Page 55 - Metal Hammer Issue 334 - UK (May 2020)
P. 55
PETER STEELE
with Carnivore, Biohazard and Sheer Christian women, form an orderly
Terror – it was such a big deal for us.” queue. Peter onstage with Type O
at Chicago’s Vic Theatre in 2007
As with most local scenes, 80s/90s
Brooklyn was a somewhat incestuous
entity, members of various bands
intermingling and connecting along
the road – which is how Louie Beato
eventually came to tutor his successor.
“Louie and Peter lived just up the
neighbourhood from me,” remembers
Type O Negative founding member Sal
Abruscato. “I was apprenticing at this
Latino blacksmith shop that made
cowbells they’d sell to lots of big Latin
American musical stars. Before I started,
Louie and Peter worked there too, so
the boss suggested I go to Louie to take
drum lessons and we became buddies.”
Even in the glory days of 80s music
industry excess, a hardcore/thrash
crossover band had their work cut out if drew from Peter’s imagination, these
they wanted to succeed, and Carnivore’s new songs were about Peter’s own
lack of touring ensured they’d never recent experiences. “That record was The same, irrepressible creative
pull in big bucks. “When Carnivore about his ex-girlfriend at the time,” Sal energies that seemed to fuel Peter to
eventually broke up, the guys got says. “The scenario from Kill You Tonight constantly tweak material also allowed
regular jobs,” Richard Termini says. literally happened to him – he took the Type O Negative to completely
“Peter was working at the Parks D-train to Brighton Beach and caught transform themselves. “The move
Department and Louie became a bus her screwing on the sand!” into [1993’s] Bloody Kisses made a lot of
driver. Peter was happy doing that – he Ties to hardcore weren’t the only sense,” explains Sal. “We’d hang out on
was still making music, but he wasn’t thing that Peter retained from the weekends and go into New York at the
so interested in becoming a star.” Carnivore days – he was still locked into height of its club phase, and Peter went
a contract with his former label. “At the in on the whole jet-black hair thing.
eter may not have wanted to time Roadrunner was a tiny little label, The next record took on influences of
be a star, but fate had other and Peter wanted out,” explains Monte that scene – songs like Black No.1 were
plans in mind and it wasn’t Conner, the A&R rep who ended up about the people we’d see. It was great
long before it came knocking (literally). bringing Type O Negative back into the because we knew we couldn’t just keep
“I heard the news [about the break-up] playing the heavy-heavy stuff forever.”
and figured I’d go over unannounced “THIS GIRL HUNG The result was an enormous shift in
and see how he was doing,” says Sal. tone and style, upping the band’s more
“His father answered the door and let AROUND THE gothic elements and leaning into their
me down, and there’s Peter sitting in newfound doom-adjacent sound, while
hair off! He had just took the New York STUDIO, PRAYING also incorporating 60s psychedelia and
bed watching TV, having just cut all his
pop for a diverse, twisted dreamscape.
Police Department test; he didn’t want If the stylistic change shocked
to play music anymore. I asked if he AND KISSING Roadrunner at all, it certainly didn’t
wanted to hang out and jam, have some concern them. “The minute we heard
fun. He nods, saying he’s always wanted THE DOOR” the demo it was obvious the band had
to have a band with electronica – MAX ROSS, SYSTEMS TWO STUDIOS become extremely unique,” Monte says.
keyboards, samples and things like that. “Songs like Christian Woman and Black
I’m like, ‘Yeah, cool man!’ just saying Roadrunner fold. “He wasn’t happy with No.1 stood out as obvious singles – even
anything so I could play with the guy!” how those two Carnivore records were in demo form.”
This spur-of-the-moment decision handled, and the owner of the label Even with label backing and support,
set in motion the formation of one of came to me with the Repulsion demo Bloody Kisses was by no means an
the 90s’ most distinctive and successful and asked what I wanted to do with it – overnight success, and not long after its
metal bands. Reconnecting with should we let him go, or bring it in to release, Sal decided to leave the band.
ex-Fallout bandmate Josh Silver on Roadrunner? I thought it was amazing, “We got blinded with some drama at
keyboards and pulling in Kenny Hickey and we’d have been nuts to let him go!” that time, and I ended up quitting the
on guitars, the then-unnamed band Even with Monte working directly band right when the record was coming
gathered at Brooklyn’s Marine Park for with the band, it didn’t stop the legend out,” he says. “It just didn’t seem like
their first official band meeting. Cycling that the band put out the ‘live’ record things were going to work, or that we
through names such as Subzero and The Origin Of The Feces – essentially just were going to tour.”
New Minority, they decided on the name their debut rerecorded with crowd
Repulsion for their first demo – material sounds – as a ‘fuck you’ to the label. he forecast looked grim –
that would later be remastered into Type “We knew!” laughs Monte. “Peter was Josh even sent pizzas to
O Negative’s debut release Slow, Deep never happy with anything he did – Roadrunner’s offices as a way
And Hard after one final rebrand. That within days of turning something in of breaking the news lightly that it
first release is a furious, bilious entity he’d want to make changes. Origin… looked like the band were through.
GETTY that locks horns with love, infidelity was just Peter’s way of re-doing Slow, And then – somewhat ironically – tour
offers started pouring in. Kenny’s
Deep And Hard to his liking.”
and violence. But, where Carnivore
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