A BAND CALLED DEATH (2012) – A Review

The story this documentary tells sounds straight out of an issue of What If…As in, what if it turned out there was an all-black band out of Detroit in the early 1970s whose sound was, as a New York Times headline later put it, punk before punk was punk? What if it wasn’t until 35 long years after they recorded that their music finally got a wide release, and the band got both the credit and acclaim they were due?

Well, that is exactly what really did happen. Long-story-short: In the early 70s in Detroit, headquarters of Motown, the three Hackney brothers – David (guitar), Bobby (bass and vocals) and Dannis (drums) – formed a hard rock band called Death. And yes, they played fast and they played loud, embracing a sound that had yet to go public or be given a name. They found a supportive producer, shopped a demo reel literally around the world, and found no takers. After pressing and releasing 500 copies of a 45-rpm single on their own, the band dissolved. Then, decades later, that same (now highly sought after and valuable 45) went viral as a MP3, generating intense interest in Death. The two surviving Hackney brothers, Bobby and Dannis, were tracked down, and their music finally released to the world.

 

 

Though this bare outline has the arc of fictional drama, it’s all true, with the context of the times and some of the details provided here giving even more depth to the remarkable nature of this story.

Three young black men, the sons of a Baptist minister, no less, forming a hard rock band in Detroit during the tail-end of the Motown era is unusual enough, to be sure. But then there’s that name…One that apparently caused no end of concern. When the Hackney brothers were recording in the same building as Gladys Knight, and she heard the name of their band, she locked the door to her studio. Producer Don Davis, who took the band on as a client, still apparently can’t bring himself to say the name, instead spelling it out “D-E-A-T-H” while talking on camera.

But the name clearly meant something to band leader David Hackney, and he absolutely refused to change it. His vision was to try to turn something negative into something positive, and he clearly understood that life and death are part of an interlocked cycle. David was also steadfast in his belief, since proven correct, that someday the world would come looking for the band’s music. His vision turned out to be true, but sadly, not until after he had died of lung cancer. But his songs, his children as he called them, have now finally flown the nest and taken on lives of their own.

 

 

The Hollywood Reporter described this film as “a moving testament to the enduring power of family ties and groundbreaking music,” and that’s a pretty good summation. The bonds between the Hackney brothers, and their extended family, are clearly strong, and Bobby and Dannis are also clearly proud to be carrying their brother David’s legacy forward. Though this film touches on lots of cultural and musical changes, it’s the Hackney family that is very much at the center of things. Their affection for each other, their faith, and their sense of purpose are all moving and inspiring.

Even though the story in this film is about “lost” music being rediscovered, it’s easy enough to imagine the same story being played out in any of the arts – the “lost” genius novel, the brilliant and undiscovered painter, etc. Another of my favorite music documentaries, Theremin: An Electronic Odyssey (1994) has this quality – with inventor Leon Theremin, long thought to be dead, being found by the documentary crew just before he actually did die, allowing him to ponder his legacy on camera. One of the emotional rewards of A Band Called Death is not only seeing the surviving Hackney brothers enjoying their music being released after so many years, but also seeing them, with guitarist Bobbie Duncan, getting to play the songs before audiences for the first time ever.

I don’t think it’s necessary to like punk, or even rock music, to enjoy this engaging and well-crafted film. To paraphrase the quote above, as a testament to the power of family and the arts in individual lives, A Band Called Death delivers the goods. My wife and I laughed, cried, and shook our heads in wonder. Though it starts to drag just a little near the end, both the band and the filmmakers can be proud of this piece of work. I highly recommend it.