# 2003 in heavy metal music

This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2003.

## Newly formed bands

* A Day to Remember
* The Abominable Iron Sloth
* Abysmal Dawn
* Adler's Appetite
* Aina
* Airbourne
* Anagnorisis
* Anubis Gate
* As Blood Runs Black
* As They Sleep
* At All Cost
* August Burns Red
* Baroness
* Battlecross
* Blessed by a Broken Heart
* Bloody Panda
* Born of Osiris
* Carach Angren
* The Chariot
* Communic
* Conducting from the Grave
* Dååth
* Damageplan
* Darkwater
* Demonoid
* Diablo Swing Orchestra
* Eisbrecher
* Emmure
* Furia
* Head Control System
* Hypno5e
* In Vain
* Jesu
* Job for a Cowboy
* Jon Oliva's Pain
* Kayo Dot
* Kroda
* Leaves' Eyes
* Les Discrets
* Lyriel
* Myrkgrav
* Nadja
* Ne Obliviscaris
* Neaera
* Om
* Parkway Drive
* Powerwolf
* Rosetta
* The Ruins of Beverast
* Skeletonwitch
* The Sword
* Sybreed
* Tesseract
* Threat Signal
* Through the Eyes of the Dead
* Thulcandra
* Trollfest
* Turmion Kätilöt
* Wintersun
* Wolfchant
* Wolves in the Throne Room

## Reformed bands

* 24-7 Spyz
* Child's Play
* Fear Factory
* Judas Priest
* Killing Joke
* MC5
* Primus
* Stryper
* Twisted Sister

