When you make a purchase through links in our articles, Future and its distribution partners may earn a commission.
Peter Steele of Type O Negative on stage at the Lowlands, Biddinghuizen, Netherlands, August 23, 1996. | Photo: Niels van Iperen/Getty Images
Blood type O negative: October rust
Type O Negative — October Rust album cover.
Bad GroundSpoken Word IntroLove You To DeathBe My DruidessGreen ManRed Water (Christmas Mourning)My Girlfriend's GirlfriendDie With MeBurnt Flowers FallenIn Praise Of BacchusCinnamon GirlThe Glorious Liberation Of The People's Technocratic Republic Of Vinnland By The Combined Forces Of The United Territories of EuropaWolf Moon (Including Zoanthropic Paranoia)HauntedSpoken Word Outro
Following a playful intro and a cheerful thank you message from the band, this autumnal epic represents the culmination of Type O Negative's progression from ugly ducklings to ugly swans, honing their dreamy alt-pop and crafting some of doom metal's most touching atmospheres in song. Red Water , Wolf Moon и Haunted .
But the biggest revelation was the lush harmonic textures and radiant romanticism that held the listener's attention for over 70 minutes, captivating them with an unusual and original piece of music.
Frontman Peter Steele, who died in 2010, brought his band's grand vision to life here and wrote the perfect gothic pop song.» My Girlfriend's Girlfriend» .
«"I made a small mistake with October Rust, — he said Kerrang! magazine in 1998. „Now, looking back on that record, I think, “Okay, that sounds good,» but it feels like I was trying to write for radio.”.
Lightning Bolt Page Divider
-
Listen on Spotify
-
Listen on Apple Music
Each week, Album of the Week Club listens to and discusses an album in question, votes on its quality, and publishes their findings in order to provide people with credible reviews and an opportunity to contribute to the rock community at large.
Join the group now.
Other albums released in August 1996.
-
Day of the Brave Kill - Catatonia
-
Paranormalized - Six Fingers Satellite«
-
She's the One - Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
-
The Beautiful Eccentric - Eels
-
Fantastic Planet - Failure
-
Friction, baby, is better than Ezra
-
Turn off the radio - catch a big fish
-
Acrobatic Apartment Building at the Drive-In Cinema
-
Die for the Government - Anti-Flag
-
Into the unknown - Merciful fate
-
Songs of Love and Hate — Godflesh
-
Strange Food and Destruction - The Connell Family
-
«Voyager - Mike Oldfield
-
Twilight and Her Embrace - Cradle of Abomination
-
Written in Sand - The Michael Schenker Group
What did they say…
« In Praise of Bacchus , Wolf Moon and Haunted "It's like a dose of lithium mixed with a pinch of amphetamines and a large dose of Valium. In short, these three tracks, featuring gorgeous piano, Latin chants, lyrical themes steeped in horror, and rhythmic shifts, leave the listener feeling calm, satisfied, and at times, terrified." (Sputnik Music)
«"Steele's attempt at 'pop goth' actually works well for a while; his cynical take on typical goth rock themes is on full display in the album's first half. October Rust , and the band happily relishes the stated commercialism, personally thanking the listener for buying the album at the beginning and end." (AllMusic)
«"Album October Rust doesn't disappoint at all. It's a beautiful collection of songs and ballads, combining elements of rock, metal, and gothic. Devotion, tranquility, passion, and heartbreak are recurring themes throughout the album. October Rust , which truly captures key aspects of human nature while romanticizing it with supernatural elements." (Review by Rangeview Raider)
What you said…
Mark Herrington : I'd never heard of it before, but I've always been interested in gothic music, as I like The Cure, Sisters of Mercy, etc. So I was surprised that it didn't impress me at all.
Overall, the album was a bit of a letdown. Firstly, the opening sound effect and joke track weren't a good introduction to the album. Secondly, the music was a mash-up of various gothic bands, but it didn't quite come together.
The most important component of this type of music is the atmosphere it creates, whether it's the dystopian themes of Nephilim and the Sisters or the dark melancholy of The Cure. It adds a powerful, expressive layer that enhances the music. Here, however, there's none of that, and the music isn't taken seriously, often even attempting to be humorous. It's like watching Christopher Lee as Dracula crack jokes and pull out a whoopee cushion—it just doesn't work.
The rolling "r" sounds in Peter Steele's vocals in the song Green Man are laughably ridiculous. His overly dramatic, low vocal parts seem forced. The combination of humor and gothic could have worked in Carry On Screaming, but here they are simply dissonant.
James Southard: This is definitely a 10 out of 10.
This isn't even my favorite Type O Negative album. Life Is Killing Me и Dead Again even better, but this album is a classic, where they abandoned the hardcore style of "Carnivore" and became the Type O Negative that most people know.
Andy Crowley: The Drab Four is, one might say, an acquired taste.
