Death Metal is a form of music evolved from thrash metal in the 1980s. The band Death popularized the name with the song "Death by Metal", as long as their name. The song by Possessed also gave the entire genre a debated name credibility which is still disputed to this day. Death Metal is catergorized by its gutteral growling vocals, thickened guitar tones with sometimes heavy distortion properties, and blast beats which can range from a normal to very fast speed. The vocals and drumming and the pure tell-all of a death metal band, the gutteral bellows are began in the stomach yet shaped with the throat to release a significant sound to raise and lower the pitch of the music in general, while the drumming is blast beat and dependant (mainly) upon the bass drums. Metal evolved through the days, adding elements to grow into Gore Metal, encorporate Grindcore into their elements (Death/Grind). The country and time changes the style, as can be seen through Dismember, Morbid Angel, Cryptopsy, Nile, Origin, and the likes.
by Anonymous September 26, 2003
very good genre of metal. People are prejudice against it because they base it on cannibal corpse. listen to some death
by asebak July 11, 2008
Usually associated with satan and hell etc. but is often philosophical and nihilitist, rather that just purely satanic. Highly technical and complicated form of music, which sounds harsh and raw because of harsh growly vocals and heavy use of distortion and bass on songs. All death metal songs and bands do not sound the same, each one has different riffs and every band has their own vocal style, because nobody growls/rasps the same as anybody else. Covers a wide age range (just go to a gig) and is not racist. (thats a minority of heaveily satanic black metal, e.g. Burzum, who believed in dominancy of the aryan populace of norway) Sepultura have a black singer currently so that screws that argument. Anyone who thinks that death metal is all the same, then they don't have to listen to it, and don't have to slag of fans of the genre for ENJOYING the music. We don't simply do it to look hard.
Possessed, Death, Morbid Angel, At the Gates, Nile, Cannibal Corpse to name but a few, all from different areas of the death metal spectrum.
by jacob September 17, 2003
insanly imposssible music to play and write.
music that sounds great to the ears and soul.
music that emo kids claim to listen to but in reality can only take slipknot
music that sounds great to the ears and soul.
music that emo kids claim to listen to but in reality can only take slipknot
Me "hey look emo kids lets kill them with death metal!"
(nile song)
emo kids being massacred and castrated and being raped by the power that is nile.
(nile song)
emo kids being massacred and castrated and being raped by the power that is nile.
by porsche911turbospyder July 17, 2008
Death metal is a subgenre of heavy metal generally involving low tuned guitars played with tremolo picking and many solos, double kick or blast beat drumming techniques, minor keys or atonality, and rapid time signature changes, chromatic chord progressions, and intricate song-writing. Death metal is the most underrated and underappreciated genre in music, with many of the most famous bands full of world class musicians that taught at the most prestigious music schools in the world. The best aspects of every genre of music (new wave of British heavy metal, classical musical, thrash metal, grindcore, black metal and jazz) can be found in death metal albums articulated in a more intelligent and enjoyable manner than in the aforementioned genres. Examples are Atheist's take on jazz, Arghoslent's NWOBHM riffs, Necrophagist's Beethoven-influenced riffs, and Appalling Spawn's grindcore elements. Death metal produces the most thought-provoking and intelligent lyrics of any genre as referenced below.
Guy 1: Why do you think death metal appeals almost exclusively to very intelligent people?
Guy 2: As illuminated in the documentary The Boy With the Incredible Brain, many very high IQ people think in terms of shapes and music that forms shapes. It is not hard to understand why the ebb and flow of death metal riffs appeal almost exclusively to very intelligent people who sense and recognize the shape and contours of the very intricate and highly educated music that is death metal.
Guy 1: What are some death metal songs which shed light not only on natural aspects of the human condition, but more generally on important societal problems directly connected to people's thinking?
