Rob Zombie performs live at RBC Amphitheatre in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - As we were becoming men in the late 1980s, early 1990s, we spent a lot of time in our buddy Carey, or Jon's basements. Amongst the rituals was alcohol, watching comedy TV like In Living Color and Get a Life and of course, our fill of MuchMusic's Power Hour, an hour of heavy metal videos. As the 90s took hold, the Power Hour started featuring bands like

Vile Decree perform live at The Spot in Newmarket, Ontario. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh By: Michael Drukarsh Newmarket, Ontario - The Spot in Newmarket continues to deliver loud, aggressive, one of a kind shows, and the lineup on Friday August 21st of Vile Decree, Hellseer and AAWKS was no exception. In fact, with this lineup everything was actually a little louder and definitely more aggressive. AAWKS AAWKS perform live at The Spot. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh Based out of Ba

Anciients perform live at The Garrison in Toronto, Ontario. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Ontario - A three‑band bill at The Garrison always feels like a rite of passage... sweaty, loud, intimate, and absolutely unforgiving! And Anciients’ August 20, 2026 headlining show turned that little Dundas West room into a furnace of riffs, screams, and full‑body energy, as is typically the case when Inertia Entertainment brings a show to the venue. Dawn of Ourobor

Dimmu Borgir perform live at History in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - History has become another favourite Toronto Live Music Venue of mine. Wait... who am I kidding? At this point, I can honestly say there isn’t a single Toronto venue I dislike. But History seems to bring a vibe all its own. It's an amazing space, plenty wide for us photographers to move around, even when there are 16 of us. The sound is superb, and the lighting

Killswitch Engage perform live at Queen Elizabeth Theatre in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Justin Michael Carriere By: Justin Michael Carriere Toronto, Canada - I think I’m love… with metal shows. I know what you’re going to say… “But Justin, you barely know metal shows, don’t you want to take your time before you really commit to anything…?” Nope! Metal shows give me the warm and fuzzy stomach obliterating, spine tingling butterflies and I can’t get enough! And this night was n

Burn'em Court perform live at Sadlier House in Peterborough, Ontario. Photo By: Kelly Leblanc By: Mike Johnston Peterborough, Ontario - The Sadleir House had it’s structural integrity tested on Friday July 17th as Burn’em Court pulled up like a rocket sled on rails. In front of a sold out room, the guys did what they do best... they shredded. Lead singer Dave Clark crumbled the stage to the ground with his patented high energy performance. A born rockstar, Clark anchors the g

Six Feet Under perform live at Lee's Palace in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - This was one of those nights where Toronto’s metal community proved exactly why they're one of the greatest crowds in the world. Soaked in rain, sweat, riffs, and absolute unity! Six Feet Under’s first Toronto appearance in 23 years turned Lee’s Palace into a furnace, and thanks to Inertia Entertainment, the city finally got the long‑overdue beating it d

Godsmack perform live at RBC Amphitheatre in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - A summer night at RBC Amphitheatre (formerly Budweiser Stage) hits different, especially when it’s the first LOUDTO "official summer" show of the year and the bill reads Godsmack, Stone Temple Pilots and Dorothy. Toronto’s waterfront may be a construction-riddled maze with parking that feels like a myth, but once you break through the chaos and step into t

Diamond Weapon perform live at The Spot in Newmarket, Ontario. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh By: Michael Drukarsh Newmarket, Ontario - As the final stop on Diamond Weapon’s Letters From the Flood tour, The Spot was once again host to a variety of bands ready to support the self-described Post Hardcore Punk band from Toronto, Sublunox Sublunox perform live in Newmarket. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh Taking the stage first, Sublunox, a hard rock band out of St. Catherines, Ontario. T

The Divine Project perform live at The Bovine Sex Club in Toronto, Ontario. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Ontario - Walking into Queen Street's Bovine Sex Club for the first time feels like a rite of passage, and on June 11, I finally lost my “Sex Club virginity.” For a venue that barely fits a couple dozen bodies before it feels full, it’s wild how right it is for a night like this. Small, sweaty, intimate, and loud… exactly where local music thrives. NX

