A name like Goatwhore conjures all types of extremely evil shit - animal mutilation, sexy darkness, and graveyard-bound leather loudness. You can almost imagine the sweat dripping off long haired headbangers in both the audience and on stage. And the New Orleans metal band is not here to disappoint. These killers have been in the game for three decades, letting their dirges spew forth into the waiting arms of death metal fans. Fellow New Orleans resident/Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan (the RZA of metal) has produced the bulk of the band's studio albums, with the exception the most recent, Vengeful Ascension - which was produced by their live soundman to bring the rawness of their live show straight into your headphones. A Goatwhore album is the kind of thing your parents discover in your room as a teen, and then immediately throw it in the trash while loudly questioning your life choices. Occult themes/anti-God (to boil it down to the most base level) are woven into songs that eschew the one-genre approach of many metal bands. Over the years Goatwhore has dabbled in it all: black metal, death metal, even thrash. They've outrun hurricanes and had close calls with death - perhaps they really have sold their souls to the devil. Live, the band is brutal, loud, and relentless, the ferocity of the music outmatched only by the fucking evilness of it all. Expect pounding drums, scorching solos, gritty noise, and the weight of all the voodoo in New Orleans. Thrash kings Hatchet hail from right here in the bay. Forming in 2007, the band hustled DIY style to play hundreds of shows in SF and beyond, creating a name for themselves out of pure will. The sound is classic: heavy riffs, punk attitude, and impressive solos. It's hard to not compare Hatchet to early Metallica: good looking youths who make heavy jams but have fun with it, never sinking completely into the murk. Live, Hatchet is tight, and their wall of sound aims to crush you like a beer can. Phantom Witch hails from San Francisco via 1986. Thrash metal to the core, the big four lives within the soul of Phantom Witch. As a live act, Phantom Witch screams and solos their way into hearts. They're big on the bringing the 80s thrash vibes into the future, and metal heads with any sense won't be disappointed.