## Albums

* 8 Foot Sativa – Season for Assault
* Aborted – Goremageddon: The Saw and the Carnage Done
* Akercocke – Choronozon
* Alien Ant Farm – truANT
* Alice Cooper – The Eyes of Alice Cooper
* All Shall Perish – Hate, Malice, Revenge
* Anaal Nathrakh – When Fire Rains Down from the Sky, Mankind Will Reap as It Has Sown (EP)
* Anthrax – We've Come for You All
* Apocalyptica – Reflections
* Arch Enemy – Anthems of Rebellion
* As I Lay Dying – Frail Words Collapse
* Avenged Sevenfold – Waking the Fallen
* Bathory – Nordland II
* Between the Buried and Me – The Silent Circus
* Belphegor – Lucifer Incestus
* Biohazard – Kill or Be Killed
* The Black Dahlia Murder – Unhallowed
* Black Label Society – The Blessed Hellride
* Blood Stain Child – Mystic Your Heart
* Bon Jovi – This Left Feels Right (Compilation)
* Brujeria – The Mexecutioner! - The Best of Brujeria (Compilation)
* Cannibal Corpse – 15 Year Killing Spree (Box set)
* Children of Bodom – Hate Crew Deathroll
* Chimaira – The Impossibility of Reason
* Circle II Circle – Watching in Silence
* Coal Chamber – Giving the Devil His Due (Compilation)
* Concept – Reason and Truth
* Cog – "Open Up" (maxi single)
* Cradle of Filth – Damnation and a Day
* The Darkness – Permission to Land
* Deathstars – Synthetic Generation
* Decrepit Birth – ...And Time Begins
* Deep Purple – Bananas
* Default – Elocation
* Deftones – Deftones
* Deicide – The Best of Deicide (Compilation)
* Destruction – Metal Discharge
* DevilDriver – DevilDriver
* The Devin Townsend Band – Accelerated Evolution
* Dimension Zero – This Is Hell
* Dimmu Borgir – Death Cult Armageddon
* Divinity Destroyed – Divinity Destroyed (EP)
* Divinity Destroyed – Eden in Ashes
* DragonForce – Valley of the Damned
* Dream Evil – Evilized
* Dream Theater – Train of Thought
* Enslaved – Below the Lights
* Entombed – Inferno
* Epica – The Phantom Agony
* Evanescence – Fallen
* Evergrey – Recreation Day
* Every Time I Die – Hot Damn!
* Faith – Salvation Lies Within
* Fear Factory – Hatefiles (Compilation)
* Finntroll – Visor om slutet (EP)
* Fireball Ministry – The Second Great Awakening
* Firewind – Burning Earth
* From Autumn to Ashes – The Fiction We Live
* Galneryus – The Flag of Punishment
* Godhead – Evolver
* Godsmack – Faceless
* Gojira – The Link
* Gojira – Maciste All'Inferno (EP)
* Gorgoroth – Twilight of the Idols
* Graveworm – Engraved in Black
* Hatebreed – The Rise of Brutality
* Helloween – Rabbit Don't Come Easy
* Hortus Animae – Waltzing Mephisto
* Ill Nino – Confession
* Incubus – Live at Lollapalooza 2003 (Live)
* Integrity – To Die For
* Iron Maiden – Dance of Death
* Ion Dissonance – Breathing Is Irrelevant
* Jane's Addiction – Strays
* Johnny Lokke – Wrecking Ball
* Kamelot – Epica
* Katatonia – Viva Emptiness
* Kayo Dot – Choirs of the Eye
* King Diamond – The Puppet Master
* Kiss – Kiss Symphony: Alive IV (Live)
* Korn – Take a Look in the Mirror
* Kreator – Live Kreation (Live)
* Krisiun – Works of Carnage
* Lamb of God – As the Palaces Burn
* Lanfear – The Art Effect
* Limp Bizkit – Results May Vary
* Linkin Park – Meteora
* Living Colour – Collideøscope
* Lost Horizon – A Flame to the Ground Beneath
* Macabre – Murder Metal
* Marduk – World Funeral
* Masterplan – Masterplan
* Marilyn Manson – The Golden Age of Grotesque
* Machine Head – Through the Ashes of Empires
* Metallica – St. Anger
* Ministry – Animositisomina
* Misanthrope – Sadistic Sex Daemon
* Mnemic – Mechanical Spin Phenomena
* Monstrosity – Rise to Power
* Moonspell – The Antidote
* Morbid Angel – Heretic
* Motörhead – Live at Brixton Academy (Live)
* Mushroomhead – XIII
* Neil Turbin – Threatcon Delta
* Nevermore – Enemies of Reality
* Nightrage – Sweet Vengeance
* Ningen Isu – Shura bayashi
* Norther – Mirror of Madness
* Nothingface – Skeletons
* No-Big-Silence – Unreleased
* Occult – Elegy for the Weak
* Old Man's Child – In Defiance of Existence
* One Minute Silence – One Lie Fits All
* Overkill – Killbox 13
* Opeth – Damnation
* Pantera – The Best of Pantera: Far Beyond the Great Southern Cowboys' Vulgar Hits! (Compilation)
* Pitchshifter – Bootlegged, Distorted, Remixed and Uploaded (Compilation)
* Place of Skulls – With Vision
* P.O.D. – Payable on Death
* Poison the Well – You Come Before You
* Psycroptic – The Scepter of the Ancients
* Queensrÿche – Tribe
* Rage – Soundchaser
* RAMP – Nude
* Royal Hunt – Eyewitness
* Rush – Rush in Rio (live)
* Seven Witches – Passage to the Other Side
* Six Feet Under – Bringer of Blood
* Skid Row – Thickskin
* Skillet – Collide
* Sepultura – Roorback
* Sevendust – Seasons
* Slayer – Soundtrack to the Apocalypse (Box set)
* Soilwork – Figure Number Five
* Solefald – In Harmonia Universali
* Sonata Arctica – Winterheart's Guild
* Spawn of Possession – Cabinet
* Static-X – Shadow Zone
* Strapping Young Lad – Strapping Young Lad
* Stratovarius – Elements, Pt. 1
* Stratovarius – Elements, Pt. 2
* Stryper – 7: The Best of Stryper (compilation)
* Theocracy – Theocracy
* The Lord Weird Slough Feg – Traveller
* Throwdown – Haymaker
* Three Days Grace – Three Days Grace
* Tourniquet – Where Moth and Rust Destroy
* Trivium – Ember to Inferno
* Type O Negative – Life Is Killing Me
* Týr – Eric the Red
* uneXpect – _wE, Invaders (EP)
* Virgin Black – Elegant... and Dying
* Xandria – Kill the Sun

## Disbandments

* Coal Chamber
* Five Pointe O
* Limbonic Art
* Immortal
* Pitchshifter
* Pantera
* Reveille
* Rollins Band (reformed in 2006)

## Events

* After months of auditions, Robert Trujillo, bassist of Ozzy Osbourne and former bassist of Suicidal Tendencies, was announced as Metallica's new bassist, replacing Jason Newsted.
* After nearly a decade of the show being off the air, MTV2 announced the resurrection of Headbangers' Ball with Jamey Jasta as host.
* Vocalist Matt Barlow announced his departure from Iced Earth.
* Stryper reformed with all original members.
* Visions of Atlantis vocalist Christian Stani and keyboardist Chris Kamper parted ways with the band, being replaced by Mario Plank and Miro Holly, respectively.
* In July, Judas Priest announced the return of Rob Halford on vocals.

## Deaths

* January 10 – Einar André Fredriksen, bassist, vocalist, and songwriter of Funeral, died by suicide at the age of 29.
* March 16 – Teemu "Somnium" Raimoranta, founding member and guitarist of Finntroll, guitarist of Impaled Nazarene, and former guitarist of Thy Serpent, died from injuries after falling from a bridge.
* November 18 – Michael Arnold Kamen, composer (especially of film scores), orchestral arranger and conductor, who collaborated with numerous artists from various genres, including Pink Floyd, Rush, Guns 'N Roses, and Metallica (S&M), died from a heart attack at the age of 55.
| Preceded by2002 | Heavy Metal Timeline 2003 | Succeeded by2004 |