Forged in Tirana, Albania, in 1996, Crossbones are a testament to endurance, conviction, and unrelenting metal spirit. Three decades on, they stand as the sole survivor of Albania’s mid-’90s metal scene—still loud, still relevant, and still driven by an uncompromising passion for heavy music.
Throughout their relentless journey, Crossbones have shared stages with some of the most respected names in rock and metal, including W.A.S.P., Gloryhammer, Lordi, Phil Campbell, Battle Beast at Austria’s Area 53 Festival, and the legendary Ian Paice of Deep Purple. They have co-headlined with Greek black metal icons Rotting Christ in Tirana, performed with Nervosa at Flex Fest Open Air in Arad, Romania, and appeared with Jinjer and numerous international acts across Europe.
Unbound by geography, Crossbones have built a rare international path for an Albanian metal band—performing across Austria, Italy, Greece, Montenegro, Kosovo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia, and North Macedonia, and touring Romania, Bulgaria, the Baltics (Estonia and Latvia), and Ukraine.
The band hosted Metal United Worldwide as the Albanian chapter in 2018 and 2019, and released their latest full-length album, The Awakening, on July 12, 2019 via Alpha Omega Records, earning strong acclaim across Europe, the USA, and Australia. Recorded with renowned producer and sound engineer Alex Azzali at Alpha Omega Studios—and previously with Tommy Talamanca (Sadist) at Nadir Music Studios, Genoa—Crossbones’ sound fuses American thrash and groove metal intensity with a darker edge and Eastern European sonic character.
As Crossbones mark 30 years of relentless momentum, their mission remains unchanged: to honor their roots, push forward without compromise, and carry Albanian metal onto stages around the world.