Napalm Death perform live at Lee's Palace in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - Another kick‑ass Inertia Entertainment night at Lee’s Palace... and for once, I rolled in with only minutes to spare. Totally unlike me, but whatever. The second I stepped inside, the room already felt charged. Five bands, a packed 19+ crowd, and a legendary grindcore institution ready to tear the roof off. What followed was one of the most exhausting, exh

Cryptopsy performs live at Lee's Palace in Toronto, Ontario. Photo By: Jojo Taylor By: Jojo Taylor Toronto, Ontario - The trend I usually see in Toronto audiences is that we are very polite at concerts. I have heard many artists say this about our city. I truly believe they are saying we are too quiet. We usually wake up at the end of a show to get that encore song. This was not the case on May 27th at Lee’s Palace. Our Legendary Brutal Death Metal band Cryptopsy and 3 other

Electric Callboy performs live at Coca-Cola Coliseum in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Ernon Schneeberger By: Ernon Schneeberger Toronto, Canada - Electric Callboy rolled into Toronto’s Coca-Cola Coliseum on their Tanzneid World Tour and basically turned the whole place into a massive party, with Scene Queen and Polaris along for the ride. With their mix of metalcore and EDM chaos, this was never going to be a normal show and with a lineup like this, it felt more like a full nigh

August Burns Red perform live at History in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Ernon Schneeberger By: Ernon Schneeberger Toronto, Canada - Toronto’s History played host to a stacked night of metalcore as the Spring Horizons Tour rolled into town, bringing together legacy giants August Burns Red and The Amity Affliction, alongside rising acts Boundaries and Heavensgate. Blending generations of the genre, the lineup felt like a collision between metalcore’s roots and its modern evoluti

Corrosion of Conformity perform live at The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Jay Broderick By: Jay Broderick Toronto, Canada - It’s been a minute since I’ve covered a show at The Phoenix Concert Theatre. In fact, the last time I personally covered a show here was on May 30, 2024 when Death to All Screamed Bloody Gore! Walking up to the venue on May 5 felt like stepping back into an old haunt. One of my favourite venues in the city. A few diehards were alr

Unprocessed perform live at The Opera House in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Ernon Schneeberger By: Ernon Schneeberger Toronto, Canada - The Opera House in Toronto was absolutely buzzing for Unprocessed's headline tour with openers Midwinter and Allt setting the stage for an unforgettable night of progressive metalcore. MIDWINTER Midwinter perform live in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Ernon Schneeberger Midwinter came out swinging and immediately made it feel like the room was thei

Bring Me the Horizon perform live at Scotiabank Arena in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Matty Vogel Words: Ashley Depaz Images: Matty Vogel Toronto, Canada - Toronto didn’t just host a concert on April 28th, 2026... it got pulled into a fully realized alternate universe when Bring Me the Horizon launched their tour in Toronto, and they didn’t ease into it! They dropped the audience straight into a glitching, haunted digital world that felt like booting up a long-lost game on Play

Vana performs live at The Mod Club in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Justin Michael Carriere By: Justin Michael Carriere Toronto, Canada - Congratulations New Zealand, you have a Bonafide Metal Queen. Vana (pronounced VAH-NAH) brought her first headlining tour, The Lady in Red, to The Mod Club in Toronto on Thursday April 28th. Born in California, but raised in Aukland and calling NZ home, the metalcore musician is currently on the road in 2026 after signing with Sumerian Records

Dark Tranquility perform live at The Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto, Canada. Photo By: Justin Michael Carriere By: Justin Michael Carriere Toronto, Canada - I have a confession: I am a death metal neophyte. For whatever reason, the genre just had not been on my radar for the longest time. Enter The Scandinavian Heavy Arts Tour (how bad ass is that title?!) … Dark Tranquillity, early originators of melodic death metal, and fellow Swedes Soen ushered me into a new dimension

Niall Gunovski of PEACE BOND performs live at The Spot in Newmarket. Photo By: Michael Drukarsh By: Michael Drukarsh Newmarket, Ontario - You just never know what you are in for when you walk through the doors of The Spot on a Saturday night. Usually, based on the almost eligible band names on flyers posted around town and announcements on Instagram, you can be sure whoever is on the bill will be loud. However, for this show, tucked in amongst the chaotic fonts was an unusual