What I want to know is: how do other users manage to dig up so many bands to submit? Users like joecubbie and Witcher have nearly constant streams of submissions in the queue, and 0th always handles the Bandcamp stuff before anybody else can get to it. What are some of the “tricks of the trade”, if you will, to be able to discover so many bands?

I don’t get it.

Read zines, new and old, read distros new and old, read trade lists on forums new and old, follow "gem hunting" facebook groups, especially ones with old tape traders, talk to people who are in bands, usually they've been in previous bands that they wish never existed but released a demo tape, etc.

There are tons of Youtube chanels focussing on obscure/forgotten metal stuff, too. Or check Discogs for new additions. Going to local shows or getting involved in your local community often leads to getting some freshly released demos of newcomer bands that aren't listed here yet.

I personally have the luxury of having access to the list of rejected and deleted bands and I'm currently going through the abandoned rejections from 2013 or something, trying to dig up acceptable stuff the submitter didn't care enough about to provide some real proof.

There's also the age-old method of Bandcamp/Amazon/iTunes/etc. trawling, too.

Old flyers may also give you a hint about potential bands to be added to the archives

I think Bandcamp has so much material of small bands before trawling it was the go-to. I can attest to that. That'll have to be anything released below year 2013 or 2014 at most, but good luck with actually locating them if you don't know them. I've seen most with just below 20 minutes demos, after which they disappear. Facebook also proves to be a treasure trove when scanning gig fliers and related artists pages.

And before we started accepting digital-only bands, so anything before 2013.

Ok, thanks for the clarification. Helps a lot.

Honestly, with GraveWish more or less gone, I don't know that we've got a Bandcamp Trawler of his scale to replace him. It's probably a prime spot to dive in to.

0th currently reigns as the Bandcamp Trawler, from what I can see.

No reason why you can't give him some assistance!