A Band Called Death
Long before Bad Brains, the Sex Pistols, or the Ramones hit the scene, Death was laying down a sound all its own. Formed in the early 1970s by three teenage brothers from Detroit, Death is credited as the first black punk band, and the Hackney brothers, David, Bobby, and Dannis, are recognized as pioneers in their field. It wasn’t until recently, when a dusty 1974 demo tape surfaced from Bobby Hackney's attic nearly three decades after Death's heyday, that audiences beyond a small circle of punk enthusiasts had even heard of them.
Director(s)
Jeff Howlett
Mark Christopher Covino
Where to watch
Criterion Channel
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Details
Reviews
kineticandroid
There's an undercurrent of disappointment throughout the story of a band called Death. Misunderstood and marginalized in their time, they endured a lot of rejection and settled into lives that turned out differently than for what they had hoped. Then, after their music is rediscovered and shared, they reunite, but with a heavy heart knowing their visionary leader did not live to see the rebirth. And yet, through that malaise, the band's story is one of joy, familial devotion, and believing in something so strongly, it can't help but come true. It shows that powerful art can create double lives. It shows the unknown pleasures of digging into the past for the untold stories. And the songs? Dang man, these songs slay.
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