“Like all things which passes within the universe,
So shall death.”
This dark prophecy, heard at the beginning of Death’s ‘We Are Only People’, holds double meaning for the Detroit rock band – which, until 2009, toiled in obscurity for more than 30 years. Aside from the physical transition of death itself, band member David Hackney once declared that the world would eventually catch onto Death’s music.
In the mid-1970s, Death performed punk before the Ramones, but listeners just weren’t ready to hear black men from Motown sing anything but soul music. And the band’s unusual name didn’t help, either. At one point, Columbia Records president Clive Davis was ready to sign the group to a record deal if the name changed. David refused, and the trio stopped recording as Death by the late-1970s.
‘Death III’ is the last of the group’s unreleased masters, a dusty odds-and-ends collection of songs from the ‘70s, 1980 and 1992 that’s full of drifting guitar melodies and psychedelic funk. Death’s first album, ‘…For The Whole World To See’, was far more aggressive; ‘Death III’ offers thoughtful perspective on religion (‘Yes He’s Coming’), finding inner peace (‘Open Road’) and winter in the Motor City (‘First Snowfall In Detroit’).
‘North Street’ (stream it below) is closest to Death’s edgy ethos, its stuttering soundtrack a nice complement to the song’s shifty narrative: “A stranger will try to get to know you / With friendship that just won’t stop / Just when you begin to trust him / You find out he’s an undercover cop.”
‘Death III’ brings a satisfying end to the inventive band and leaves you wondering why it didn’t pop all those years ago. Yes, the name is a bit jarring, but so what? It’s the spirit that matters, and Death had plenty of it.
7/10
Words: Marcus J. Moore
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