Incorporating more grandiose aspects, the band’s discography began to dabble in genres including Hardcore, Thrash and Industrial Metal for the first time. Gradually evolving their sound as they drew larger audiences, Steele became set on proving that the band could accomplish more than a simple ‘Gothic’ sound. Whilst initially presumed to be derived from enjoyment, it later emerged that the addiction stemmed from Steele’s ongoing struggle with nerves and stage fright, an issue that he was never able to overcome. One of the most prominent issues at the time came from the frontman’s dependency on alcohol. This escalated to the point where his lavish demands forced the other band members to only plan short-term events, out of fear for the vocalist’s fate. (Photo by Niels van Iperen/Getty Images)įollowing a self-proclaimed lifestyle of excess in all aspects, the health of Steele began to deteriorate. Only leaving this job and pursuing the band full time in 1994, after being asked to join Mötley Crüe on tour, it was at this point that the vocalist’s personal life began to descend out of control, with drug and alcohol abuse beginning to take its toll. In fact, it was his green work uniform during this period that inspired both the colour scheme for the band and the ‘Green Man’ alias of the singer. Whilst generating a name for themselves in the underground scene and helping formulate the Gothic Metal genre (paving the way for artists such as Nightwish and Cradle of Filth), few know that, during this period, the frontman was still working full time for the Department of Parks and Recreation.īased in New York City throughout his life, when not working on music, Steele was employed to drive garbage trucks, snowploughs and steamrollers across the streets for five years after the band emerged. This was then taken to the next level by discussing deeply personal subject matter within the lyrics and tackling taboo themes including addiction, death and heartbreak in each track. Inspired predominantly by the sinister motifs of Black Sabbath and the songwriting ability of The Beatles, Steele took a melodic, 1970s sound and incorporated darker and more insidious undertones to make it distinctive to him. Pairing up with his childhood friend, Josh Silver, in 1989 the duo set their eyes upon the up-and-coming Gothic genre and formed a new band called Repulsion… later to be renamed Type O Negative. Yet, experiencing little longevity or success from these bands, Steele instead set his sights on a new, darker project that would follow a path unlike most on the scene. In both of these acts, Steele immediately established himself as both a bassist and vocalist, using his lyrics to discuss issues including Racism, Misogyny, Race and War. Although a self-proclaimed Atheist for the majority of his life, these Catholic origins would return to the musician shortly before he met his tragic end.īefore creating Type O Negative, few realise that the musician was part of two other bands: a heavy metal band named Fallout, and a politically incorrect Thrash band entitled Carnivore. Yet, behind the fame of Type O Negative, there remained one of the most tragic backstories in the history of the genre that few knew the full extent of.īorn Petrus Thomas Ratajczyk, the musician was raised in Brooklyn to a strongly Catholic family, of which he was the youngest of six children. With his haunting, baritone vocals, vampiric image and unmissable 6ft 8inch stature, it was unsurprising that Steele captured the world by storm and steered Metal into a new direction with his sound. To metal fans across the globe, the Gothic Metal genre was pioneered and centred solely around the Type O Negative frontman, Peter Steele. Passing away on this day eleven years ago, take a look into the life and tragic fate of one of metal’s most intriguing frontmen.
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