Knoxville's Grimsteel fuse power metal's melodic ambition with progressive metal's structural complexity, crafting songs that move through dynamic shifts without losing the epic quality that makes the genre soar. Since 2019, they've been one of the more musically ambitious acts to emerge from the Tennessee underground.

From the Rio Grande Valley, Guillen push progressive and experimental death metal into uncommonly strange territory — unconventional song structures, challenging rhythms, and a willingness to sacrifice accessibility for artistic vision. Since 2012, they've been one of the most distinctive voices from South Texas.