Artists like Metallica

Pantera is an American heavy metal band formed in Arlington, Texas, in 1981 by the Abbott brothers, and currently composed of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-known lineup consisted of the Abbott brothers along with Brown and Anselmo, who joined in 1982 and 1986, respectively. The band is credited for developing and popularizing the subgenre of groove metal in the 1990s. Regarded as one of the most successful and influential bands in heavy metal history, Pantera has sold around 20 million records worldwide and has received four Grammy nominations.

Testament is an American thrash metal band from Berkeley, California. Formed in 1983 under the name Legacy, the band's current lineup includes rhythm guitarist Eric Peterson, lead vocalist Chuck Billy, lead guitarist Alex Skolnick, bassist Steve Di Giorgio and drummer Chris Dovas. Testament has experienced many lineup changes over the years, with Peterson being the only remaining original member. The band has released fourteen studio albums, four live albums, five compilation albums, thirteen singles and three DVDs. They are estimated to have sold over 1.4 million albums in the United States since the beginning of the SoundScan era, and over 14 million copies worldwide as of 2016.

Exodus is an American thrash metal band formed in 1979 in Richmond, California. Their current lineup consists of guitarists Gary Holt and Lee Altus, bassist Jack Gibson, drummer Tom Hunting and lead vocalist Rob Dukes. Notable former members of the band include vocalists Paul Baloff and Steve "Zetro" Souza, drummers John Tempesta and Paul Bostaph, and founding guitarist Kirk Hammett who later joined fellow Bay Area thrash metal band Metallica. There are no original members left in Exodus other than Hunting, who had departed from the band twice, in 1989 and 2004, but rejoined in 2007. Holt, who has been in the band since 1981, is the only member to appear on every Exodus album. Much of the band's career has been affected by lineup changes, feuds between both band members and record companies, two extended hiatuses, deaths of former band members, and drug addictions.

Overkill is an American thrash metal band, formed in 1980 in New Jersey. They have gone through many lineup changes, leaving bassist D.D. Verni and lead vocalist Bobby "Blitz" Ellsworth as the only remaining original members. The band's current lineup includes Verni, Ellsworth, Dave Linsk on lead guitar, Derek "The Skull" Tailer on rhythm guitar, and Jeramie Kling on drums. Notable former members include guitarists Dan Spitz, Bobby Gustafson, Merritt Gant and Joe Comeau, and drummers Rat Skates and Jason Bittner.

AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formative influence on the new wave of British heavy metal bands. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2003 and have sold over 200 million records worldwide, making them one of the best-selling artists of all time.

Guns N' Roses is an American hard rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1985 from L.A. Guns and Hollywood Rose. After signing with Geffen Records in 1986, the band's "classic" lineup featured vocalist Axl Rose, lead guitarist Slash, rhythm guitarist Izzy Stradlin, bassist Duff McKagan, and drummer Steven Adler.

Machine Head is an American heavy metal band from Oakland, California. The band was formed in 1991 by vocalist/guitarist Robb Flynn, who remains the only original member of the band. Machine Head's aggressive musicianship made it one of the pioneering bands in the new wave of American heavy metal. Its current lineup comprises Flynn, bassist Jared MacEachern, drummer Matt Alston and guitarist Reece Scruggs. Bassist Adam Duce, guitarists Logan Mader, Ahrue Luster, Phil Demmel and Wacław Kiełtyka, and drummers Tony Costanza, Chris Kontos and Dave McClain are former members of the band; Mader and Kontos toured with the band in 2019 and 2020 as part of the 25th anniversary tour for its first album, Burn My Eyes (1994).

Death Angel is a Filipino-American thrash metal band from Daly City, California, initially active from 1982 to 1991 and again since 2001. They have released nine studio albums, two demo tapes, one box set and three live albums. The band has gone through several lineup changes, leaving guitarist Rob Cavestany as the only constant member; he and vocalist Mark Osegueda are the only members who appear on all of their studio albums.