Guy 2: Enthralled in Essence (Atheist), Slaughter of Innocence, Demise of the Clone (Suffocation), Mirrors of Reason (Monstrosity), Omnipresent Perception (Beyond Creation), Dethrone the Hypocrites (Anata), Closeminded Failure (Solstice), The Truth About Lies (Krabathor), Lack of Comprehension (Death), Scavenger of Human Sorrow (Death), The Sadistic Motives Behind Bereavement Letters (Arsis) and Shallow Disbelief (Experiment Fear) all have very intelligent messages meeting your requirements.
Guy 2: As illuminated in the documentary The Boy With the Incredible Brain, many very high IQ people think in terms of shapes and music that forms shapes. It is not hard to understand why the ebb and flow of death metal riffs appeal almost exclusively to very intelligent people who sense and recognize the shape and contours of the very intricate and highly educated music that is death metal.
Guy 1: What are some death metal songs which shed light not only on natural aspects of the human condition, but more generally on important societal problems directly connected to people's thinking?
Guy 2: Enthralled in Essence (Atheist), Slaughter of Innocence, Demise of the Clone (Suffocation), Mirrors of Reason (Monstrosity), Omnipresent Perception (Beyond Creation), Dethrone the Hypocrites (Anata), Closeminded Failure (Solstice), The Truth About Lies (Krabathor), Lack of Comprehension (Death), Scavenger of Human Sorrow (Death), The Sadistic Motives Behind Bereavement Letters (Arsis) and Shallow Disbelief (Experiment Fear) all have very intelligent messages meeting your requirements.
by Eric Kazinsky February 13, 2015
Death Metal is a form of music evolved from thrash metal in the 1980s. The band Death popularized the name with the song "Death by Metal" (as well as their own name). The song by Possessed also gave the entire genre a debated name credibility which is still disputed to this day.
Death Metal is catergorized by its gutteral growling vocals, thickened guitar tones with sometimes heavy distortion properties, and blast beats which can range from a normal to very fast speed. The vocals and drumming are the pure tell-all of a death metal band, the gutteral bellows are began in the stomach yet shaped with the throat to raise and lower the pitch of the music in general, while the drumming is blast beat and dependant (mainly) upon the bass drums. Independant variables to be added to the mix are amounts of groove, morbidity, technicallity, and speed.
Death Metal itself has evolved slowly through the years, ranging from the olden days (Deicide, Death, and Morbid Angel) to the now modernized sounds of Death Metal, (Vital Remains, Cryptopsy, and Hate Eternal) and even now to the more "Brutal" scene of Death Metal (Deeds of Flesh, Severed Savior and Beheaded). Death Metal also has grown roots into the Grindcore scene and evolved many Death/Grind bands, evolved into Gore Metal, and numerous other forms of music.
Death Metal is catergorized by its gutteral growling vocals, thickened guitar tones with sometimes heavy distortion properties, and blast beats which can range from a normal to very fast speed. The vocals and drumming are the pure tell-all of a death metal band, the gutteral bellows are began in the stomach yet shaped with the throat to raise and lower the pitch of the music in general, while the drumming is blast beat and dependant (mainly) upon the bass drums. Independant variables to be added to the mix are amounts of groove, morbidity, technicallity, and speed.
Death Metal itself has evolved slowly through the years, ranging from the olden days (Deicide, Death, and Morbid Angel) to the now modernized sounds of Death Metal, (Vital Remains, Cryptopsy, and Hate Eternal) and even now to the more "Brutal" scene of Death Metal (Deeds of Flesh, Severed Savior and Beheaded). Death Metal also has grown roots into the Grindcore scene and evolved many Death/Grind bands, evolved into Gore Metal, and numerous other forms of music.
Slayer is not a Death Metal band. They are a thrash metal band. Cannibal Corpse are not a Gore Metal band. They are a Death Metal band.
by Anthony September 29, 2003
Sub-genre of heavy metal developed in the early and mid 80s. Although the term had appeared in three notable instances between 1983 and 1985 (Death's "Death by Metal" demo, the German "Death Metal" compilation record and a track from Onslaught's "Power From Hell" LP), it is the Possessed debut "Seven Churches" that is widely regarded as kicking off the movement.
