London's Sleep Token meets Des Moines's Slipknot in this week's alternative metal matchup. Both bands are alternative metal acts known for featuring masks. Make sure to cast your vote before voting closes! Cast your vote on the contest page, then make your case here — why does your pick take it?

System of a Down is set to take the stage at Sick New World 2026 - Texas at Texas Motor Speedway on October 24, 2026. Live appearances from Serj Tankian, Daron Malakian, Shavo Odadjian, and John Dolmayan remain rare, making each festival slot a major event for the fanbase. The Texas show comes right after the band's weeklong Toxicity 25th Anniversary Exhibition wraps up in Los Angeles on October 18, 2026. Who from here is going to be out at Texas Motor Speedway for this set?

Coldplay released Mylo Xyloto fifteen years ago in 2011 on Parlophone. It stands as the band's fifth studio album, arriving on October 19, 2011, after Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends from 2008 and before Ghost Stories in 2014. The lineup of Chris Martin, Jonny Buckland, Guy Berryman, and Will Champion followed this record with later releases including A Head Full of Dreams, Everyday Life, Music of the Spheres, and Moon Music. Where does Mylo Xyloto sit in the discography for you?

Nickelback from Hanna, Alberta faces fellow Canadian alternative rock band Three Days Grace from Norwood, Ontario in this week's matchup. Both groups emerged in the 1990s with their own distinct rock sounds. Which of these bands gets your support? Cast your vote now before voting closes! Cast your vote on the contest page, then make your case here — why does your pick take it?

OneRepublic released their fourth studio album, Oh My My, ten years ago today on October 7, 2016 on Interscope Records. Following their 2013 record Native, the release pushed the group into fresh territory before they followed it years later with Human in 2021 and Artificial Paradise in 2024. Across a discography that started with Dreaming Out Loud and Waking Up, it holds a distinct place. Where does Oh My My sit in the OneRepublic discography for you today?

British-American rock band Fleetwood Mac emerged from the London blues scene in 1967, while Australian band AC/DC arrived in 1973 with brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Both bands share a blues rock foundation. Cast your vote for your favorite before voting closes! Cast your vote on the contest page, then make your case here — why does your pick take it?

Deftones are back on stage over the next couple of months with two appearances lined up. First, they hit Fort Worth for Sick New World Texas on October 24, 2026. Two weeks later, on November 7, 2026, the band heads to San Diego to headline Dia De Los Deftones. While we wait for those dates, Chino Moreno popped up on tracks with Beabadoobee in September 2026, and Stephen Carpenter's Sol Invicto project dropped a new track titled "Galactic Glitch" on September 20, 2026. Still, nothing beats hearing the band pull from a catalog running from Adrenaline all the way through private music in a live setting. Are you catching them in Fort Worth or San Diego this fall?

Korn. Looking at the year-over-year changes, his eras are so distinct. You’ve got the early raw tracksuits

Liverpool's 1960 pop-rock quartet The Beatles face off against Colorado Springs' pop-rock group OneRepublic. Both groups bring their distinct sounds and lineups to this week's matchup. Make your voice heard and cast your vote before voting closes! Cast your vote on the contest page, then make your case here — why does your pick take it?

Korn co-headlining, and a lineup that's arguably the best they've ever put together. Are you buying in? Did you get burned

times have you been to SNW (0 = first timer!) *Your #1 must-see act I'll start: Seattle, 0, KORN

There is something incredibly wholesome about seeing one of metal’s most intense frontmen geeking out in the crowd just like a regular fan. It’s that exact energy we love tracking.

A recently resurfaced photo from a legendary Metallica gig in California 23 years ago is a brutal reminder of the band's unmatched live energy during that era. Looking back at the raw crowd shots and setlists from the early 2000s, it's wild to see how global titans playing massive venues still carried the ferocious hunger of a gritty garage act. They just had this rare ability to make a sprawling arena feel like a sweaty, claustrophobic club show. Archiving these specific eras—the deep-cut setlists, the tour lore, and the nights where everything just clicked perfectly on stage—is exactly why we're building out their wiki over on The Band Index. It’s too easy to lose the history of these defining shows, and digging into their gig archive is the absolute best kind of rabbit hole.

They’ve been working on this Travis Barker documentary for 10 years. *Louder Than Fear* covers the whole timeline—from being a trash collector in Laguna Beach, to filling in for Scott Raynor, to surviving that horrific plane crash. We all know he’s the machine behind Blink-182 and The Transplants, but getting a raw look at his recovery and how he got back on the kit is going to be heavy. It hits Disney+ in August. In honor of the doc dropping, let's settle this: what is the absolute best Travis Barker drum track? Is it something off *Enema of the State*, a Transplants deep cut, or a Box Car Racer track? Drop your picks below.

British rock band Queen faces Los Angeles thrash metal icons Metallica in this week's hard rock head-to-head poll. Will you choose London's 1970 legends or the group formed in 1981? Cast your vote now before voting closes! Cast your vote on the contest page, then make your case here — why does your pick take it?

Credit: Rock Feed