List of heavy metal and rock festivals around the world

Hard rock and metal music first appeared on the scene in the mid-1960s until the beginning of the 1970s. It has roots in blues-rock and psychedelic rock and the bands that created heavy metal developed a thick, heavy guitar-and-drums-centered sound. The music also has a high intensified distortion, as well as rapid guitar solos. The fans of the world of heavy metal and hard rock are referred to by the names “metalheads” as well as “headbangers” the world of music. In this article, you can find the best heavy metal and rock festivals worldwide.

There are a variety of bands and artists that could be certain as hard rock or heavy metal bands. The bands that fall under this category include Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, and Deep Purple. We also know these most favorite bands as legends. If you are a metal and rock music fan, make sure you get the metal and rock festival tickets as soon as you can. Also, don’t forget the check our concert and event page!

Rock and Metal events that take throughout the year at different venues across the United States and the world. Get your head-banging buddies together and make a plan to join a concert in which you will dance all night away! Get tickets in advance so that you can guarantee an opportunity to get in the Mosh Pit!

Here are every heavy metal and rock festivals around the world

Want to know which rock and metal festivals will be the largest and good for your travel trip in 2022-2023? While every heavy metal and rock music fan in the United States is aware of that. Today’s metal music festival scene isn’t as diverse as it once was.

What is the largest metal festival in the world?

Wacken Open Air first started as a small festival in 1990, but its popularity over the years increased massively. We consider this festival the biggest metal festival in the world and gets around 80,000 metalheads every year and always sold out and difficult to find tickets.

What state has the most metal concerts?

Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA

“The World’s Largest Music Festival” by the Guinness World Records since 1999, this music festival an 11-day event is held between late June and early July, and also included all genres of musical styles.

Which is the largest music festival in the world?

Donauinselfest

Vienna is a city that has been the home of great musicians, with famous names like Mozart having been residents before It’s not a surprise that it’s now the home of the biggest music festival worldwide. It’s held on an island in the middle of the Danube River, Donauinselfest attracted over 3.1 million visitors in 2016.

Legends of heavy metal and rock festivals

• Myponga Pop Festival

Genre: Rock, Pop, and Blues  – Dates: 1971

Visitors: 15,000 – Location: Australia

• Monsters of Rock

Genre: Hard Rock and Heavy Metal  – Dates: 1980 to 1996

Visitors: 35,000 to 200,000 – Locations: England, Netherlands, Poland, Spain, Italy, Germany, France, Sweden, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, the United States, and the Soviet Union

• Rock in Rio

Genre: Various  – Dates: 1985 to present

Visitors: Around 1 million people – Location: Brazil, Portugal, Spain, USA

• Dynamo Open Air

Genre: Metal, Rock – Dates: 1986 to present

Visitors: 60,000 to 118,000 – Location: Netherlands

• Wacken Open Air

Genre: Heavy Metal – Dates: 1990 to present

Visitors: 800 to 85,000 – Location: Germany

• Graspop Metal Meeting

Genre: Heavy Metal, Rock and more – Dates: 1996 to present

Visitors: 10,000 to 220,000 – Location: Belgium

• Exit Festival

Genre: Metal, rock, techno, hip hop, reggae, electronic dance, punk, drum and bass – Dates: 2000 to present

Visitors: 20,000 to 200,000 – Location: Serbia

• Download Festival

Genre: Heavy Metal, Hard Rock and Punk – Dates: 2003

Visitors: 100,000 – Location: England

• Moscow Music Peace Festival

Genre: Heavy Metal, Glam Metal – Dates: 1989

Visitors: 100,000 – Location: Moscow, Russia

• Bloodstock Open Air

Genre: Heavy Metal, Extreme Metal and Hard Rock – Dates: 2005 to present

Visitors: 15,000 to 20,000 – Location: England

• Sziget Festival

Genre: Heavy Metal, Glam Metal – Dates: 1989

Visitors: 100,000 – Location: Moscow, Russia

• Hellfest Summer Open Air

Genre: Heavy Metal, Extreme Metal and Hard Rock – Dates: 2006 to present

Visitors: 20,000 to 200,000 – Location: France

• Brutal Assault Metal Festival

Genre: Heavy Metal, Extreme Metal, Hardcore Punk, Experimental – Dates: 1996 to present

