The best metal, goth and punk gigs have the best atmospheres. In fact, atmosphere’s probably as important as sound quality – even for fans hundreds of metres away from the main speakers at a Metallica or AC/DC stadium concert. Heavy distortion, stark visuals, and emotional intensity already feel cinematic (and provide plenty of material for films like Metallica: Through the Never). All of this seems to make these genres natural candidates for VR concerts.
Moody music, moody visuals?
Many bands already have strong visual identities. Artists like DragonForce build on mythic worlds and fantasy; The Cure always leaned into mood and dark colour palettes; punk thrives on its raw immediacy and confrontation. In VR, a band could perform inside a cathedral, in front of a cityscape, or in horror-style looping corridors without needing (expensive) physical set construction.
Fans of releases from newer artists like Ghost, whose 2025 album Skeletá continued their theatrical storytelling approach, already expect narrative in both studio and live performances. For bands like Bring Me The Horizon, whose POST HUMAN series aimed to communicate digital age and pandemic-era anxieties, VR could have been the perfect partner. VR will likely never replace what artists do on stage, but it could compliment it.
Current VR concerts
Platforms such as AmazeVR and Wave XR have experimented with cinematic camera paths, reactive environments and spatial audio that shifts as viewers move their heads. Social VR spaces like VRChat and Meta Horizon Worlds host live DJ sets and indie performances where audiences appear as avatars inside shared environments.
Not all of these platforms have taken off in the way VR proponents hoped. Meta Horizon Worlds, for example, is ending its new content this year. But tech writer Stephen Johnson (LifeHacker) recently argued that it’s still a “vibrant ecosystem”, with gaming studios like Resolution Games cracking the code. That company has sold millions of games, with Demeo particularly successful.
Sound design is becoming more granular. Instead of stereo mixes, VR concerts can use spatial audio layers with guitars, drums and vocals occupying fixed positions in 3D space. This suits genres like metal, where certain producers prefer to keep instruments feeling “separate” and use stereo mixes. Nolly Getwood and Will Putney, for example, might like the idea of even more spatial possibilities.
Immersive experiences
The possibilities of immersive concerts connect with other digital entertainment sectors that have already solved parts of the engagement problem. Online casino platforms, for example, have spent years refining real-time interaction, retention loops and visual feedback systems.
One source of inspiration is how live casino platforms have adapted centuries-old games (poker, blackjack, etc). Dealers, animations, chat systems and reward mechanics are layered to create a sense of shared space even though players might be continents apart. The same design logic can work in VR concerts, where audience avatars, emotes and reactive lighting might replace traditional crowd feedback.
Concert promoters could also learn from iGaming marketing and promotions such as wager-free free spins for UK players on casinos.com. These incentives to sign up reflect how online experiences are often shaped around instant access, participation loops and easy entry into live entertainment. In VR concerts, similar models could work with fans unlocking visual effects, alternate camera angles or exclusive tracks based on presence or interaction.
Where VR concerts go next for guitar music
Metal and goth would particularly benefit from thematic spaces, where artists might return to environments and adapt them for a new album or release, rather than rebuilding tours every cycle.
The biggest constraint, right now at least, is accessibility. High-quality VR headsets are still expensive and don’t always receive mainstream attention, and not every music fan will want headset-based concerts. But as platforms improve mobile and become more affordable, the barrier could lower.
VR won’t replace live music. AmazeVR’s CEO Steve Lee has said that isn’t the goal anyway. There will always be an appetite for entirely human, physical events, especially as many people are resisting the use of AI in music. But VR could compliment artists’ aesthetics. And they could provide an alternative for people who can’t go to traditional concerts. The distortion, the mood, and the energy already exist in the music. VR could give those elements more space to occupy.