2023 in heavy metal music

This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2023.

Bands disbanded

 * The Agonist
 * Betraying the Martyrs
 * Cross Vein
 * Dark Fortress
 * Dawn Ray'd
 * Kiss
 * Kix
 * Palisades
 * Power Quest
 * Russkaja
 * Terrorizer

Bands formed

 * Better Lovers
 * Category 7
 * Whom Gods Destroy

Bands reformed

 * 3 Inches of Blood
 * Agalloch
 * Blessthefall
 * Creed
 * Crimson Glory
 * The Dillinger Escape Plan
 * Extol
 * Forbidden
 * For My Pain...
 * Haste the Day
 * Lord Kaos
 * Martyr
 * Newsted
 * A Plea for Purging
 * Poisonblack
 * Savatage
 * Tarot
 * Terrorizer
 * Thousand Foot Krutch
 * Training for Utopia
 * Wrathchild

Events

 * On January 26, Twisted Sister reunited for a one-off performance following their induction into the Metal Hall of Fame. It was the band's first live performance since disbanding in 2016.
 * On February 3, Furnace Fest 2023 has been announced to take place on September 23 and 24 at the Sloss Furnaces in Birmingham, Alabama. Among many bands announced to perform, several of them are reuniting for the festival after having previously split up, including Extol, Haste the Day, A Plea for Purging, and Training for Utopia. On February 22, it was announced that Symphony in Peril, who reformed last year, will play at the festival's preshow, their first show in 18 years.
 * On February 27, Marty Friedman performed three songs with Megadeth at the Budokan in Japan. This marked his first performance with the band in 23 years.
 * In February, after years of speculation and rumors since being unveiled as the "unidentified vocalist named "Xer0" of Static-X in 2019, Edsel Dope officially confirmed in an interview that he indeed was Xer0.
 * On March 31, an EF1 tornado caused the roof of the Apollo Theater in Belvediere, Illinois, United States, to collapse while the venue was hosting Morbid Angel, Crypta, Revocation, and Skeletal Remains, resulting in one casualty and injuring 28 others.
 * On June 7, Slipknot announced the departure of longtime sampler and keyboardist Craig Jones.
 * On October 25, Dream Theater announced the departure of drummer Mike Mangini and the return of the band's original drummer, Mike Portnoy, after a 13-year absence.
 * On November 5, Slipknot announced the band was parting ways with drummer Jay Weinberg. Weinberg joined the band in 2014, replacing founding member Joey Jordison.
 * On November 28, guitarist Kiko Loureiro announced his departure from Megadeth.
 * On December 1 and 2, Kiss concluded their End of the Road World Tour with a set of back-to-back final shows in their hometown of New York City at Madison Square Garden.
 * On December 30, Arch Enemy announced the departure of longtime guitarist Jeff Loomis. Subsequently, Joey Conception was announced as his replacement.

Deaths

 * January 1 – Sebastian Marino, former guitarist of Overkill and Anvil, died from a heart attack at the age of 57.
 * January 9 – Justin Bartlett, artist who created album cover art for Sunn O))), Trap Them, Cadaver, and Hooded Menace, died from stage 4 colorectal cancer at the age of 45.
 * January 18 – TJ de Blois, former drummer of A Life Once Lost, died from undisclosed reasons.
 * January 27 – Zbigniew "Vika" Wróblewski, founding member and former guitarist of Vader, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 60.
 * February 14 – Tim Aymar, vocalist of Pharaoh and former vocalist of Control Denied, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 59.
 * February 16 – Michael "Majk Moti" Kupper, former guitarist of Running Wild, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 65.
 * March 8 – Jim Durkin, guitarist of Dark Angel, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 58.
 * March 8 – Josua Madsen, drummer of Artillery, died after being hit by a bus at the age of 45.
 * March 22 – Wayne Swinny, guitarist of Saliva, died from a brain hemorrhage at the age of 59.
 * April 7 – John Regan, former bassist of Frehley's Comet, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 71.
 * April 23 – John Rae, former drummer of Wykked Wytch, died from alcoholism at the age of 51.
 * May 1 – Jordan Blake, vocalist of A Skylit Drive, died from undisclosed reasons.
 * May 17 – Algy Ward, vocalist of Tank, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 63.
 * May 22 – Kirk Arrington, former drummer of Metal Church, died from an unspecified illness at the age of 61.
 * May 23 – Mark Adams, former bassist of Saint Vitus, died from Parkinson's disease at the age of 64.
 * May 27 – Toshihiro Niimi, drummer of Bow Wow, died from cancer at the age of 66.
 * June 19 – Ryan Siew, guitarist of Polaris, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 26.
 * June 23 – Lee Rauch, former drummer of Megadeth and Dark Angel, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 58.
 * June 25 – Erik Ferro, drummer of T.T. Quick, died from undisclosed reasons.
 * July 14 – Anthony Meo, former drummer of Biohazard, died from cancer.
 * July 26 – James Harvey IV, former bassist of Goatwhore, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 35.
 * August 5 – Cláudio Lopes, bassist of Dorsal Atlântica, died from a heart attack at the age of 59.
 * August 9 – Brad Thomson, former guitarist of The Tony Danza Tapdance Extravaganza, died from undisclosed reasons.
 * August 24 – Bernie Marsden, former guitarist of Whitesnake, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 72.
 * August 24 – Sakevi Yokoyama, vocalist of G.I.S.M., died from undisclosed reasons.
 * September 15 – Axel Blaha, drummer of Paradox, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 59.
 * September 26 – Jon Kennedy, former bassist of Cradle of Filth and former vocalist of Hecate Enthroned, died from injuries sustained in a car crash at the age of 46.
 * October 24 – Steve Riley, drummer of Riley's L.A. Guns and former drummer of L.A. Guns, W.A.S.P., and Keel, died from pneumonia at the age of 67.
 * October 29 – Hiroshi "Heath" Morie, bassist of X Japan, died from colon cancer at the age of 55.
 * November 13 – Dave Corsile, former bassist of Thrown into Exile and former guitarist of downset., died from a heart attack.
 * November 17 – Charlie Dominici, former vocalist of Dream Theater, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 72.
 * November 29 – Quint Meerbeek, former drummer of Bodyfarm, died from an unspecified illness at the age of 41.
 * December 4 – Andreas Herz, former bassist of Kreator, died from undisclosed reasons.
 * December 10 – Cayle Sain, drummer of Twitching Tongues and Ghostemane, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 31.
 * December 26 – Jarbas "Jabá" Alves, former bassist of Ratos de Porão, died from undisclosed reasons at the age of 60.
 * December 27 – Michael Gibbons, former guitarist of Leeway, died from undisclosed reasons.