Corona, California melodic death metal solo project by A.C. Riddle, formed in 2013 and notable for a prolific early run that produced four albums in under two years across releases like The Dark Realms and Makeria. Norse mythological themes anchor the lyrical content, and the project draws on the melodic death metal tradition with layered guitar work and dense sonic arrangements released through Senseless Life Records.

The Red Chord formed in Revere, Massachusetts in 1999 and carved out a distinctive position in extreme metal by combining death metal brutality, grindcore velocity, and metallic hardcore chaos in a way that presaged the deathcore genre before that term solidified. Their 2002 debut Fused Together in Revolving Doors introduced a fanbase to their erratic, high-density approach, and Clients (2005) sold over 50,000 copies in the United States. Prey for Eyes (2007) and Fed Through the Teeth Machine (2009) both charted on the Billboard 200. After a period of inactivity beginning around 2015, the band returned to live performance in 2022.

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina death metal and grindcore outfit founded in 2013, specializing in the short, savage burst of sonic violence that the genre demands. Their approach leans into pulverizing downtuned riffs and relentless drum work with minimal concern for subtlety.

Independence, Missouri deathcore act with roots going back to 2007, combining the technical brutality of death metal with the breakdown-driven structure and vocal aggression that defines the deathcore template. They are among the longer-running acts in a subgenre prone to short lifespans.

Utah death metal project formed in 2021, excavating the bleaker end of the genre with an emphasis on crushing low-end and the kind of punishing tempo shifts that make death metal physically compelling. A newer act building a catalog in a state with a small but serious underground metal scene.

Hutchinson, Kansas act The Space Between pursue the crushing middle ground between death metal's aggression and doom's suffocating weight, forging death-doom that moves at a glacial, deliberate pace. Formed in 2019, their sound is marked by low tunings and a relentless sense of dread.

Olympia, Washington's The Speed of Darkness blend melodic death metal's harmonic sensibility with metalcore's dynamic structure and outright death metal brutality, crafting a sound that moves between melody and devastation with ease. Formed in 2019, the band draws from the Pacific Northwest's experimental heavy music tradition.

Boston's The Spiral Continuum arrived in 2023 as a technical death metal project committed to complex, labyrinthine song structures that spiral outward into unexpected rhythmic and harmonic territory. Operating out of a city with a deep extreme metal history, the band represents a younger generation of New England tech-death.

Prestonsburg, Kentucky's The Splitting fuse the corrosive weight of sludge metal with death metal's brutality, producing something rawer and more rural-feeling than the polished end of either genre. Active since 2015, they belong to the Appalachian underground where heaviness is measured in density and slow punishment.