THE BEAST

ONE BAND TO RULE THEM ALL! KILLOTINE WINS WACKEN METAL BATTLE CANADA 2025 TO PLAY WACKEN OPEN AIR!

Photo Credit – Derek Carr, Visions In Pixels
WMBC 2025 Final Spotify Playlist – Listen Here

One band to rule them all, one stage to bring the chaos.

On May 31st, the national finals of Wacken Metal Battle Canada 2025 erupted at Vancouver’s legendary Rickshaw Theatre , where four of the country's fiercest unsigned metal bands clashed for one coveted prize: the honor of representing Canada at the world-renowned Wacken Open Air Festival in Germany (July 30th – August 2nd). With over 80,000 metal maniacs attending Wacken each year for over three decades, this is a proving ground like no other.

Emerging from the wreckage as champion of champions is Hamilton, ON’s KILLOTINE , who delivered a scorched-earth performance that had both the crowd and industry judges roaring for more. Known for their all-consuming aggression and unrelenting sonic onslaught, Killotine now prepares to take their warpath to Wacken, battling against finalists from 29 other nations on the global stage.

The national final saw KILLOTINE (Ontario Winner) square off with three other titans:

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  SOULTHIEF (Ottawa, ON – Eastern Canada Winner)

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  BEYOND SUFFERING (Calgary, AB – Alberta Winner)

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  YEGG (Nanaimo, BC – British Columbia Winner)

Fans were also treated to a headlining set from Arrow In The Quiver , last year’s BC final winner.

A Word from the Organizer

“What a finals we’ve just had in Vancouver. It's so nice to see the level of the bands and the great performances from all of them. The result is that we’ve got something special this year: Killotine is the chosen one. This band has a career waiting for them, and the real beginning of that journey will be at Wacken Open Air. This really enforces what the Metal Battle is all about and how we are nurturing the next generation—the future of metal,”
says JJ Tartaglia , Canadian Organizer of Wacken Metal Battle Canada.

Judges Panel – WMBC 2025 National Final

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  Brittney Slayes (Unleash The Archers)

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  JJ Tartaglia (WMBC Organizer)

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  JJ Caithcart (SCRAPE Records / Different Stages Radio)

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  Kris Schulz (Empower Through Music / Horizon School of Music)

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  Abelardo Mayoral (The Invisible Orange / OrangeTickets)

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  Stan Schinners (Broken Neck Radio)

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  Justin Dobbin (Main Stage Rehearsal Studios)

🔥 Meet the Final Four 🔥

🏆 KILLOTINE (Hamilton, ON)
The hammer falls—hard. Killotine delivers relentless, no-compromise metal that slices and burns with every riff. Their live performances are a chaotic eruption of blast beats, searing solos, and bone-snapping grooves. The message is simple: No trends. No filler. Just violence through sound. Their set at the Rickshaw proved what many already knew— Killotine is a beast unleashed.

🎥 Live Video – Epic Set at the Whiskey Pit
🔗 Killotine Linktree

SOULTHIEF (Ottawa, ON)
Crossover madness with heart and hook. Soulthief has carved a name with their high-octane fusion of melodic hardcore, punk, slam, and thrash. Since forming in 2021, they've shared stages with the likes of Stick to Your Guns, MadBall, and Left to Suffer. Tracks like “You Could Be My Gwen Stacy” and “Rupture” have become anthems for the underground.

🎥 Music Video – You Could Be My Gwen Stacy
🌐 www.soulthief.ca

BEYOND SUFFERING (Calgary, AB)
Melodic metal meets unrelenting darkness. With a foundation in thrash and metalcore, Beyond Suffering weaves brutal rhythms with emotional intensity. Their latest demo “Buddha” teases the upcoming thematic duality of “Darkness” and “Light.” Fronted by lead guitarist Rob Vargo, their sound is as cutting as it is cathartic.

🎧 Stream – Buddha (Demo)
🔗 Facebook – Beyond Suffering

YEGG (Nanaimo, BC)
Death metal the old-school way. YEGG channels the spirit of legends like Death, Obituary, and Morbid Angel with a feral energy that turns every stage into a war zone. Their track “Offal Offering” is a visceral offering of raw brutality and old-school firepower.

🎧 Stream – Offal Offering
🔗 Linktree – YEGG

ABOUT WACKEN METAL BATTLE CANADA

Wacken Metal Battle Canada is part of a global initiative that gives unsigned bands the opportunity of a lifetime: to play at Wacken Open Air , the world’s largest outdoor metal festival. Bands from across the nation face off in city rounds, finals, and eventually, the national final, where one band earns the chance to battle it out with other nations’ top metal contenders.

Now more than ever, the metal underground is alive, thriving, and ready to erupt. And this year, it’s KILLOTINE who will carry Canada’s banner into the storm.

🏆 Learn more:
🌐 www.metal-battle.com
📘 Facebook – WMBC Canada
🐦 Twitter – @MetalBattleCan
📸 Instagram – @MetalBattleCanada.Official

🎧 Spotify – WMBC 2025 Final Playlist

KILLOTINE IS COMING TO WACKEN. STAY OUT OF THE WAY OR GET DESTROYED.