Wacken is one of the largest annual summer open-air heavy metal festivals in the world, and also one of the longest-running. Held near the tiny town of Wacken, Germany, the three-day event has grown exponentially since its inception in 1990. It now attracts more than 70,000 people every summer to the village to hear some of the world's biggest metal acts.
The Maryland Deathfest is now arguably the leading metal festival in the United States. First held in 2000, the three-day event takes place near Baltimore, Maryland, and features a cavalcade of underground extreme metal bands. This festival is well-respected by metal fans for bringing together a diverse lineup of up-and-coming and well-established metal artists.
HellFest is a world-renowned heavy metal festival held in Clisson, France every summer. Originally called FuryFest, the three-day open-air festival began as a hardcore punk concert, but has changed focus to feature a mix of extreme and mainstream heavy metal bands. The festival attracted 60,000 attendees in 2009.
The New England Metal and Hardcore Festival is an annual weekend festival held at the Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts in April. Begun in 1999, the festival features a lineup of underground metal, hardcore and extreme heavy metal bands. The event is known for hosting up-and-coming acts, as well as industry veterans.
The Loud Park Festival is Japan's largest annual heavy metal festival. The two-day event is held every October at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama City and the Kobe World Kinen Hall. The festival began in 2000 and features mostly mainstream heavy metal acts, with a few underground bands.