Morgoth is a German death metal band that was formed in 1985 by Rüdiger Hennecke and Carsten Otterbach in Meschede. Originally the name Cadaverous Smell was used and the band played grindcore / noise style. When Harry Busse joined the band they renamed themselves to "Minas Morgul". In 1985 the band settled on Morgoth when singer and bass-player Marc Grewe joined the band. The name was derived from the epithet of the original dark lord Melkor in J.R.R Tolkien's Middle-earth Legendarium.