2005 in heavy metal music

This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2005.

Newly formed bands

 * 5 Star Grave
 * A Plea for Purging
 * Abnormality
 * Acrania
 * Agrimonia
 * AM Conspiracy
 * Anew Revolution
 * Antagonist A.D.
 * Arise and Ruin
 * Arsonists Get All the Girls
 * As Hell Retreats
 * Attila
 * Ava Inferi
 * Battle Beast
 * Benedictum
 * Beyond Creation
 * Beyond Fear
 * Birds of Prey
 * Black Tusk
 * Bleed from Within
 * Blotted Science
 * Bonded by Blood
 * Borealis
 * Brain Drill
 * The Browning
 * The Burial
 * Carnifex
 * Century
 * Child Bite
 * Dark the Suns
 * Dawn of Solace
 * Death Breath
 * The Devil Wears Prada
 * Divine Heresy
 * Five Finger Death Punch
 * The Foreshadowing
 * Ghost Brigade
 * Ihsahn
 * Impending Doom
 * In This Moment
 * Ithilien
 * Kauan
 * Keldian
 * Lazarus A.D.
 * Lifelover
 * Light Bringer
 * Motionless in White
 * Periphery
 * Powerglove
 * Red Fang
 * Silent Civilian
 * Stream of Passion
 * Svartsot
 * Swashbuckle
 * Thou
 * Varg
 * Vildhjarta
 * We Came as Romans
 * Wednesday 13
 * Wodensthrone

Reformed bands

 * Alice in Chains
 * Anthrax
 * Devourment
 * Emperor
 * Nothingface
 * Terrorizer

Disbanded bands

 * Child's Play
 * Symphony in Peril
 * The 3rd and the Mortal

Disbandments

 * Exhumed (indefinite hiatus)
 * Gorguts
 * Sentenced

Events

 * Korn guitarist Brian "Head" Welch leaves the band.
 * Soilwork guitarist Peter Wichers leaves the band in late December after playing in the band for ten years to concentrate on record producing.
 * Static-X lead guitarist Tripp Eisen was arrested in February for "lewd conduct against children", and was fired from the band.
 * Vocalist Tarja Turunen was fired from Nightwish.
 * Jason Jones' departure from Drowning Pool was publicly announced on June 14, 2005, due to irreconcilable differences. On August 25 at the Ozzfest date in Dallas, Texas, Drowning Pool did a guest shot performance on the main stage debuting their new singer Ryan McCombs.
 * Visions of Atlantis lead vocalist Nicole Bogner quits and is replaced by ex-Aesma Daeva vocalist, Melissa Ferlaak. Guitarist Werner Fielder quits and is replaced by Wolfgang Koch.
 * Kittie bassist Jennifer Arroyo quits and is replaced by Trish Doan. Session guitarist Lisa Marx quits and is replaced by Tara McLeod
 * Hellhammer becomes Dimmu Borgir's new drummer.
 * American Head Charge guitarist Bryan Ottoson dies at 27.
 * Motörhead picked up their first Grammy in the awards of 2005 in the Best Metal Performance category for their cover of Metallica's "Whiplash" on Metallic Attack: The Ultimate Tribute
 * Sentenced members announce their break-up and the release of their last album The Funeral Album. On October 1, they play and record their final show Buried Alive (released on 2006) on their hometown Oulu, Finland.
 * Dave Mustaine, frontman of Megadeth puts together music festival Gigantour for the first time.

Deaths

 * May 10 – David Wayne, former vocalist of Metal Church, died from health complications following injuries sustained in a car accident at the age of 47.
 * May 22 – Mike "Yaz" Jastremski, former bassist of Heathen, died from a heart attack at the age of 42.
 * August 18 – Krzysztof "Docent" Raczkowski, formed drummer of Vader, died from heart failure at the age of 34.
 * August 26 – Denis "Piggy" D'Amour, founder and guitarist of Voivod, died from colon cancer complications at the age of 45.
 * Mika Ervaskari, original Stratovarius keyboardist, died by suicide.