This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 1980. Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that emerged as a defined musical style in the 1970s, having its roots in hard rock bands which, between 1969 and 1974,[1] mixed blues and rock music to create a hybrid with a thick, heavy, guitar-and-drums-centered sound, characterised... 1980 (MCMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Tuesday. ...

Newly formed bands

• Manowar
• Mercyful Fate
• Overkill

Manowar is an American heavy metal band from Auburn, New York, which formed in 1980. ... Mercyful Fate is an influential Danish heavy metal group that helped inspire the black metal, thrash metal and prog metal genres. ... Overkill is one of the first Thrash Metal bands, formed in the early 1980s in New Jersey (but often attributed to New York City), and very active ever since. ...

Albums

• AC/DC - Back in Black
• Alice Cooper - Flush the Fashion
• Angel Witch - Angel Witch
• Black Sabbath - Heaven and Hell
• Blue Öyster Cult - Cultösaurus Erectus
• Def Leppard - On Through the Night
• Diamond Head - Lightning to the Nations
• Gamma - Gamma 2
• Girlschool - Demolition
• Iron Maiden - Iron Maiden
• Judas Priest - British Steel
• KISS - Unmasked
• Motörhead - Ace of Spades
• Queen - The Game
• Rush - Permanent Waves
• Ozzy Osbourne - Blizzard of Ozz
• Saxon - Wheels of Steel
• Saxon - Strong Arm of the Law

This article is about the band. ... Back in Black is the seventh studio album by Australian hard rock band AC/DC, released on 25 July 1980 (see 1980 in music). ... Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948), is a rock singer, songwriter and musician whose career spans four decades. ... Flush the Fashion is an album by Alice Cooper, released in 1980 (see 1980 in music). ... Angel Witch is a British heavy metal band which was assembled in 1977. ... This article is being considered for deletion in accordance with Wikipedias deletion policy. ... For other uses, see Black Sabbath (disambiguation). ... Heaven and Hell is an album by Black Sabbath, released in May 1980. ... Blue Öyster Cult is an American psychedelic/heavy metal band formed in the late 1960s and active as of 2006. ... Cultösaurus Erectus is a Blue Öyster Cult album released in 1980. ... Def Leppard are a hard rock band from Sheffield, England, who formed in 1977 at the time of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. ... On through the Night is the debut album by British hard rock band Def Leppard, released in 1980. ... Diamond Head Diamond Head are a British heavy metal band formed in 1976 in Stourbridge, England. ... Lightning to the Nations is a recording by Diamond Head. ... Gamma was a band formed by guitarist Ronnie Montrose and singer Davey Pattison. ... On Gammas second disc, Ronnie Montrose keeps his streak of not having the same personel on two albums in a row, changing the line-up once again. ... Girlschool are a long-running English all-female heavy metal band originating out of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal. ... Demolition of the Old Myer Building, Perth, Western Australia. ... Iron Maiden are an English heavy metal band from east London. ... Iron Maiden, released on April 14, 1980, was the first full-length album by Iron Maiden, reaching number 4 in the UK album charts. ... Judas Priest are a heavy metal band formed in 1968 in the northwest midlands of England, near Birmingham. ... British Steel is a heavy metal album by Judas Priest, released on April 14 1980 (see 1980 in music). ... Kiss (sometimes typeset KISS, to fit the official logo) is an American rock band formed in New York City in 1973. ... KISS released Unmasked in 1980. ... The title of this article contains the following characters: ö. Where they are unavailable or not desired, the name may be given as Motorhead. ... Ace of Spades is the fourth album by the British speed metal band Motörhead. ... Queen is an English rock band. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Rush is a Canadian rock band comprising bassist, keyboardist, and vocalist Geddy Lee, guitarist Alex Lifeson, and drummer and lyricist Neil Peart. ... Permanent Waves is the seventh studio album by the Canadian rock band Rush, released January 1, 1980 (see 1980 in music). ... Ozzy redirects here. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... Saxon are a British heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. ... Wheels of Steel is the second studio album by heavy metal band Saxon released in 1980 (see 1980 in music). ... Saxon are a British heavy metal band, formed in 1976 in Barnsley, Yorkshire. ... Strong Arm of The Law is the third studio album by heavy metal band Saxon released in 1980 (see 1980 in music). ...

Disbandments

• Led Zeppelin

For the bands 1969 self-titled debut album, see Led Zeppelin (album). ...

Events

• Bon Scott, lead singer of AC/DC, dies at 33 on February 19 after a binge of heavy drinking.
• John Bonham, drummer for Led Zeppelin, dies at 32 on September 25, after a binge of heavy drinking. His death was similar to Bon Scott's, and caused Led Zeppelin to disband.
• April 1: Brian Johnson joins AC/DC replacing Bon Scott as lead singer.