Best Heavy Metal Magazines

By

Updated on 01/27/18

Learning about your favorite bands on the internet is fine, but there's nothing like holding an actual magazine in your hands and reading the latest interviews, news, and reviews. Unfortunately, several excellent metal magazines have folded in the past few years, but there are still some good ones still left.

01

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Decibel

Decibel has only been around for a few years and has already established themselves as the premiere extreme music magazine. Editor Albert Mudrian has assembled an outstanding writing staff, and in addition to the usual interviews and reviews, Decibel does investigative and historic articles as well.

Their Hall Of Fame articles are great, where they select an album for induction and interview all the band members about that album. It stands far above the pack when it comes to American metal magazines.

02

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Metal Hammer

Metal Hammer. Metal Hammer

The UK has several really good metal magazines, and this is the best one. In addition to interesting columns, reviews, and interviews, they also have a section covering up and coming and extreme bands.

The size of the magazine is also larger, which allows for bigger photos and a better layout of content. Some legendary metal writers lend their talents to Metal Hammer, who also seem to be able to uncover the next generation of great writers.

03

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Terrorizer

Terrorizer. Terrorizer

This is another UK magazine, but it is readily available in most major bookstores. It covers more extreme and underground artists than Metal Hammer. They have a ton of live reviews in addition to the CD reviews and interviews.

Terrorizer is a magazine on the rise. The quality of writing and photography has really improved in the past few years, and they have become one of the definitive metal magazines.

04

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Revolver

Revolver. Revolver

This is probably the most commercial of the magazines listed here in terms of layout and content. They also include posters and stickers in their issues along with columns from artists such as Lzzy Hale from Halestorm.

It's easy to read and they are able to get interviews with some pretty major artists. Their annual "Hottest Chicks In Metal" issue has quickly become very popular, but also drawn criticism.

05

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Zero Tolerance

Zero Tolerance. Zero Tolerance

Zero Tolerance is a British magazine that's been around for a few years now. It's harder to find in the United States than magazines like Metal Hammer and Terrorizer, and its physical size is smaller than the usual magazine, although the number of pages is well over 100 each issue. The small print can be difficult for old guys like me to read.

They have tons of album and live reviews, along with interviews. Those interviews tend to be with more extreme and underground bands, although a few more well known and maintream artists also get coverage.

06

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Kerrang

Kerrang. Kerrang

This is another UK publication, and by far the most mainstream and the most British of those mentioned here. The British style seems to be a lot more hype driven, which makes for both high praise and scathing criticism.

The artists covered are pretty similar to US publications, although you will naturally get a few more European bands in Kerrang. They also mix in both rock and metal bands.