Here are the 5 goth metal bands who deserved to be bigger!
Luckily… not all of them are six feet under, and, hopefully, their fanbases will continue to grow. Before exploring our main picks, however, let’s celebrate a few related artists.
Norway’s Spirit Tomb has wowed us with their tragically romantic art, featuring a gorgeous blend of clean vocals, piano and cello. Their debut album, Spiritus Lacrimarum: Dolorem in Lacrimas Efundere (2023), which premiered at the internationally revered festival Beyond the Gates, gave terrifying new pallor to eight carefully curated works by Edgar Allan Poe.
Also from the land of fjords and A-ha, the genre-defying Cardium weaves noir elegance into the luxurious fabric of their intensely emotive compositions. This project is helmed by two brilliant visionaries simply known as Leon and Lena.
READ MORE: 11 Goth Metal Songs Guaranteed to Make You Cry
Host, the brainchild of Paradise Lost icons Nick Holmes and Greg Mackintosh, incorporates inspiration from goth music and much more in an addictive recipe for ear candy geared toward souls longing to indulge in the bittersweet taste of misery.
We sorely miss Chris Pohl’s Terminal Choice — a dangerously fun entity laced with goth flavor as well as some metal. Also from Germany, the pleasantly twisted veterans Eisregen might just tickle your dark desires, albeit in a very different manner.
Fortunately, Hamburg’s chameleonic Lord of the Lost finally received due recognition, having come face to face with King Charles III prior to heading off to compete in Eurovision and much more. Their friends Nachtblut likewise delight audiences with their high-quality offerings.
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Charon
Although Charon, who reunited in 2025, have been wrongfully denied the mass-scale adoration of their compatriots HIM, for example, their exceptional work proves ridiculously addictive. Enter their catalog via timeless earworms such as “Ride on Tears,” “Little Angel,” “Colder” and “Erase Me.”
Charon boast one of the most underrated voices in metal, Juha-Pekka “JP” Leppäluoto. This unforgettable artist has taken part in a number of other exciting projects, appears on the televised music show Elämäni Biisi and has indeed been involved with theater — the theatrical charm of his performances, which are always spot-on, certainly cannot be ignored.
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Sentenced & Poisonblack
In 1996, the magnetic Ville Laihiala became the frontman of Sentenced, a death metal act prior to his entry, and he possesses a voice just as intoxicating as Leppäluoto’s.
Also a composer and guitarist with a gift for crafting catchy yet aggressive gems, Laihiala founded Poisonblack in 2000 with Leppäluoto serving as the group’s original vocalist on the orgasmic Escapexstacy (2003).
Even die-hard fans will acknowledge that certain Sentenced and Poisonblack songs featuring Laihiala on vocals sound like they could have come from either band, especially when the whiskey-pounding heavy metal influences are more notable.
Whereas Sentenced disbanded in 2005, and their co-founder Miika Tenkula sadly passed away in 2009, Poisonblack, including Leppäluoto, reunited for a string of live gigs in 2023 before leaving the following message on social media: “The coffin is not completely closed.”
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To/Die/For
The refreshing energy within much of To/Die/For’s material qualifies them as a great go-to band for whenever you are feeling stricken with ennui. These Finnish stalwarts, formed in 1993 as Mary-Ann, are known in part for their entrancing covers, having taken on the likes of Cutting Crew’s “(I Just) Died in Your Arms” and Sandra’s “In the Heat of the Night” with former helmsman Jarno “Jape” Perätalo.
To/Die/For previously showcased the talent of the late Tonmi Lillman, a friend and collaborator of the also fondly remembered Alexi Laiho of Children of Bodom, who commented in Petri Silas’ Alexi Laiho – Chaos, Control & Guitar (2019/2020): “He played like Tommy Lee but with an incredible amount of technical prowess.”
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Ava Inferi
The remarkably unique gothic/doom outfit Ava Inferi featured one of music’s most extraordinary couples, ex-Mayhem and current Vltimas’ guitarist Rune Eriksen and songstress Carmen Susana Simões, whose angelic performances prove remarkably haunting here and in other contexts like Moonspell. During their career, this Portuguese-based group welcomed several special guests, such as Anathema’s Daniel Cardoso and Ulver’s Kristoffer Rygg.
Ava Inferi released four full-length albums before disbanding, though some of their unused content might just emerge one day.
Fortunately, Simões and Eriksen continue to collaborate in the bewitching Earth Electric.
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Funeral
From Norway, the goth-infused pioneering funeral doom institution aptly named Funeral have benefited from a long list of amazing musicians throughout the years. Co-founder Anders Eek remains with this vessel of sepulchral beauty, while awarded guitarist Stian Kråbøl, a hugely underrated axeman, made his debut with the team on the sublime Gospel of Bones (2024), as strengthened by violin, hardanger fiddle, keys and extra vocals.
With their sophisticated orchestral components, dramatic qualities, sometimes operatic leanings and so forth, Funeral emotionally overwhelm and ultimately devastate listeners.
Death would tragically take members Einar Andre Fredriksen and Christian Loos, both of whom joined early on, as well as former vocalist Sindre Nedland.