This isn't my favorite Type O album (that would be Bloody Kisses ), but it has My Girlfriend's Girlfriend and a great cover version Cinnamon Girl . What really sets this album apart is Peter Steele's unique vocals and their distinctive musical style. Unlike most bands, I find you either like it or you hate it. I like it, there are a couple of duds, three or four good ones: a solid 8/10 for this aging gothic rocker.
I first heard Type O Negative when I was walking past the stage tent at a famous British cycling festival and saw a huge guy carrying a double bass like normal people carry a bass guitar, and I instantly fell in love with them. I was lucky enough to see them twice during their UK tours. RIP Peter Steele, you will be sorely missed.
Chris Downey : Remembering the times when the magazine Kerrang! was still considered a cutting-edge publication, back in the mid-'90s, before it evolved into a nu-metal and punk-pop magazine, they described Type O Negative's giant frontman Peter Steele as "the only living American who understands irony." Whether that bold claim was true or not, it was clear that, despite the band's aficionado status, for those of us who truly understand them, there was no one quite like them, before or since.
While their friends and former tourmates Paradise Lost were rightfully credited as pioneers of gothic metal years before Type O Negative, the latter were the ironic (and, yes, often self-deprecating) face of the genre, drawing inspiration from early Black Sabbath and classic '80s goth rock like Sisters of Mercy and Fields of the Nephilim, and infusing it with lyrics that ranged from kitschy horror to self-deprecation and, at times, dark humor.
However, choosing their finest moment is always difficult; many would say the album Bloody Kisses 1993's "Drab Four" (with a medley of Beatles songs) album would be their masterpiece, while others would prefer the album's "Drab Four"-style approach World Coming Down or even the pinnacle of their career - the album Life Is Killing Me . These are all great works, but October Rust 1996 is considered by many to be the pinnacle of their creative career.
Aside from the occasional tracks that feel like a false start, this is perhaps their most accomplished and eclectic release; Love You to Death - a great atmospheric composition that opens the album, and My Girlfriend's Girlfriend , which had become boring for MTV, brought them another small hit that filled many dance floors, and the 10-minute funeral Haunted concludes the album in a suitably melancholic vein. However, deeper compositions such as Wolf Moon (it's better not to mention the topic!) and Burnt Flowers Falling, are perhaps the album's strongest point, as they highlight their dark humor and sense of humor, which sadly reminds us of what we lost in 2010 when Steele left this world.
Whether this band would have remained as relevant and productive as Paradise Lost if Steele had lived is debatable. He had his demons and never felt comfortable in the spotlight. What's undeniable is that the gothic metal scene is much poorer without them. 9/10.
Anna Christina I bought this album when it came out. I agree with other commenters that Type O Negative is either loved or simply misunderstood.
I absolutely loved it. In the 90s there was so much Britpop and pop and Britrock, and then one morning I saw Type O Negative on the ITV Chart Show performing My Girlfriend's Girlfriend, and I thought, "Wow, what this is like this "Who is this guy?"»
That guy was Peter Steele.
The sound was completely unlike anything else, and it really grabbed me. The intro to that song remains one of my favorites.
I don't listen to any other gothic music. Only this one. There was something magical, captivating, and very unique about the sound of this album: low, dark, echoing notes, and then the shimmering keyboards of Josh Silver. I re-listen to it in the fall, as many of us do. Peter Steele is sorely missed.
I was told I'd outgrow Type O Negative and that album in 1996. But 30 years later, and this is amazing, when you first suggested album of the week, I was wearing a t-shirt that said "We Are Suspended In Dusk" from the album era. October Rust .
I will never stop loving this album.
Robbie Jackson : So it's gothic rock? Interesting. I read about the recording process of the album. It's very high quality and not irritating to the ear. I liked it when I was in a relaxed mood. I couldn't listen to it when I was busy.
Philip Quist: I'm not a big fan of gothic rock. I don't hate the genre, but I only enjoy it in small doses. That's probably the main reason I didn't hear about Type O Negative until this decade, after the death of their frontman, Peter Steele.
In the album October Rust there were some interesting moments, but not a single song really impressed me, except for their cover of Cinnamon Girl .
I noticed that October Rust album It has received a lot of positive reviews and I suspect it will score high on this forum, but I was not impressed at all.
Greg Schwepe : For me this is a big minus regarding October Rust album Type O Negative. In the mid-90s, I subscribed to a music magazine, not like BMG or Columbia House. Instead, they just sent you one CD a month; you couldn't choose. One month it was Bloody Kisses by Type O Negative, and after listening to two or three songs, I literally threw it in the trash. So I had a rough idea where this review was headed.
It's just not my thing (although I liked the previous Sisters of Mercy album) Very I liked it! That's how it happens!). And yes, I barely listened to this entire album. Is there any way I can get a refund for my hour and twelve minutes? 5 out of 10.
Chris Elliott I once mistakenly thought the gothic element meant something. No, it's just terrible trash in a new guise.
