This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 1982.

Newly formed bands

• Abattoir
• Arakain
• Armored Saint
• Artillery
• Avenger
• Baby Tuckoo
• BlackLace
• Brocas Helm
• Cinderella
• Cobra
• Coney Hatch
• Corrosion of Conformity (not originally a metal band)
• Crumbsuckers
• Culprit
• Death Angel
• Destruction
• Dio
• Dirty Rotten Imbeciles
• Dr. Mastermind
• D.A.D.
• Ezo
• Fates Warning
• The Georgia Satellites
• Godflesh (under the name "Fall of Because" until 1988)
• Guardian
• Hazzard
• Heavens Gate
• Hell
• Hellhammer
• Hellion
• Helstar
• Kreator
• Lȧȧz Rockit
• Lethal
• Liege Lord
• Luzbel
• Mad Max
• Madam X
• Mournblade
• No Mercy
• Obsession
• Onslaught
• Outrage
• Philadelphia
• Post Mortem
• Roxx Gang
• Seikima-II
• Sieges Even
• Sinner
• Smack
• Streets
• Swans
• Tankard
• Terra Rosa
• TNT
• Tredegar
• Tublatanka
• Steve Vai
• Voivod
• W.A.S.P.
• Warlock
• Warrior
• Warriors
• Watchtower
• Waysted
• Wrath
• X (later known as X Japan)
• Znowhite

Albums & EPs

Events

• Iron Maiden's first album with Bruce Dickinson, The Number of the Beast, reaches No.1 in the U.K. music charts.
• Motörhead's guitarist "Fast" Eddie Clarke leaves the band and is replaced by ex-Thin Lizzy guitarist Brian Robertson.
• Judas Priest's single "You've Got Another Thing Comin'" is released. It will go on to become the band's best selling single.
• Ozzy Osbourne's guitarist Randy Rhoads dies in an airplane accident on March 19.
• Iron Maiden's drummer Clive Burr is fired from the band because of personal and tour-schedule problems. Nicko McBrain from Trust is hired to replace him.
• Ace Frehley, Space Ace and lead guitarist of Kiss, leaves the band. Vinnie Vincent takes his place.
• Queen departs from their hard rock legacy with the ill-received funk/disco album Hot Space.
• December: Former Deep Purple vocalist Ian Gillan replaces Ronnie James Dio in Black Sabbath.
• The band Metallica leaves Los Angeles and relocates to the San Francisco Bay Area.