Possessed's use of abrupt tempo changes, gutteral vocals, unusual phrasing and Satanic overtones separated them from the more light hearted, punkish sound of thrash metal. The death metal template would continue to develop as Necrophagia, Death, Morbid Angel, Obituary and Autopsy released their respective debuts. These groups generally focused on horror-movie inspired blood and gore as well as occultist themes. By the 1990s, death metal had exploded in the underground and a number of influential bands rose to prominence. Additionally, if anyone wanted to call themselves death metal, extreme distortion, low guitar tunings and excessively fast tempos were mandatory.
Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Dying Fetus and Deicide presented a percussively driven flavor of death metal, while Death, Cynic, Hypocrisy, Atheist and others prided themselves on more intricate and melodic guitar work, as well as lyrics dealing with social and political issues. Among the most extreme bands included both major Disgorges (USA and Mexico, respectively), Devourment and Mortician, who focused on very low tones, both in the guitar tunings and vocal approach. This was in direct contrast to melodic death metal bands such as At the Gates, the later work of Carcass, and In Flames, who often explored tones above middle C, rather than primarily or exclusively focusing on the bass strings.
The accessibility of melodic death metal (and the public's exposure to increasingly aggressive rock) has lead to deathcore, in which groups such as Job For a Cowboy, Winds of Plague and the recent work of Cryptopsy combine the death metal aesthetic with modern hardcore and other accessible styles.
There are a number of other fusion styles that have developed over the years, including the black metal/death metal hybrid "blackened death metal" (Archgoat, Angelcorpse, Blasphemy). Deathgrind or death grind combines death metal with grindcore (Aborted, Circle of Dead Children, Origin). There are also experimental groups such as Portal, Gorguts and Negativa, who use death metal as a basis to explore a number of unusual rock stylings.
Possessed's use of abrupt tempo changes, gutteral vocals, unusual phrasing and Satanic overtones separated them from the more light hearted, punkish sound of thrash metal. The death metal template would continue to develop as Necrophagia, Death, Morbid Angel, Obituary and Autopsy released their respective debuts. These groups generally focused on horror-movie inspired blood and gore as well as occultist themes. By the 1990s, death metal had exploded in the underground and a number of influential bands rose to prominence. Additionally, if anyone wanted to call themselves death metal, extreme distortion, low guitar tunings and excessively fast tempos were mandatory.
Cannibal Corpse, Suffocation, Dying Fetus and Deicide presented a percussively driven flavor of death metal, while Death, Cynic, Hypocrisy, Atheist and others prided themselves on more intricate and melodic guitar work, as well as lyrics dealing with social and political issues. Among the most extreme bands included both major Disgorges (USA and Mexico, respectively), Devourment and Mortician, who focused on very low tones, both in the guitar tunings and vocal approach. This was in direct contrast to melodic death metal bands such as At the Gates, the later work of Carcass, and In Flames, who often explored tones above middle C, rather than primarily or exclusively focusing on the bass strings.
The accessibility of melodic death metal (and the public's exposure to increasingly aggressive rock) has lead to deathcore, in which groups such as Job For a Cowboy, Winds of Plague and the recent work of Cryptopsy combine the death metal aesthetic with modern hardcore and other accessible styles.
There are a number of other fusion styles that have developed over the years, including the black metal/death metal hybrid "blackened death metal" (Archgoat, Angelcorpse, Blasphemy). Deathgrind or death grind combines death metal with grindcore (Aborted, Circle of Dead Children, Origin). There are also experimental groups such as Portal, Gorguts and Negativa, who use death metal as a basis to explore a number of unusual rock stylings.
Cannibal Corpse is perhaps the most highly recognized band in the death metal community, and one of the few that has sold over one million albums.
by PugFuglies July 13, 2009