Agarwaen is a black metal project named after the Sindarin word meaning 'bloodstained' from Tolkien's legendarium. Their 2019 debut "Dottore I" delivers eight tracks of Tolkien-inspired black metal.

Agent Slimepunk is a Florida-based project that began as melodic death metal before veering into glitch, dubstep, and electronica. The schizophrenic evolution across four releases — from death metal to electronic music and back — makes this one of the more unpredictable acts in the dataset.

Agonist is a melodic death metal band from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania. Not to be confused with Canadian band The Agonist, this act has released three recordings including the full-length "Liwjatan I" and the EP "Funerary Desecration," both in 2020.

Chico, California deathcore and melodeath project. Ethereal extremity from Northern California's Sacramento Valley.

New York City power metal and speed metal project. The predatory name promises hunting music from Manhattan.

Spokane, Washington melodic death metal project. The pseudo-academic study of drinking channeled through Scandinavian-influenced heaviness.

New York melodic death metal project. The name's fairy-tale imagery belies the Scandinavian-influenced aggression beneath.

Plainfield, Connecticut melodic death metal band active since 2009 with three releases across four years. Their sound channels the Gothenburg school through a New England lens, mixing melodic leads with death metal aggression.

Asheville, North Carolina black/thrash/punk band ripping through the Blue Ridge Mountains since 2014. Four releases deep, they channel Venom and Midnight into a Southern-fried blackened speed attack with a punk rock backbone.