfit, Eyehategod emerged in the early 1990s with an ugly and uncompromising blend of doomy, bluesy punk, and misanthropic metal that quickly pushed them to the fore of the fertile NOLA metal scene. Since debuting in 1990 with In the Name of Suffering, the band have amassed a loyal following with potent and disorienting efforts like Take as Needed for Pain (1993), Confederacy of Ruined Lives (2000), and A History of Nomadic Behavior (2021).”
From: Eyehategod + Rwake + Intercourse

“Effigy presents BÆST 7pm doors £16 Adv Following their absolutely killer set alongside Bleed From Within last week, we are stoked to announce that critically acclaimed Danish death metallers, BÆST, will return to Bristol this fall. The band are known for their buzzsaw guitar tone, high-energy live shows and consistent five-member line-up. Check out their latest slab of wickedness; 2025’s, Colossal, and be sure not to miss of modern European metal’s finest. No god, no king, Bristol said love is the thing.”
From: BÆST

“The Five Hundred With Eschalon and The Mechanist A force in UK heavy metal, hail from Nottingham’s industrial heartland. Emerging in the early 2010s, they crafted a sound blending metalcore’s raw intensity with the precision of djent and progressive metal. Their name symbolises unity and strength, mirroring their tightly knit, high-energy musical synergy that has solidified them as a dominant presence in the UK metal scene. 7pm doors £10 Adv Please note the basement is not wheelchair accessible and is accessed by a narrow enclosed staircase. For more accessibility info, please email [email protected]”
From: The Five Hundred

“Downloaded are a high-energy tribute band celebrating Download Festival, with a setlist packed full of crowd favourite songs from the festival’s biggest acts. Downloaded cover everything from pop punk to nu-metal, from Green Day to Slipknot, and everything in between. Experience the rush of Download Festival without the tent and muddy fields Exchange has a small ramp entrance from the street.”
From: Downloaded - Download Festival Tribute