Sacred Reich is an American thrash metal band from Phoenix, Arizona, formed in 1985. As of 2025, the band's lineup has consisted of vocalist-bassist Phil Rind, lead guitarist Wiley Arnett, rhythm guitarist Joey Radziwill, and drummer Eduardo Baldo. Former members include rhythm guitarist Jason Rainey, and drummers Greg Hall and Dave McClain. Their music often features mid-tempo song structures as well as musical and lyrical influences from punk rock and hardcore punk, with their lyrics focusing on political and social topics. The band is credited with leading the second wave of thrash metal in the late 1980s.

Nuclear Assault was an American thrash metal band formed in New York City in 1984. Part of the mid-to-late 1980s thrash metal movement, they were one of the main bands of the genre to emerge from the East Coast, along with Overkill, Whiplash, Toxik, Carnivore, and Anthrax, the last of which was co-founded by Nuclear Assault bassist Dan Lilker, who had been fired from Anthrax shortly after the release of their first album. Nuclear Assault released five full-length albums and toured relentlessly throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, and broke up in 1995. The band reunited briefly in 1997, and permanently from 2001 to 2008 and again from 2011 to 2022.

Soulfly is a Brazilian-American heavy metal band formed in Phoenix, Arizona in 1997. Soulfly is led by former Sepultura frontman Max Cavalera, who formed the band after he left the Brazilian group in 1996. To date the band has released thirteen studio albums, one tour EP, twenty-three singles, one video album, and twelve music videos. Their debut album, Soulfly, was released on April 21, 1998, while their most recent album, Chama, was released in October 2025.

Havok is an American thrash metal band from Denver, Colorado, formed in 2004. As of 2024, their current lineup consists of frontman David Sanchez, drummer Pete Webber, and bassist Nick Schendzielos. They have gone through a number of personnel changes, with each album featuring a different lineup, and leaving Sanchez as the only remaining original member left in the band.

Evile are an English thrash metal band from Huddersfield, formed in 2004. They have experienced numerous line-up changes over the years, with drummer Ben Carter being the only member of the original line-up to have stayed consistently. The current line-up consists of Carter, bassist Joel Graham, lead guitarist and vocalist Ol Drake, and rhythm guitarist Adam Smith, who replaced Drake's older brother Matt in 2020.

The Birthday Massacre is a Canadian rock band formed in 1999 in London, Ontario and currently based in Toronto. The current lineup consists of lead vocalist Sara 'Chibi' Taylor, rhythm guitarist Michael Rainbow, lead guitarist Michael Falcore, keyboardist Owen Mackinder, drummer Philip Elliott, and bassist Brett Carruthers.

Corrosion of Conformity is an American heavy metal band from Raleigh, North Carolina, formed in 1982. The band has undergone multiple lineup changes throughout its existence, with lead guitarist Woody Weatherman as the sole constant member. Weatherman, founding bassist Mike Dean, founding drummer Reed Mullin and vocalist/rhythm guitarist Pepper Keenan are widely regarded as its "classic" lineup. After a hiatus in 2006, Corrosion of Conformity returned in 2010 without Keenan, who had been busy touring and recording with Down, but announced their reunion with him in December 2014. More lineup changes have happened since then, with John Green replacing Mullin after his death in 2020 and Dean departing from the band once again in 2024.

Sodom is a German thrash metal band from Gelsenkirchen, formed in 1982. They have gone through various line-up changes, with bassist/vocalist Tom Angelripper the only constant member. The band is currently composed of Angelripper, guitarists Frank "Blackfire" Gosdzik and Yorck Segatz, and drummer Toni Merkel. Sodom has been referred to as one of the "Big Four" of Teutonic thrash metal, along with Kreator, Destruction and Tankard. Sodom heavily influenced the German black metal scene, and is regarded as a pioneer of death metal. Referred to as the most Venom-blackened of German "Three Kings", Sodom further merged thrash and death metal into a "wicked and decadent sound."