How do I see the future of metal music in 2026, as a long-time fan and musician? Well, given the recent Rick Beato YouTube controversy, I figured it’d be fun to offer my take.
About me – deathdoom.com, music and more
- Stefan Nordström
- Musician, songwriter, content creator, digital freelancer
- Stockholm, Sweden
- Bands: Desolator, Soliloquium, Ending Quest, Ashes of Life, Trees of Daymare, The Ashen Tree
- Social: Facebook | Instagram | YouTube
- Stay in touch: Newsletter signup
- Support my work on PayPal: 1€ | 2€ | 5€ | 10€
My relationship with extreme metal in 2026
I’ve previously written about my dwindling interest in extreme metal, kind of curious where it’s going. Luckily, 2025 has been a year full of good metal releases, and I’ve also managed to branch out my music taste further. Black metal and progressive metal seems to be in a particularly good state, which is nice to see.
I’ll confess the death metal spinning has been scarce, aside from the superb Sanguisugabogg album, but many other extreme metal albums have been frequently played. I think 2025 was simply a better match then 2024 and 2023 for my more visceral and demanding music taste. I’m really hoping that it will continue in 2026, as I’ve enjoyed trying to keep up with a bombardment of good metal albums.
Mainstream metal
Writing this article was partially because of Rick Beato’s video where he discusses metal in 2025. He rightfully got a lot of slack for this one, due to the high level of old man yelling at cloud. Using Spotify numbers and involving pre-streaming bands made it quite a weird comparison, and it turned into a piece of rather cheap clickbait.
From one perspective, I’m willing to agree with him when it comes to mainstream metal though. Many festival headliner type bands are likely to retire soon, and I don’t really see any replacements with similar drawing power.
Sure, there are some social media-driven acts with huge followings, but it’s unlikely these will headline festivals in 30 years. I would also say that metal’s genuinity is under threat, as stuff like Dogma, President and AI-generated crap starts to gain attention. That said, he’s beyond off when it comes to the other arguably more interesting side of the scene.
Underground metal
My feeling is that underground metal music has been spiking in 2025. There’s been droves of good releases in many different styles, to the point where it’s been hard for me to keep up. Only lack of trying will stop you from finding extreme metal releases, and I have no reason to believe 2026 won’t be the same.
Underground live scenes also seem healthy, albeit a tad unoriginal in my opinion. High school kids here in Sweden seem to lean into 80’s extreme metal, resulting in bands like Sarcator, Eternal Evil, Bloodstain, Atonement, etc. Kids playing music as organic and raw as this obviously smashes Rick Beato’s “no one plays instruments anymore” argument to bits. Obviously, they do. At least enough to keep starting underground metal bands.
Online discourse feels lively, with plenty of podcasts delivering metal takes and interviews focusing on different aspects and subgenres.
The future of metal in 2026 – positives and negatives
Positives
- Plenty of projects/players: there is certainly no shortage of bands in any metal style. Most people involved in the scene have projects or play in bands, many have multiple.
- Connectivity: finding international musicians to collaborate play and record stuff online with it easier than ever, resulting in more diverse band and music-related projects
- Dedication: there are plenty of local metal scene heroes (see Fredagsmangel, for example) everywhere arranging festivals and concerts despite the challenges and sacrifices
Negatives
- Saturation: plenty of projects and players, indeed. Musical saturation is a thing in all genres, including metal. It’s hard to have time to properly listen to releases, and it’s hard for new bands to get heard, reviewed or noticed
- Lack of originality: the saturation also ties into the fact that there’s a lack of originality, in my opinion. There are a lot of talented musicians putting out and performing well-produced, well-rehearsed material, but to me that’s only half of the package. If it plays it safe style-wise or doesn’t hit me on an emotional level, the competence really doesn’t matter to me
- Financial realities: I think one problem that will get worse is the rising costs. More and more people will be forced to overwork, and it will be more costly to arrange concerts, rehearse and everything surrounding it. Unfortunately, I think we’ve only seen the start of this development, and it will undoubtedly have a negative impact on the future of metal.
Conclusion – the future of metal in 2026
So, this is my take on the future of metal. I’d say it looks bright in the passion and interest aspect, and not so bright in terms of where society is heading at large. Well, at least old man yelling at cloud doom metallers like me will have more shit to write about. Do you agree? Anything to add? Hit me up on Instagram.
If you like what I’m doing, follow me on the socials and support me by streaming and/or buying my music. Cheers!
0 Comments