I’m not gonna lie. This movie made your boy Nick Delmacy cry. Lemme clarify: Not in a tissue and snot kinda way, it was more like a misty eyed, single tear type thing. Coming from me though, that’s a big deal. That’s how great and inspirational this documentary, “A Band Called Death” , was for me to watch.
The film tells the story of three brothers from Detroit, Michigan who started what was then the first Punk Rock band ever. This was years before The Ramones would hit the scene and become music legends. Inspired by The Beatles and Alice Cooper, The Hackney brothers, Bobby, David and Dannis chose to step outside of the box and create adrenaline heavy rock music instead of slow R&B tunes. Remember this is Detroit in the 70s so the Motown sound reigned supreme at the time.
This is worth repeating. The FIRST punk rock band was started by three black brothers in a poor neighborhood of Detroit, Michigan. And the music was actually fucking amazing. How dope is that?!
The film is told from the perspective of the remaining living brothers and others who were present at the time. What makes this story so moving was the band never got recognition or even an official album release, partially because of their unusual sound but mostly because of their name: DEATH. The oldest brother in the group, David Hackney was the originator of both the band, the music and the name, so every decision was his to make. It’s revealed that at one point Clive Davis offered them a record contract on the stipulation that they change their name. Lead brother David emphatically turned the deal down, dooming the band into obscurity.
We then see the ups and down of their music lives as a result of David’s stoic positions on the band’s purpose and name. They released a independently pressed 7″ single (a song on each side of the record) but never the full album they recorded in the early 70s. The masters for these recordings were tucked away in Bobby Hackney’s dark attic for decades as the men moved on with their lives after ending the band in 1977.
Through a series of unlikely circumstance, the two energetic singles released 30 years earlier were re-discovered by rare record collectors. This began a slow avalanche of interest in the group that made them an underground urban legend of sorts. Even Band member, Bobby Hackney’s three sons were unaware of their father’s punk rock roots as he’d since moved on to making reggae music. Things began to move quickly after that as the band called DEATH was written about in a full New York Times feature, skyrocketing their exposure even more. This not only led to the original album finally getting an official release, the band was also able to tour again at large venues, with Bobby’s sons Bobby Jr, Julian and Urian serving as the opening act during the shows in their “Death” inspired rock group called “Rough Francis.”
What made this story so sad and emotional to watch was the revelation that Big Brother and Band Originator David Hackney died of lung cancer shortly before the brothers got the recognition and notoriety they deserved. “One day the world is gonna come looking for this music,” he used to say. Watching the remaining brothers tell his story, vindicating his seemingly stubborn decisions as being accurate predictions, was both moving and inspirational.
I got misty eyed not only as a brother myself with siblings who look to me to make the right decisions, but also as an artist/writer striving for recognition and a place at the proverbial table.
This film proves that if you strive for quality work that you are passionate about, even if the creative work goes against what the masses expect from you, the right people will discover it eventually. Even if you’re not into Punk or Rock music this is an excellent film and a very inspirational story.
“A Band Called Death” is now available on DVD (HERE) and Blu-Ray (HERE).
Purchase the album, “DEATH: …For The Whole Word To See” on iTunes HERE.
Nick Delmacy
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Once again we as African American sleep. I now have Death along with Nirvana in my collection. Black folks wake up punk rock and alternative rock is hot.
Yes dude! Im a huge fan of Nirvana.I love when that picture of them comes up on this site
I was a fan of Nirvana during Bleach and Incesticide before everyone jumped on the Smells Like Teen Spirit bandwagon.
The fact that you know the Insecticide songs are from the Bleach era shows you really know the band.
In Utero is my fav from them probably because of Scentless Apprentice.to me that song ix one of the rawest songs ever.
I’ve gotta make sure I see this.as a teen ,I was heavily into who I thought were the originators of punk,Sex Pistols,Ramones,New York Dolls,but nos knowing about these dudes is a real revelation.I gotta check this out
I saw this movie on VOD about a month ago, Nick. And I’m with you–what a moving story it was! And what really resonated with me was the loyalty, camaraderie and love this family of brothers had for each other and their music. And it blew my mind how supportive their parents were of their sons music. Even though the remaining brothers were willing to change the band’s name in order to get that Clive Davis deal and chase fame, they instead rode in lockstep with their brother and band leader David’s decision to remain “Death.” And it was also inspirational how, despite that first brush with fame, they still were passionate about music, continued to play it–albeit other genre’s of it–and they passed down their musical heritage to their sons, as well. It’s as much a story about family as it is about artistic integrity.
You said you teared up? So did I. Bruh! And I got goose-bumps seeing that many years later, these guys got the proverbial second chance! What a story!!!
Man, I recommended this film to a slew of my peeps and I couldn’t get a single one of them tired Mutha F*ckas to watch it. The thought of seeing a movie about a “Punk Rock” band completely turned them off. But this film is so much more than that. Thanks for reviewing it on “the Avenue,” Nick! It truly deserves to be seen by somebody besides me and you, Dammit!
I definitely want to check this out. I’m not a fan of punk rock music, but I’m interested in hearing more of their story. Seems like there is a lot to learn from what they did. Thanks for sharing Nick.
I’m a punk fan. Death had been on my radar when the reissue (or, technically, the first release) of their album came out in 2009. Saw this last year. I’d heard about it for some time, being that Mos Def (oops..my bad…Yasiin Bey) was supposed to be behind this in the beginning. Glad the doc finally came to light. It’s a great story. Even though I have my share of old school punk vinyl, I’d always been hard pressed to find black punk groups. I know of only a handful from the early years of punk. And I’ve collected a lot of the vinyl. But by and large, most of it has been obscured. Death would have been one of those very groups had it not been for Drag City (and the Hackney family). @ocky this might not be the band of brothers you were looking for, but these dudes definitely rock!