Nigel Mawdesley I got bored with this album very quickly. I didn't find anything "original" in their gothic rock style; Fields Of The Nephilim and Gary Numan, for example, are much better.
Mike Canoe : When does a goth band parody become real? Perhaps the answer is October Rust .
About a year ago the club reviewed The Tubes' album "« Completion Backwards Principle"» , a parody of a band that "sold out," and which sounded very much like how The Tubes actually did "sell out." The album's spoken intros and outros «October Rust» , where Type O members greet/apologize to the listener, seems to repeat the same theme.
Like many, I bought their previous album, Bloody Kisses, building on success Christian Woman и Black No. 1, And, I suspect, like almost everyone else, I resold my CD when the full 73-minute album failed to live up to the expectations of those two songs. I never bought any more of the band's music after that, but I grudgingly admitted they'd found a winning formula. It seemed more like a melancholy, twinkly-eyed sensibility to me, not exorcism, but rather a pick-up lineup of cute gothic girls. I also secretly feared their whole point was to make fun of the overly serious Danzig, who were my secret crush.
As sometimes happens, I appreciate the album much more now than when it came out. October Rust It still consists of a lot of long, monotonous songs that seem to go nowhere (and it's 73 minutes long!), but I'm enjoying it more now. In particular, I appreciate Josh Silver's keyboard parts more, and I have to admit that Peter Steele has a more expressive and subtle vocal than his low growl on the radio hits would suggest.
October Rust They weren't as boring as I feared. They lack the edge and drive to keep me coming back, but I now understand their particular brand of gloom and doom: half brooding romantic, half brash class hooligan.
Nigel Taylor: I have to admit, I think a lot of Type O Negative's songs are way overrated, but this album just comes together perfectly and it's truly brilliant.
John Davidson Much of the appeal of Type O Negative and Pete Steele was that they didn't take themselves too seriously, but that was also their weakness. Too many jokes tended to ruin the atmosphere of their albums.
В October Rust album There are fewer such inserts, and it is no coincidence that this is probably their strongest album.
I like the songs and sound of the album better. World Coming Down , But October Rust is also very good. Rich, slightly unusual keyboards and distorted guitars dominate this album even more than Pete Steele's famous bass voice.
Lyrically, the songs are mostly about love, sex, and death. So far, everything is in a gothic style, but I suspect there are genuine feelings behind the lyrics, and the rare moments of levity resonate with genuine grief in a way that ostentatious sadness doesn't.
Playful songs like Be My Druidess и My Girlfriend's Girlfriend may draw you in, but if you stick around, you might discover something deeper hidden behind the mournful tempo of the compositions.
Adam Ranger Type O Negative are still a bit of a mixed bag. They're a highly respected gothic rock band, but I never really liked them. I found their music monotonous. Fields of the Nephilim, Bauhaus, and, of course, The Sisters are much better.
It's not that it's bad, it just didn't inspire me or move me. I was in no rush to play it again.
It would be interesting to hear their interpretation of the song. Cinamon Girl . The Neil Young song is recognizable, but it's different enough to give it their own style, and it's always nice when bands don't make an exact copy. So kudos to them for that.
Perhaps I'm in the minority. But overall, I remain unconvinced of this group's effectiveness.
Brian Hart Type O Negative first came to my attention when they opened for Motley Crue on the Corabi tour (Kings X also opened, and it was a great, if somewhat odd, tour). I can't say I was a huge fan, but they had a few memorable songs – Black No. 1 и Christian Woman – which caught my attention.
Fast forward to 1996 and I noticed they released October Rust, and decided to take a risk. This risk, in fact, led to this album becoming one of my favorites, and believe me, if I were to make a list of my 20 favorite albums, this one would stand out among them like an eyesore. I simply couldn't name you another gothic album in my collection.
I understand that Type O Negative isn't for everyone. In fact, I feel like this album is either loved or hated, with no middle ground. The production is sumptuous, filled with atmospheric keyboards, powerful drums and basslines, and sharp guitars that mesh perfectly.
Lyrics (except «My Girlfriend's Girlfriend »") are less comical than on previous Type O Negative albums. Most of the songs are quite long, some lasting over six minutes. It also helps that Mr. Steele has reduced the amount of vampiric vocals and has been singing more. After «Bad Ground» and a spoken introduction, there isn't a single throwaway song on this album. For me, the tracks that stand out are «"Love You to Death", "Green Man", "Red Water", "In Praise of Bacchus" »" And «Wolf Moon, but I like every song on this album.
As one of the previous reviewers noted, this was the album where Type O Negative reached their peak. All of their albums have one or two songs that I like. Unfortunately, they never came close to matching that level. October Rust . For me this is a 5 star album.
Final score: 7.35 (37 votes, total 272 votes)
Join the Album of the Week club on Facebook to participate. The history of rock, one album at a time.