Death

Detroit proto-punk trio Death’s album ...For the Whole World to See was something of a stalled prophecy. In 1974, in the studio at Columbia, the African-American Hackney brothers were denied a deal by studio prez Clive Davis for refusing to change their name (despite having one of the greatest band names of all time). The tunes sat in the can until Drag City released them in 2009. It was a revelation. Death’s immense speed and unflinching tone put them years ahead of the punk explosion, with more energy or attitude than many of the genre greats. As the 2012 doc A Band Called Death states on the poster: “Before there was punk, there was Death.”