Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music. It typically employs heavily distorted and low-tuned guitars, played with techniques such as palm muting and tremolo picking; deep growling vocals; aggressive, powerful drumming, featuring double kick and blast beat techniques; minor keys or atonality; abrupt tempo, key, and time signature changes; and chromatic chord progressions. The lyrical themes of death metal may include slasher film-style violence,[3] political conflict, religion, nature, philosophy, true crime and science fiction.[4][5]
For other uses, see Death metal (disambiguation). Not to be confused with Death rock.Death metal
Mid-1980s, United States
Building from the musical structure of thrash metal and early black metal, death metal emerged during the mid-1980s.[6] Bands such as Venom, Celtic Frost, Slayer, and Kreator were important influences on the genre's creation.[7][8][9] Possessed,[10] Death,[11] Necrophagia,[12] Obituary,[13] Autopsy,[14] and Morbid Angel[15] are often considered pioneers of the genre. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, death metal gained more media attention as a popular genre. Niche record labels like Combat, Earache, and Roadrunner began to sign death metal bands at a rapid rate.[16]
Since then, death metal has diversified, spawning several subgenres. Melodic death metal combines death metal elements with those of the new wave of British heavy metal. Technical death metal is a complex style, with uncommon time signatures, atypical rhythms, and unusual harmonies and melodies. Death-doom combines the deep growled vocals and double-kick drumming of death metal with the slow tempos and melancholic atmosphere of doom metal. Deathgrind, goregrind, and pornogrind mix the complexity of death metal with the intensity, speed, and brevity of grindcore. Deathcore combines death metal with metalcore traits. Death 'n' roll combines death metal's growled vocals and highly distorted, detuned guitar riffs with elements of 1970s hard rock and heavy metal.[17]
History[edit]
Emergence and early history[edit]
English extreme metal band Venom, from Newcastle, crystallized the elements of what later became known as thrash metal, death metal and black metal, with their first two albums Welcome to Hell[18] and Black Metal,[19] released in late 1981 and 1982, respectively. Their dark, blistering sound, harsh vocals, and macabre, proudly Satanic imagery proved a major inspiration for extreme metal bands.[20] Another highly influential band, Slayer, formed in 1981. Although the band was a thrash metal act, Slayer's music was more violent than their thrash contemporaries Metallica, Megadeth, and Anthrax.[21] Their breakneck speed and instrumental prowess combined with lyrics about death, violence, war, and Satanism won Slayer a cult following.[22] According to Mike McPadden, Hell Awaits, Slayer's second album, "largely invent[ed] much of the sound and fury that would evolve into death metal."[23] According to AllMusic, their third album Reign in Blood inspired the entire death metal genre.[24] It had a big impact on genre leaders such as Death, Obituary, and Morbid Angel.[21]
Etymology[edit]
The most popular theory of the subgenre's christening is Possessed's 1984 demo, Death Metal; the song from the eponymous demo would also be featured on the band's 1985 debut album, Seven Churches.[56] Possessed vocalist/bassist Jeff Becerra said he coined the term in early 1983 for a high school English class assignment.[57] Another possible origin was a magazine called Death Metal, started by Thomas Fischer and Martin Ain of Hellhammer and Celtic Frost. The name was later given to the 1984 compilation Death Metal released by Noise Records.[56] The term might also have originated from other recordings, such as the demo released by Death in 1984, called Death by Metal.[58]
