1983 in heavy metal music

This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in 1983.

Newly formed bands

• Alcatrazz
• Atrocity
• Autograph
• Bathory
• Bon Jovi
• Death
• Excel (known as Chaotic Noise until 1985)
• Fastway
• Fates Warning
• Hagar Schon Aaronson Shrieve
• Helloween
• Keel
• Living Colour
• Lizzy Borden
• Master
• Mayhem
• Megadeth
• Morbid Angel
• Onslaught
• Poison
• Possessed
• Rigor Mortis
• Sabbat
• Sacrifice
• Stryper
• Testament (known as Legacy until 1986)
• Tokyo Blade
• Vader
• White Lion

Albums & EPs

AC/DC – Flick of the Switch Accept – Balls to the Wall Acid – Maniac Alcatrazz – No Parole from Rock N' Roll Alice Cooper – DaDa Alien – Cosmic Fantasy EP Anvil – Forged in Fire Armored Saint – Armored Saint EP Baron Rojo – Metalmorfosis Battleaxe – Burn This Town Bitch – Be My Slave Blackfoot – Siogo Black Sabbath – Born Again Blue Öyster Cult – The Revölution by Night Bodine – Three Times Running Chateaux – Chained and Desperate Coney Hatch – Outta Hand Culprit – Guilty As Charged Cutty Sark – Hardrock Power EP Dedringer – Second Arising Def Leppard – Pyromania Demon – The Plague Diamond Head – Canterbury Dio – Holy Diver Dokken – Breaking the Chains Earthshaker – Earthshaker Europe – Europe Exciter – Heavy Metal Maniac Fastway – Fastway Fist (Can) – In the Red Lita Ford – Out for Blood Girlschool – Play Dirty Great White – Out of the Night Grim Reaper – See You In Hell HSAS – Through the Fire Hanoi Rocks – Back to Mystery City Hawaii – One Nation Underground H-Bomb – Coup de Metal EP Headpins – Line of Fire Heavy Load – Stronger Than Evil Hellanbach – Now Hear This High Power – High Power Highway Chile – Storybook Heroes; Fever EP Helix – No Rest for the Wicked Hellion – Hellion EP Holocaust – Live (Hot Curry & Wine) Iron Maiden – Piece of Mind Jag Panzer – Tyrants EP Joshua – The Hand is Quicker than the Eye EP Killer Dwarfs – Killer Dwarfs KISS – Lick It Up Kix – Cool Kids Krokus – Headhunter Lady Killer – Lady Killer Leather Angel – We Came To Kill EP Le Griffe – Fast Bikes EP Le Mans – On the Streets Loudness – The Law of Devil's Land Loudness – Live-Loud-Alive: Loudness in Tokyo Magnum – The Eleventh Hour Mama's Boys – Turn It Up Manilla Road – Crystal Logic Manowar – Into Glory Ride Mindless Sinner – Master of Evil EP Max Havoc – Max Havoc Mercyful Fate – Melissa Metallica – Kill 'Em All Molly Hatchet – No Guts...No Glory Gary Moore – Dirty Fingers Gary Moore – Victims of the Future

Gary Moore – Rockin' Every Night – Live in Japan Gary Moore – Live at the Marquee Mötley Crüe – Shout at the Devil Motörhead – Another Perfect Day MSG – Built to Destroy Night Ranger – Midnight Madness No Bros – Our Own Way Aldo Nova – Subject Ostrogoth – Full Moon's Eyes EP Overdrive – Metal Attack Oz – Fire in the Brain Ozzy Osbourne – Bark at the Moon Pandemonium – Heavy Metal Soldiers Pantera – Metal Magic Picture – Eternal Dark Pretty Maids – Pretty Maids EP Quartz – Against All Odds Queensrÿche – Queensrÿche EP Quiet Riot – Metal Health Rage (UK) – Run for the Night Ratt – Ratt EP Riff Raff – Give the Dead Man Some Water Riot – Born in America Rock Goddess – Rock Goddess; Hell Hath No Fury The Rods – In The Raw; Live Satan – Court in the Act Satan Jokers – Les Fils du Métal Savage – Loose 'N Lethal Savage Grace – The Dominatress EP Savatage – Sirens Saxon – Power & the Glory Shy – Once Bitten... Twice... Silver Mountain – Shakin' Brains Sinner – Fast Decision Six Feet Under (Swe) – Six Feet Under Slayer – Prepare to Die EP Slayer – Show No Mercy Sledgehammer – Blood On Their Hands Sortilège – Sortilège EP Sound Barrier – Total Control Spartan Warrior – Steel n' Chains Stampede – Hurricane Town Starfighters – In-Flight Movie Steeler – Steeler Suicidal Tendencies – Suicidal Tendencies Takashi – Kamikaze Killers EP Talas – Live Speed On Ice Thin Lizzy – Thunder and Lightning Tokyo Blade – Tokyo Blade Torch – Torch Trance – Power Infusion Triumph – Never Surrender Twisted Sister – You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll 220 Volt – 220 Volt UFO – Making Contact Vanadium – A Race with the Devil Vandenberg – Heading for a Storm Vardis – The Lion's Share Victim – Power Hungry Virgin Steele – Guardians of the Flame; Wait for the Night EP Vixen – Made In Hawaii EP Warlord – Deliver Us EP Warriors – Warriors Wild Dogs – Wild Dogs Wildfire – Brute Force and Ignorance Witchfinder General – Friends of Hell Xcursion – Xcursion EP Y&T – Mean Streak Zebra – Zebra

Events

• Yngwie Malmsteen started performing in the band Steeler. Also in that band was vocalist Ron Keel (later on Keel) and former W.A.S.P. bassist Rik Fox. The band produced only one album, Steeler.
• Dave Mustaine, lead guitarist for Metallica, is fired for drug/alcohol abuse, and is replaced by Exodus guitarist Kirk Hammett, after which he formed the L.A. thrash metal band Megadeth.
• KISS ended the use of makeup in their act.
• November 19: the single by Quiet Riot "Cum on Feel the Noize" is No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100.
• April 17: Mountain bassist, and Cream producer, Felix Pappalardi was shot and killed by his wife Gail Collins Pappalardi.
• Metallica and Slayer releases their Debuts : Kill Em´All and Show No Mercy.

References