The story of Death, a band of three African-American brothers from Detroit, Michigan that transformed from an R&B trio to a full-fledged rock band in the ’70s, is one of many peaks and valleys, and one that was best told in the 2013 documentary, A Band Called Death. The band was largely credited with being precursors to the punk movement in North America, predating the Sex Pistols or the Ramones. With a deal in place in 1974 with Columbia Records, the band balked history, deciding that they couldn’t bear part with their name for a shot at the big time and one of the brothers, David Hackney, died of alcoholism in 2000.
Revived by a re-release of their music in 2009 by Drag City Records, as well as the documentary, the remaining brothers rang in 2014 with a performance at Reggie’s Rock Club in Chicago and today dropped a frenetic ‘new’ song, “North St.”, which was recorded in 1980 (“When ya live on North St., you know just where you stand”). Along with the song’s release, which you can stream below, the band announced plans for a new album, Death III, expected April 22. The album is the final collection of tracks, recorded over a series of sessions in 1975, ’76, ’80 & ’92. Check out the latest from Death, below, and scroll down for full tracklisting and tour dates.
III:
01 Introduction by David
02 North Street
03 Open Road
04 We Are Only People
05 Restlessness
06 Free
07 Yes He’s Coming
08 First Snowfall in Detroit
09 We’re Gonna Make It
Death:
03-08 Monterrey, Mexico – NRMALfestival
03-21 Toronto, Ontario – Phoenix Concert Theatre
03-22 Fullerton, CA – Bugerama III
03-23 San Francisco, CA – The Chapel
04-05 Phoenix, AZ – The Pressroom
07-04 George, WA – Sasquatch!