please update this band

Columbus, Ohio's Shanghai operate in traditional heavy metal territory, drawing on the classic genre template while filtering it through the Midwest's straightforward, unpretentious approach to hard rock and metal since forming in 2017. Their Bandcamp handle — shanghaidoom — hints at an earthier, heavier influence lurking beneath the heavy metal foundation.

Cincinnati heavy metal band Shocker have been playing hard rock-inflected traditional metal since 2013, drawing from the deep well of classic American heavy metal while keeping the sound grounded and direct in the Midwest tradition.

Cleveland's Shok Paris carry the torch for Midwestern heavy and power metal, reviving the band under that name in 2020 and returning to the melodic, fist-pumping anthemic metal that made the original lineup a cult favorite in the Ohio heavy metal underground.

Columbus, Ohio's Sin Nombre — the name meaning "no name" in Spanish — have been marinating in the thick intersection of sludge and stoner metal since 2013. Their Midwestern locale adds a certain grey industrial weight to a sound already defined by heaviness, heat, and deliberate, grinding momentum.

Skar is a heavy metal band from Amherst, Ohio, formed in 2023, aligning themselves with the classic traditions of the genre — twin guitar work, strong hooks, and a nod to the NWOBHM and American power metal lineages. They are one of the newer acts carrying on the traditional heavy metal torch in the Midwest.

Bowling Green, Ohio heavy metal band active since 2016, rooted in traditional heavy metal with an emphasis on direct, no-frills power riffing. Sledge represent the working-class Midwest metal aesthetic — straightforward, heavy, and unapologetic.

Soil Creep is a heavy metal band from Ohio, formed in 2018, working within traditional heavy metal frameworks to produce riff-driven material rooted in the genre's classic foundations.

Solar Flare is a heavy and power metal band from Amelia, Ohio, formed in 2010, delivering melodic, guitar-driven material with an emphasis on soaring hooks and traditional metal structures rooted in the Midwest hard rock scene.