Type O Negative’s Peter Steele Is Dead
Sad news to report from the world of heavy metal. Type O Negative singer/bassist Peter Steele died yesterday of heart failure. He was 48. The hulking Steele, who stood at 6′ 8″, was born and raised in Brooklyn, NY and was known for his doomy lyrics, goth look and slow, grinding brand of metal. He formed Type O Negative in 1990 and used his depressed outlook on life as inspiration for his lyrics.
Though his career was filled with touring and recording, Steele battled to stay sane and sober until his death. He even did a brief stint in jail. One of his more notorious publicity stunts was posing for Playgirl in 1995, and he even made a memorable appearance on The Jerry Springer Show.
Last July I saw Type O Negative open for Hatebreed at Terminal 5, and the man I saw onstage was a shadow of his former self. Though his deep voice sounded okay, and the band was fairly tight, Steele looked out of shape and haggard. He bickered with the crowd who were there to hear Hatebreed’s brand of hardcore, not Type O’s din of gloom and doom. He made a slew of self-deprecating jokes as the crowd chanted “You suck! You suck! You suck!” I felt a little sorry for him
When I heard about Steele’s death, I remembered a story a promotions person who had worked closely with Type O Negative once told me out a visit to Steele’s Bay Ridge apartment. It was sparsely adorned and everything — including the walls — was painted black. Was his obsession with the dark side true or a schtick? Only Steele knew the answer. A lot can be said about Peter Steele, but all would probably agree that he was never truly from this Earth.
image by Darren Ressler
Source: LimeWire Music Blog
