death metal

American  

noun

1. a type of speed metal music featuring violent or Satanic imagery.

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death metal British  

noun

1. 1. a type of heavy-metal music characterized by extreme speed and lyrics dealing with violence, satanism, etc

   2. ( as modifier )

      a death-metal band

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Etymology

Origin of death metal

First recorded in 1985–1990

Example Sentences

Tap in a few text descriptors—male blues vocal, 80s synth pop with dark romance, death metal with accordion—and out comes an AI produced song within a matter of minutes.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 28, 2026

“You don’t want to rock down the highway to death metal at 90 decibels with a nervous dog in the car,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 25, 2026

There was no precedent for a subgenre like thrash, or death metal, or black metal to last this long.

From Los Angeles Times • Oct. 3, 2025

Delashmutt and his schoolmates Royce Casey, 16, and Joseph Fiorella, 14, all shared a passion for death metal, and they formed their own band called Hatred.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 1, 2025

He was really into death metal, so he usually came to school dressed head to toe in black.

From "Americanized" by Sara Saedi