Visitors: 7,000 to 60,000 – Location: Czech Republic

Heavy metal and rock festivals around the world

• Africa

Overthrust Winter Metal Mania Festival – Location: Ghanzi

• Asia

Bangalore Open Air – Location: Karnataka

Thunderstrock Festival – Location: Ranchi, Jharkhand

• Indonesia

Brotherground – Location: Surabaya

Hammersonic Festival – Location: Jakarta

Hellprint Festival – Location: Bandung

Rock In Celebes – Location: Makassar

Rock in Solo – Location: Surakarta

• Japan

Download Japan Festival – Location: Chiba City

• Mongolia

Noise Metal Fest – Location: Ulaanbaatar

• Nepal

Silence Fest – Location: Kathmandu

• Europe

Nova Rock Festival – Location: Nickelsdorf, Austria

Desertfest Berlin 2023

• May 19-21, at Columbiadamm 13-21, 10965 Berlin
• Lineup: The Obsessed, King Buffalo, Dozer, Church of Misery, Mantar, Corrosion of Conformity, Blood Ceremony, and more

The new location for the 2023 edition will be the neighboring concert venues “Columbiahalle” and “Columbia Theater” (with additional outdoor space & stage).

Katenbach Open Air – Location: Spital am Semmering, Austria

Alcatraz Hard Rock & Metal Festival – Location: Deinze, Kortrijk, Belgium

Headbanger’s Balls Fest – Location: Izegem, Belgium

Blast from the Past Festival – Location: Kuurne, Belgium

Metalworksfest – Location: Kuurne, Belgium

Graspop Metal Meeting – Location: Dessel, Belgium

Hills of Rock – Location: Bulgaria

Masters of Rock Festival – Location: Vizovice, Czech Republic

Brutal Assault Open Air – Location: Jaromer, Czech Republic

Metalfest – Location: Pilsen, Czech Republic

Obscene Extreme – Location: Trutnov, Czech Republic

Copenhell – Location: Copenhagen, Denmark

Aalborg Metal Festival – Location: Aalborg, Denmark

Royal Metal Fest – Location: Aarhus, Denmark

Viborg Metal Festival – Location: Viborg, Denmark

Metal Magic Festival – Location: Fredericia, Denmark

Hard Rock Laager – Location: Vana-Vigala, Estonia

Howls of Winter – Location: Tallinn, Estonia

Barbar Feast Festival – Location: Saula, Estonia

Dark River Festival – Location: Kotka, Finland

Nummirock – Location: Kauhajoki, Finland

John Smith Rock Festival – Location: Laukaa, Finland

Saarihelvetti – Location: Tampere, Finland

Steelfest Open Air Festival – Location: Hyvinkaa, Finland

Turku Saatanalle – Location: Turku, Finland

Tuska Open Air – Location: Helsinki, Finland

Motocultor Festival – Location: Brittany, France

Hellfest Open Air – Location: Clisson, France

Plane’R Festival – Location: Colombier-Saugnieu, France

Sylak Open Air – Location: Saint-Maurice-de-Gourdans

Wacken Open Air – Location: Wacken, Germany

Bang Your Head!!! – Location: Balingen, Germany

Chronical Moshers Open Air – Location: Heinsdorfergrund, Germany

Dong Open Air – Location: Neukirchen-Vluyn, Germany

Elbriot Fest – Location: Hamburg, Germany

Euroblast Festival – Location: Cologne, Germany

With Full Force – Location: Löbnitz, Germany

Party.San Metal Open Air – Location: Thuringia, Germany

Rock Hard Festival – Location: Gelsenkirchen, Germany

Summer Breeze Open Air – Location: Germany

Rock am Ring/Rock am Park – Location: Germany

Rockwave Festival – Location: Lamia, Athens, Greece

Rockmaraton Festival – Location: Dunaujvaros, Hungary

Eistnaflug Festival – Location: Neskaupstaður, Iceland

Agglutination Metal Festival – Location: Chiaromonte, Italy

Zobens un Lemess – Location: Bauska, Latvia

Devilstone – Location: Anyksciai, Lithuania

Kilkim Zaibu – Location: Varniai

Amsterdam Metalfest – Location: Amsterdam, Netherlands

Dynamo Open Air – Location: Eindhoven, Netherlands

Fortarock Festival – Location: Nijmegen, Netherlands

Netherlands Deathfest – Location: Eindhoven, Netherlands

ProgPower Europe – Location: Baarlo, Netherlands

Roadburn Festival – Location: Tilburg, Netherlands

Inferno Metal Fest – Location: Oslo, Norway

