1/4/1962 - 4/14/2010
co-written by Nickolas Cook and Steven M. Duarte
The rock community took a great loss on April 14 when it was first announced that Type O Negative frontman Peter Steele had passed away. I did not believe it at first, as Steele had previously faked his own death with a stunt back in 2004. I also did not believe it as I had seen a recent interview where Steele talked about his sobriety and his new found lease on life. The truth of his passing was a tough thing for me, and everyone else in the rock community, to accept. It’s disheartening to know that another great rock icon is no longer with us. Steele and Type O Negative may have never reached mainstream stardom, but that’s what was so great about them. They played the music they wanted to play and wrote the lyrics they wanted to sing. They didn’t let corporate, or mainstream pressures, dictate their sound. Their dark humor helped them create what many people refer to as doom metal. Type O Negative created their own genre rather than playing an existing one.
With so many new shitty bands out there, it makes it that much harder to lose a great rock musician. Peter Steele brought so much to music and is leaving behind a great legacy. His deep tone and large hulking appearance while on stage will never be seen again, at least not in my lifetime. Peter is undoubtedly enjoying Halloween in Heaven. Hopefully Peter and Dimebag create a new metal band that we can enjoy when we move on into the next phase of our lives…
--Steven M Duarte
Being a horror fan, means also being a fan of dark music. I have a huge
collection of music. Not all of it's pitch black and Goth ridden gloom
tunes, but a great deal of it is bleak and dark. It fits my world view and my personality. I put a lot of stock into how music moves me, especially when it comes to writing. A lot of writers I know (in fact, most writers I know) use music to motivate themselves as they weld their craft.
In 1996, in Orlando, FL., I saw a band play live that was to change my view of metal music forever: TYPE-O NEGATIVE. I was less than ten feet from the stage and I have to say the leadsinger was one of the most impressive physical specimens I've ever seen. Peter Steele was a big man, standing at 6'8" he was a huge stage presence. But it was his voice that first drew my attention. He had the deepest darkest tone I've heard outside of a Leonard Cohen record. His sly sense of humor came through not only in their lyrics, but when he played live as well. It's obvious he enjoyed his job and he loved his fans.
I won't go through his whole history here: that stuff is easy enough to find on the internet. I just wanted to express how much this particular fan will miss a man whom he admired very much on and off stage.
Like Steve said above, there won't be another like Peter Steele in my lifetime. And this old world is a sadder place for his passing. Forty-eight is way too young to die, even for a rock star.
--Nickolas Cook
Enjoy some of their biggest hits:
