Over the past few years, the remarkable story of Death has been widely circulated among fans of underground rock and punk. After inventing punk rock in some sort of parallel universe, back in 1975, Bobby and Dannis Hackney enlisted their Lambsbread band mate, Bobbie Duncan (replacing their deceased brother, David, on guitar), to record N.E.W, their first batch of original material in 40 years. The resulting ten tracks show the unlikeliness of catching lightning in a bottle, as Bobby and Dannis seem to have understandably depleted much of the vigour that originally defined Death's sound.
Duncan is clearly a skilled guitarist and Bobby Hackney stands as a spirited frontman, but on elementary and half-finished tracks like "Relief," "Who Am I?" and "You Are What You Think," their visions seem to clash. The legacy of Death is tarnished by N.E.W, but it's hard to point the finger at anyone, specifically; it was that same voracious attitude that helped these survivors shape their original sound. Still, there's undeniably something missing here.
(Tryangle)Duncan is clearly a skilled guitarist and Bobby Hackney stands as a spirited frontman, but on elementary and half-finished tracks like "Relief," "Who Am I?" and "You Are What You Think," their visions seem to clash. The legacy of Death is tarnished by N.E.W, but it's hard to point the finger at anyone, specifically; it was that same voracious attitude that helped these survivors shape their original sound. Still, there's undeniably something missing here.
