AC/DC Rocks the Alamodome as Texas Metal Sets Its Sights on 2026
There's a particular kind of thunder that rolls through San Antonio when a band like AC/DC comes to town, and this past Thursday the Alamodome got the full treatment. Footage of the entire July 24 concert has already made its way online via the Patrick Zapata YouTube channel, and if you weren't among the tens of thousands packed into that building, it's worth carving out two hours to watch Angus Young duckwalk his way through a set that opened with "If You Want Blood (You've Got It)" and never let up. The show is part of a run that's set to bring the 'Power Up' tour back through North America in 2026, and for a state that treats arena rock like a religious observance, that's news worth savoring twice.
It's easy to forget, in an era obsessed with algorithmic playlists and streaming numbers, that AC/DC built their legacy the old-fashioned way — riff by riff, tour by tour — and that legacy still casts a long shadow over every 80s metal bands conversation you'll have in a Texas dive bar. San Antonio getting a full date on this tour isn't just a nostalgia lap; it's a reminder that this region has always been a proving ground for heavy music, from stadium giants to the DIY basements where the next wave is currently sharpening its teeth.
The Black Metal Bloodline Runs Deep in Texas
While the arena-rock spotlight shines on San Antonio, it's worth remembering that Texas has quietly been one of the most important incubators for extreme metal in North America for over three decades. Denton's own Absu helped define a uniquely Texan strain of black and thrash metal that fused occult mysticism with technical aggression long before "blackened thrash" was a marketing term, and their influence still ripples through the underground here. Bands like Morta carry that torch forward today, blending black metal's atmosphere with crossover thrash's teeth-baring energy in a way that feels distinctly of this state — dusty, violent, unpretentious.
That lineage matters right now because the Texas metal scene is having a real moment of self-examination about identity. With so many new metal bands 2026 lineups already being teased for festival season, the conversation keeps circling back to what actually makes a band "Texas metal" versus just a band that happens to be from Texas. If you ask longtime scene veterans, the answer usually involves some combination of Absu's occult thrash blueprint, Power Trip's crossover fury, and a healthy disregard for genre purity.
Deathcore's Northeast Swing Has Texas Watching Closely
Elsewhere in the touring world, Signs of the Swarm just announced a run of Northeastern dates with The Last Ten Seconds of Life planned for October and November — a pairing that's going to make deathcore heads in the Rust Belt very happy. It's not a Texas run, but the timing is notable, because it signals that the deathcore and slam-adjacent circuit is gearing up for another aggressive touring cycle heading into 2026. Texas has its own claim to that sound; Fort Worth's death metal exports have been building international followings for years, and the appetite for brutal, low-tuned riffage shows no signs of slowing down regionally.
This is exactly the kind of content gap worth flagging for anyone tracking the scene closely — slam death metal has a real, active presence in Texas clubs even if it doesn't always get the ink it deserves. When touring packages like Signs of the Swarm's start rolling through the broader circuit, it usually isn't long before a Texas stop gets added to the itinerary, and promoters here would be wise to start making calls now rather than later.
Hardcore's Unlikely Crossover Moment
Denzel Curry telling fans he's "flirting with the idea of creating a hardcore tape," paired with his live debut of "Hive Mind" alongside Knocked Loose at a free Brooklyn show, is one of those stories that seems like it shouldn't matter to a regional metal outlet — until you remember that Texas hardcore has been quietly cross-pollinating with hip-hop and metalcore for years. Acts like Fire from the Gods have built entire careers on refusing to stay in one genre lane, mixing hardcore aggression with rap-inflected vocals and social commentary that fits right into this current moment of genre-blending. If Curry actually follows through on a hardcore tape, don't be surprised if Texas promoters start looking for ways to get a piece of that momentum on local bills.
It's also a good excuse to shout out the metalcore acts holding down the scene at the ground level. So It Begins continues to represent the more melodic, breakdown-heavy side of Texas metalcore, while crossover thrash acts descended from the Power Trip school — like Power Trip themselves — remain the gold standard for how hardcore and thrash can coexist without diluting either.
Doom, Gloom, and a Changing of the Guard
On the gothic doom front, Aaron Stainthorpe's account of his "heartbreaking" dismissal from My Dying Bride, and the subsequent formation of Towards the Sinister with three former bandmates, is a stark reminder of how fragile even legendary institutions can be. My Dying Bride helped write the rulebook for atmospheric doom, and stories like this one land differently in a scene where band breakups and reformations are a constant undercurrent. Texas has its own rich gothic and doom lineage worth remembering here — Golgotha has long carried a similarly heavy, atmospheric torch in the black/death/gothic space, and it's a reminder that this style of songwriting, built on dread and melody rather than blast beats, still has real staying power.
Speaking of doom, Monolord's new "Iodine" video — reportedly inspired by Led Zeppelin, Lynyrd Skynyrd, and The Eagles — is a fascinating data point for where stoner and doom metal are heading stylistically. Pulling from classic rock's DNA rather than just Sabbath worship suggests a genre that's actively trying to expand its palette rather than repeat itself. Texas stoner and doom acts have been doing something similar for years; The Sword built an entire career bridging heavy riffs with classic rock songcraft, and newer acts like Goat Bong and Cryowitch keep that tradition alive in clubs across the state.
Touring Realities and the State of the Road
Not every touring story this week is a celebration. Ill Niño's decision to postpone their Russian tour dates, citing both a family medical emergency and escalating war tensions, is a sober reminder that international touring in 2026 still carries real geopolitical risk alongside the usual logistical headaches. It's a good gut-check for anyone assuming that metal bands touring 2026 will simply pick up where 2025 left off without complication. For Texas bands eyeing international runs, stories like this underscore why so many acts are choosing to build strength regionally first — hitting reliable rooms across Austin, Dallas, Houston, and San Antonio before betting on riskier overseas circuits.
And on the punk-adjacent side of things, Drain's tribute to Sick of It All's Lou Koller at the Long Beach Vans Warped Tour stop, alongside the wilder story of Hemorage getting arrested for staging an impromptu gas station parking lot show outside that same event, are both reminders of hardcore's chaotic, community-driven spirit. Texas hardcore punk lineage — from MDC to Riverboat Gamblers — was built on exactly that kind of unpermitted, do-it-yourself energy, and it's good to see that spirit still causing trouble on the West Coast.
Where Texas Fits Into All of This
None of these stories happened here, but that's sort of the point of paying attention to the national conversation — it tells you where the current is heading, and Texas has never been shy about riding that current on its own terms. Whether it's arena rock legends filling the Alamodome, hardcore rappers flirting with mosh-pit chaos, or doom bands reinventing themselves after painful lineup changes, the throughline is the same: heavy music keeps mutating, and the bands willing to take risks are the ones still standing a decade later.
If you're building your own list of the best metal albums of all time or debating the best heavy metal songs with your bandmates in a van somewhere between Lubbock and Waco, do yourself a favor and make room for the Texas acts doing the unglamorous work right now — playing the Wednesday night slots, building the fanbases one sweaty room at a time. Check upcoming shows across the state this fall, and if you're in a band that deserves coverage, don't wait around — submit your band and let's get your name into this conversation too.
