Death metal, a subgenre of heavy metal music, emerged in the early 1980s, characterized by its aggressive, guttural vocals, fast tempos, and distorted guitars. Originating in the United States and the United Kingdom, death metal bands like Death, Possessed, and Obituary pioneered the genre, pushing the boundaries of extreme music with their dark, often macabre lyrics and brutal sound. The genre gained popularity throughout the 1980s and 1990s, with bands like Cannibal Corpse, Morbid Angel, and Deicide further solidifying death metal's place in the metal scene. Today, death metal continues to thrive, with numerous bands and subgenres keeping the genre alive and well.