Monday, April 19, 2010

Everything Dies

I run the risk of spouting off without an OK from Raul but I suspect that I can safely say I am speaking for both of us in regards to this matter.
While I would not argue that the group was nerdy in the typical ways, Type O Negative frontman Peter Steele passed away last week. Both Raul and myself were more affected by this than by the passing of other artists. Neither of us could be described as “goth” or “dark” but TON's music rose above labels and genres, having a deep impact on the evolution of our musical tastes. Both of us approach music in a manner that is much more weighty than those into music for casual enjoyment. To both of us, music is Serious Business! We wouldn't be working at WIDR, providing you with this show every week without the impact TON and other bands had on us throughout our lives.
I distinctly remember hearing the song “Love you to death” off their October Rust album and being completely floored. I was somewhere around the age of 13 or 14, which means I made my dad drive me to the store so I could buy the album that very day because I HAD TO HAVE IT. There was no question to the matter.The song still gives me goosebumps, the same goes for much of the rest of their catalog.
I can't speak for Raul when I say this next bit, but there are very few other bands that have made such a deep impact on the formation of my musical tastes. I suppose my age had something to do with that, being my formative years and such, but the fact still remains that they are one band within a handful of others that I still hold in very high regard and still listen to regularly in my adult life.
Another thing that impresses me is that their tone has remained very tasty throughout their discography. I'm sure Raul knows all the instrument info (as does the intarwebs if you really need to find out RIGHT NOW) but their guitar and bass distortion coupled with their drum sound is the perfect setup to compliment Steele's deep, subwoofer-rattling vocals. If I was a girl, I'd be wet with anticipation. For realsies. Rounding out the deal is the dark-humor themes found in their lyrics. I have LOL'd at many of their song's messages coupled with Steele's delightful Brooklyn accent.
You don't have to listen to the band or share our enthusiasm for their music just because I happened to have some sort of mental ejaculation when I heard them. What I do hope is that those of you who listen to music as fiercely as we do take a moment to listen to a song, album, or band that had a profound effect on you and consider what kind of far-reaching impact that music has had on your life.
As I said, without Raul and I sharing a deep appreciation for music its likely that we wouldn't be on the radio providing you with a show that (I hope) reflects our enthusiasm and exposes our listeners to new, interesting and independent music. Thanks for listening (and reading).

1 comment:

  1. i was about the same age when i first heard type-o. I don't typically enjoy an entire CD very often (where i love every single song) but October Rust was a huge favorite of mine the whole way through.

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