Rock Hard & Ready For Action, Peter Steele Sets My Soul on Fire ...
Written: Jul 11 '04 (Updated Dec 23 '06)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: A great CD single from one of the best bands in the world …
Cons: Edited versions, hard to find …
The Bottom Line: Little wolf skin boots and clove cigarettes ... an erotic funeral for witch she's dressed ... her perfume smells like burning leaves… everyday is Halloween ... Halloween ...
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| Freak369's Full Review: Black No. 1 - Type O Negative Movies |
It seems that I’ve hit a milestone of sorts at the site, review number 1313; something that most might view as a doubly damned number …it’s something that I welcome with a passion. When I saw that I was approaching this number I wanted to review something special – not just something with the number 13 in it but something that I cared deeply about … and that my friends is Type O Negative; more to the point, the song Black No. 1 and the awesome single from the parent CD Bloody Kisses. A CD that I listen to on a daily basis, have four copies of and absolutely love to death … yeah, it’s that good. If you’ve never checked out the group or have never bothered to listen to this single you honestly don’t know what you are missing. Take it from this freak, once you hear the erotic, gripping and slightly demonic vocals of Peter Steele [and that throbbing bass], Josh’s keyboard and piano work, Kenny’s guitar leads and Johnny on drums – music will never me quite the same for ya. To me, this isn’t just music, its art on so many different levels – something that you can listen to, close your eyes and let your mind run wild. There is no denying that this music is dark, sometimes even ominous, but that is the expressive beauty of the group – they embrace that which most find revolting … the light within the darkness, the good within the evil. OK, when I start to get that garrulous, it’s time to move on with the review.
The Tracks
Black No. 1 [Little Miss Scare All]
Christian Woman
Summer Girl
We Hate Everyone
The Music
With a slightly campy feel to it, Black No. 1 is without a doubt one of the best songs from the Bloody Kisses CD – only to be challenged by Christian Woman and the sultry cover version of Summer Breeze. Both of these songs are included on this single however they are the edited versions – something that won’t really make a whole hell of a lot of difference to those who aren’t die hard fans. Released eleven years ago [1993 for the math challenged], this has to be one of the prized pieces in my Type O collection – not only did I manage to snag the promo copy but one of the few that saw the open market. The darkness of the song blends well with the humorous side of the group but this is something that will, again, not really be something that the casual listener will pick up on. The biggest draw to the song has to be the dark and recessed intro – Pete’s voice still sends chills up and down my spine when I hear him utter the words “I went looking for trouble ..”. The grinding of the guitar and the pounding bass are things that you only pick up on after you’ve listened to it a few times – so be prepared to get blown away the first time you hear this song. Yeah, it’s that good. There are a lot of tempo breaks through the song – one minute it’s a timid little track and the next it’s exploding with energy – something that Type O has a true reputation for. Most people will hear this an slap the “goth metal” label on the group – while that isn’t entirely untrue, it’s pegging them into a certain genre, something that might scare some people away and essentially leave them robbed of hearing some of the most beautiful, haunting and moving songs from the group.
She's in love with herself, she likes the dark
On her milk white neck, the devil's mark
It's all Hallows Eve, the moon is full
Will she trick or treat? I bet she will
Christian Woman is the track that kicks off Bloody Kisses after the very vocal Machine Screw intro. Rich with Josh’s exceptional keyboard work, it’s a seductive song with almost angelic backing vocals. But that’s just the start … the song carries the tried and true Type O method of madness – keep ‘em guessing and never tell the entire story. The lyrics are just as impressive as the song and they both compliment each other in such a way that can’t help but fall in love with the track. This song serves to reinforce the “god complex” that seems to haunt most groups like Type O – that eternal question of good verses evil, in this case, the seduction of a virgin and her crossing over. This has got to be one of the most haunting yet beautiful songs the group ever recorded – it offers the listener so many different levels that listening to it just once is never enough. To get the most from the song, listen to it with headphones – you’ll be able to pick up on all the little things like the moaning, enchanting female backing vocals, Pete’s dark vocals and of course that ever present bass. Mid way through the song you are treated to some of Kenny’s best acoustic guitar work to date, this section of the song helps to lighten up the piece – but at the same time – it sets you up for the big kill. The follow up verse is emotional and gripping as it builds up like an aural orgasm … something that even this verbose freak simply can’t put into words – anything that I could possibly say about it wouldn’t be enough to really do it justice.
A cross upon her bedroom wall
From grace she will fall
An image burning in her mind
And between her thighs
When you mention the song Summer Girl it’s hard to do so without mentioning Summer Breeze; on the parent release the two fold over on to each other – truly complimenting each other in a weird Type O sort of way. The two are nothing alike but the dark tones of Summer Breeze are sort of like foreplay with Summer Breeze being the three minute orgasm that comes from it. This is a top heavy music piece with scant lyrics – but once you hear it you’ll appreciate it completely. The frenzied pace, tight guitar work, pounding bass and drums all assault you at once – leaving you wondering where the hell it came from. There is a small bridge between the two songs but I can almost guarantee that the first time you hear the CD you’ll have a hard time making the transition easily. On the single there’s a definitive break so you won’t have to worry about getting “jacked” between the two songs … not sure which is better but its Type O Negative so it’s all good regardless. This song totally compliments Summer Breeze, essentially giving it a light hearted ending to the somewhat downtrodden feel.
…set me on fire … summer girl …
The song We Hate Everyone has always been a sore spot with me; I get so enraged when people read the lyrics to it and assume that the group is racist. Nothing could be further from the truth – these careless “fans” see the word Nazi and automatically make the assumption that because of the tone of the song in the beginning that they are bottle wielding, hate breeding skinheads. Hey, have you seen these guys? The term ‘hair farmer’ comes to mind … or even downright evil but racist … umm, no, don’t think so. If you only listen to the first minute or so of the song you will really miss one hell of an impressive track. There are so many things going on with it that when you do finally break down and give it an honest listen, you’ll be kicking yourself for having waited so long. Best part you ask? Pete’s demonic chorus [second one] that’s almost non intelligible … thank god for liner notes! Out of all the Type O songs on this release, this one standout out as the most aural – meaning there are so many intrinsic things within the music that even after you listen to it twenty times you are still going to be able to pick out some new stuff.
Some would say that we're biased
Accusations that we are racist
Well, sh*t comes in all hues, now this means you
Cause things ain't always like they seem
The Bottom Line
If I had to voice a downfall of this CD single it would have to be that all four tracks are the edited versions. The naughty bits, few and far between in my opinion, have been trimmed away to leave a squeaky clean presentation. Why would they do this you might ask … simply put, when this was first released it was as a promotional disc – usually as a giveaway for radio stations or in store perks. When it was found to be a huge success it was released on the open market for a short period of time and no one really wanted to go though making another version for mass release. Even so, this is a great collectors item for fans of the group that feel the need to collect every little bit from their discography – well worth trying to track down new or used!
As always … thanks for the visit!
~^V^~ Freak ~^V^~
© 2004 Freak369
Singles
Black No. 1, Summer Breeze, Love You To Death, Christian Woman, My Girlfriend's Girlfriend, Everything Dies, Cinnamon Girl
CD's
October Rust, Bloody Kisses, Life Is Killing Me, World Coming Down, Slow, Deep And Hard, The Least Worst of Type O Negative, Life Is Killing Me – Import Version
Video
Type O Negative: After Dark
Symphony For The Devil
Editorial
Blood. Sex. Fire. Lust & Immortality
The Best of Type O: Peter Steele Naked
Recommended:
Yes
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