Karmøygeddon Metal Festival – Location: Kopervik, Norway

Garasjefestival – Location: Reinsvoll, Norway

Siekiera Fest – Location: Wroclaw, Poland

Rock in Rio Lisboa – Location: Lisboa, Portugal

Paredes de Coura Festival – Location: Paredes de Coura, Portugal

HARDMETALFEST – Location: Mangaualde, Portugal

Vagos Metal Fest – Location: Calvao, Portugal

Vagos Open Air – Location: Lisboa, Portugal

Artmania Fest – Location: Sibiu, Romania

Metalhead Meeting – Location: Bucharest, Romania

Rockstadt Extreme Festival – Location: Rasnov, Romania

Metal Gates Festival – Location: Bucharest, Romania

Posada Rock Fest – Location: Campulung, Muscel, Romania

Maximum Rock Festival – Location: Bucuresti, Romania

Metaldays – Location: Tolmin, Slovenia

Resurrection Fest – Location: Viveiro, Spain

Rock Fest Barcelona – Location: Barcelona, Spain

Leyendas del Rock – Location: Villena

Gefle Metal Festival – Location: Gavle, Sweden

House of Metal – Location: Umea, Sweden

Sweden Rock Festival – Location: Sölvesborg, Sweden

Huskvarna Metal Festival – Location: Jönköping, Sweden

High 5ive Summer Festival – Location: Stockholm, Sweden

• Russia

Big Gun – Location: Moscow, Russia

Metal Over Russia – Location: Moscow, Russia

• United Kingdom

Download Festival – Location: Donington Park, Leicestershire, UK

Damnation Festival – Location: Leeds, UK

Bloodstock Open Air – Location: Walton-on-Trent, Derbyshire, UK

Hammerfest – Location: Prestatyn, Wales, UK

Hard Rock Hell – Location: Gwynedd, North Wales, UK

Incineration Festival – Location: London, England

Stonedead Festival – Location: Newark, Notts, England

• North America

Candelabrum Metal Fest – Location: Leon, Mexico

Hell & Heaven Metal Fest – Location: Mexico City, Mexico

Mexico Metal Festival – Location: Monterrey, Mexico

Total Death Over Mexico – Location: Mexico City, Mexico

• South America

Armageddon Metal Festival – Location: Joinville, Brazil

Rock al Parque – Location: Bogota, Colombia

• United States of America

Aftershock – Location: Sacramento, CA, USA

AURA Festival – Location: Savannah, GA, USA

Full Terror Assault – Location: Cave-In-Rock, IL, USA

Louder Than Life – Location: Louisville, KY, USA

Central Florida Metal Fest – Location: Orlando, FL, USA

Rocklahoma Festival – Location: Pryor, Oklahoma, USA

Sonic Temple – Location: Columbus, Ohio, USA

Knotfest Roadshow – Location: Various cities around the USA between July to September

Furnace Fest – Location: Birmingham, Alabama, USA

Pyscho Unlimited – Location: Mandalay Bay, Las Vegas, Nevada, USA

INKcarceration – Location: Mansfield, OH, USA

Mad With Power Fest – Location: Madison, WI, USA

Maryland Deathfest – Location: Baltimore, MD, USA

Mass Destruction Metal Fest – Location: Atlanta, GA, USA

ProgPower USA – Location: Atlanta, GA, USA

Welcome to Rockville – Location: Daytona Beach, FL, USA

70000 Tons of Metal – Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL, USA

• Australia

Download Festival Melbourne – Location: Melbourne and Sydney, Australia

Blacken Open Air – Location: Hale, Northern Territory, Australia

All current and live heavy metal and rock festivals

Looking for music festivals around the world

Our website is also filled with articles and lists about the best music festivals in the world, the best metal festivals in the world, the best rock festivals in the world, and concert and tour dates for all rock or metal bands. Please note that before you plan your travel this year.

I should include any noteworthy metal festivals in our list. Because it might challenge to find and research the top metal festival around the world.

This list of Metal Festivals valid for every year has just been updated. So if you know of any additional, please let me know so I can keep it as current as possible.

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