First band wave for ROCKHARZ 2027

Artists in this update

• Accept

  Heavy Metal

  German heavy-metal band from Solingen with sharp riffs and a classic metal sound. Known for anthemic choruses and songs such as “Balls to the Wall.”

• Alestorm

  Folk Metal · Pirate Metal

  Scottish pirate metal band mixing folk metal, power metal and humorous seafaring lyrics. At festivals they stand for party energy, singalong choruses and deliberately over-the-top fun.

• All For Metal

  Heavy Metal · Power Metal

  German-Italian heavy-metal act built for raised fists, heroic hooks and a very direct mission: metal as a shared battlefield anthem.

• Arch Enemy

  Melodic Death Metal

  Swedish melodic death metal band with virtuosic guitar leads and distinctive harsh vocals. Since the 1990s they have become an international force in extreme metal.

• Bruce Dickinson

  Heavy Metal · Hard Rock

  Iron Maiden frontman, solo artist, pilot, fencer and author: Bruce Dickinson carries classic metal with an operatic voice and restless appetite for adventure.

• Coppelius

  Chamber Metal · Steampunk · Rock

  Berlin chamber-core with clarinets, cello, top hats and Victorian theatre: Coppelius sound like metal taking over a 19th-century salon.

• Dartagnan

  Folk Rock · Medieval Rock

  German folk-rock band with medieval and musketeer-inspired aesthetics. Known for bagpipe and violin colors, singalong choruses and adventure romance.

• Dust Bolt

  Thrash Metal

  Bavarian thrash metal with a Bay Area tilt, fast riffs and modern live force. Dust Bolt keep the neck in permanent motion.

• Eisbrecher

  Neue Deutsche Härte

  Heavy guitars, frostbitten synths and choruses that cling like ice to a ship's rail. Bavaria's most reliable Neue Deutsche Härte stomp machine.

• Emil Bulls

  Metalcore · Alternative Metal · Nu Metal

  Munich heavyweights with nu-metal roots and metalcore choruses made for bellowing along, reliably loud since the mid-'90s.

• Equilibrium

  Folk Metal · Symphonic Metal · Melodic Death Metal

  German folk metal in widescreen: Equilibrium fuse harsh riffs, epic melodies and nature mythology into a festival-ready storm front.

• Grave Digger

  Heavy Metal · Power Metal

  German heavy-metal institution since the '80s, with rugged vocals, battlefield choruses and a catalogue that basically spells out true metal.

• Gutalax

  Grindcore

  Czech grindcore band with a deliberately absurd and scatological sense of humor. They are known for bizarre shows, toilet themes and chaotic moshpits.

• GWAR

  Heavy Metal · Thrash Metal · Shock Rock

  GWAR are a Richmond, Virginia shock-rock metal band infamous since the 1980s for outrageous horror-themed stage spectacles paired with heavy thrash metal.

• Håndgemeng

  Metal

  Håndgemeng — Norwegian for 'brawl,' and the metal lives up to it: as subtle as a bar fight and twice as bruising.

• H Blockx

  Alternative · Alternative Rock · Rap Rock · Rock

  German crossover band from Münster mixing alternative rock, rap rock and funk influences. H-Blockx became a major name in German 1990s guitar music.

• Igel vs. Shark

  Rock · Alternative

  Rock act with a sharp-edged name and direct live approach: Igel vs. Shark lean into guitar pressure, energy and clear edges.

• Katerfahrt

  Metal · Party

  A German-language metal party act with a wink — heavy riffs, beer-soaked lyrics and a show aimed straight at the crowd. Underground fun for anyone who likes their pints and their breakdowns in equal measure.

• Korpiklaani

  Folk Metal

  Finnish folk-metal revelers with fiddle, accordion and bonfire choruses. Korpiklaani can turn any field into a tavern.

• Lord of the Lost

  Dark Rock · Gothic Metal · Industrial Metal

  Hamburg dark-rock force led by Chris Harms, moving between glam, gothic, metal and grand gestures. Lord of the Lost can be dark, huge and strangely catchy at once.

• Marduk

  Black Metal

  Black Metal act focused on weight, precision and intense stage impact. The sound blends Black Metal with elements of Black Metal and a dark atmosphere.

• Metal Church

  Heavy Metal · Thrash Metal · Power Metal

  Out of rainy Aberdeen, Washington, came a metal that bit harder than its peers before thrash even broke big – the church where the sermons come at full volume.

• Nestor

  Hard Rock · AOR · Glam Metal

  Swedish '80s-flavoured hard rock with neon edges, huge hooks and a love of melodies that sound like choruses on arrival.

• Setyoursails

  Metalcore

  Cologne metalcore from the new guard – heavy riffs, clean hooks, and growls all elbowing for the same mic.

• Skáld

  Nordic Folk

  Nordic Folk act with narrative songwriting and a warm sound. The music blends Nordic Folk with Nordic Folk, acoustic colors and personal lyrics.

• Storm Seeker

  Folk Metal

  German folk metal band with nautical themes, hurdy-gurdy and singalong choruses. Storm Seeker blend pirate atmosphere with heavy guitars and playful arrangements.

• Tankard

  Thrash Metal

  Frankfurt thrash veterans and part of the Teutonic Big Four. Tankard bring beer, speed and riffs with a permanent grin.

• The Sisters of Mercy

  Gothic Rock · Post-Punk

  Goth-rock legends around Andrew Eldritch, with drum-machine pulse, fog and songs that have carried dark dancefloors since the '80s.

• Turbobier

  Punk Rock · Rock

  Viennese punk rock with thirst, wit and stadium choruses. Turbobier turn three-chord pressure into a surprisingly precise party science.