Type O Negative
Blowing Out the Rust
by Frank Moriarty
In a control room at Brooklyn's Systems Two studio, Peter Steele and
Kenny Hickey of Type O Negative brace themselves for the question that
any band playing hard, dark, and dense rock must eventually face: Are you
guys a metal band?
"I don't think we can really be thrown into any one genre,"
guitarist Hickey begins. "We spread out and diffuse into a lot of
things. But overall, it seems that our basic image is connected with metal."
"People do seem to need those generalizations," adds bassist/vocalist
Steele. "They need to know where you belong. I don't mind being labeled
metal. It doesn't bother me, because the band was definitely influenced
by bands like Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, and stuff like that, but also
by The Beatles, The Cars, Cocteau Twins, My Bloody Valentine.... So I guess
that out of all the different genres of music, we would be closest to metal--but
really on the fringe."
Those who like to categorize music will face a difficult task when
Type O Negative's next release hits the stores in August. The follow-up
to the surprisingly successful gold album Bloody Kisses is being recorded
under the working title October Rust, and it is an intriguing project.
A listen to the work-in-progress reveals a dense production that contains
absorbing melodic textures while retaining Type O's characteristic heaviness,
with Steele's deep lead vocals often supported by waves of harmony.
"We really didn't have a goal as far as what we wanted the final
product to sound like," Steele reveals. "We figured this album
could sound great a thousand different ways, and we spent a lot of time
working with the material in the studio. Sometimes things occur to us where
we think that maybe something else might sound better, and we'll go in
and play a part over and it totally changes the song."
Type O Negative's exploration of new directions is being colored not
only by the usual tuning down but also through the use of a variety of
open-chord tunings. While Steele is using German Esh basses built to his
specifications, what has Hickey excited is the use of the Fernandes Sustainer
guitar to augment his customary Gibson SG crunch. "They designed it
where you can get feedback anytime you want on a clean tone, without blasting,"
Hickey explains of the Sustainer system. "I tuned them to open positions,
and I could get clarity and sustain." With studio work near an end,
touring beckons. And after opening for bands ranging from Pantera to QueensrØche,
as well as headlining their own shows, Steele and Hickey have learned well
the demands of the road.
"When you're playing every night for 18 months, that puts the
equipment to the test," Hickey points out. "There's bound to
be something that goes wrong some time."
"We have three of everything," Steele notes. "So if
something gets broken or has to be sent out you still have one backup.
We've gone through speakers and amps like crazy. You could cook bacon on
top of my amp! You'd turn around and think that the fog machine must be
on, but it's not--it's your bass amp on fire. You think, `Wow--there goes
another one!'"