West Des Moines, Iowa black metal project whose 2016 EP From the Depths of the Dark Fortress channels dungeon-synth aesthetics through black metal from the Des Moines suburbs. Midwestern isolation transformed into medieval darkness.

Houston black/doom metal project blending cosmic horror with crushing heaviness from Space City, the name itself a portmanteau hinting at astrological and occult themes.

Philadelphia black metal act adding to the City of Brotherly Love's surprisingly deep extreme metal scene, channeling urban darkness through frigid atmospheric aggression.

Central California black metal project that moved from Santa Cruz to Los Osos. Five releases since 2011 including the pointedly titled Anhedonia deliver atmospheric black metal informed by the Central Coast's moody fog-shrouded landscapes.

Icard, North Carolina black metal project with three releases since 2012. Operating from a tiny Catawba County community, they prove atmospheric black metal can emerge from the most unlikely corners of the rural South.

Los Angeles black metal project whose EPs Remember and Hiraeth — the Welsh word for an untranslatable longing for home — channel exile and nostalgia through atmospheric extremity since 2023.

Florida black metal project named after the ceremonial blade used in Wiccan rituals. Three releases since 2016 including The Burning Times — referencing the historical persecution of alleged witches — channel occult feminism through atmospheric black metal.

Coeur d'Alene, Idaho black metal project drawing from Northern Idaho's forested mountain landscape to fuel atmospheric, nature-inspired extremity.

Texas black metal act named after the anxiety medication, channeling the Lone Star State's vast emptiness into raw, medicated darkness.

Seattle black metal project whose name references the legendary Pipil warrior, bringing Central American historical themes to the Pacific Northwest's atmospheric black metal scene.

Kent, Ohio doom band from the college town that birthed Devo, delivering a very different kind of heavy — slow, meditative, and crushingly weighty.

Mission Viejo, California black metal project whose 2018 debut En Trance plays on the double meaning of entrance and entrancement. Atmospheric black metal from Orange County's suburban sprawl.

Virginia Beach black metal project with nine releases since 2020, including the memorably titled Bootymania. The wrestling-move name and irreverent titles suggest a band that refuses to take black metal's solemnity at face value.

Alameda, California black metal and speed metal project whose releases channel the Bay Area's fog-shrouded atmosphere through raw extremity since 2012. The German-inflected name adds a martial edge.

Death metal project named after the ancient Mesopotamian flood narrative, operating from an undisclosed location with mythology-driven extremity.