Well, today is Halloween, the holiday of ghost, ghouls, and candy! A holiday in which all sorts of demons, zombies, and other monsters wander the streets of our fair towns, knocking on the doors of the living, and ask for sugary sustenance. Once they consumed their sweet goods, they retreat back to the shadows, and wait until the year after to walk again.
Although I dedicated this month to reviewing Borderlands 2 DLC, I thought it might be nice to treat you all to a bonus review. It’s been quite some time since I posted up a music review, so I thought that it was about time to put one up, and since we have a spooky holiday on our hands, I came to the conclusion that Type-O Negative was the perfect band to return to the scene. With that said, let’s dive into the dark yet lovely October Rust. Trick or Treat!!
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After the success of 1993's Bloody Kisses, Peter Steele predicted that the follow-up to the album. would accentuate Type O Negative's melodic side, specifically for the purpose of making money. On August 20th of 1996, their new album would be a testament to that. Featuring more ballads than their earlier work, October Rust had less of the punk/metal sound of previous or subsequent albums, although it contains a heavier version of Neil Young’s classic song Cinnamon Girl.
It should be noted that the drum work on October Rust (And later on World Coming Down & Life is Killing Me) was programmed. Despite be credited as work done by the band’s drummer Johnny Kelly, an interview in 2007 with the band’s keyboarder & co-produced Josh Silver, stated that the drumming was all programed for October Rust, as well as the two albums mentioned above. Curiously, this album also employed the use of abrupt endings and segues to some of the songs, which is an odd thing to do in music.
Songs
Bad Ground: Put in as a joke, Bad Ground is nothing more than 38 seconds of low-level buzzing, which was meant to make it sounds like the speakers were plugged in wrong.
Untitled: The first of two little recordings, this is just the band members goofing around (Laughing because of the first track), and thanking the listener for buying the album. Nothing more, nothing less.
Love You To Death: We begin the music properly with this title, a hauntingly beautiful piece that oozes lounging & loss. The very beginning of the songs seems to bring in the fall wind, as the piano & sound effects feels as ethereal as air. When Pete begins singing, his voices adds a coldness to everything. Even when he raises his voice at certain points, the song feels like frost creeping all over your body. The guitar work does an excellent job of accentuating the emotion within the song, and the drum work is just subperb!
By My Druidess: From something cold, to something hot & sensual, Be My Druidess is an erotic tune that’s perfect for making love in Mother Nature’s wilderness. Everything in this song, from the instrumentation, to Pete Steele’s voice, heavily convey nature, mysticism, and love. If I had one gripe with it, and it’s a small gripe, it’s that Pete says the line “I’ll do anything, to make you cum” one to many times. Given the nature of this song however, I won’t complain any more than that.
Green Man: We go on through Be My Druidess, and come across another nature-based song. A little humor is added in at the beginning, as you hear the sounds of a garbage truck pulling up to a stop, someone putting garbage, and the truck heading off before the instruments & singing start. The sound effects were put in as a in-joke: when Pete Steele was growing up, one of his jobs was that of a garbage worker. He was nicknamed the “Green Man” by those who knew him, mainly due to the green jumpsuit he wore while on his routes.
As for the song itself, it’s great! The slow pace of it feels rather natural, and it makes everything feel warm & inviting. Not the erotic kind of warm that Be My Druidess gave off, but more like the kind of warmth you’d feel from friends & family.
Red Water (Christmas Mourning): The best word to describe this song is slow. Red Water never ever picks up the pace, and instead moves along sluggishly. The instrumentation is slow, and Pete Steele’s singing is slow. With that said, the sluggishness actually works in the song’s favor. Many Christmas songs are of a slow pace, and this song replicates that quite well. On top of that, the mournful nature of Red Water would not work well in a faster paced tune. Many of us feels sad around the holidays (Especially for those who’ve lost family members), and this song acts like a balm to ease our pain...so to speak.
My Girlfriend’s Girlfriend: If there was a song off October Rust, or in the band’s collection of songs in general, that fans of Type-O Negative would recognize immediately, it would be My Girlfriend’s Girlfriend. What’s curious about this song is that it moves away from the doom/gothic nature of the rest of the album, and feels more at home on a 1960s psychedelic rock album instead. Regardless, this is perhaps the most up beat yet dirtiest song on October Rust. The psychadelic rock elements create a rather happy vibe, but due to the erotic nature of the lyrics, and Pete Steele’s voice work, it creates sort of a conflict in the song, but in a good way.
Die With Me: Die With Me is an interesting song. For starters, it’s pacing has slowed down a bit, seemingly between Red Water & My Girlfriend’s Girlfriend. All throughout the tune, it goes between slow & brisk, and it knows when to do so. Secondly, this is another sad song, but nowhere near as depressing as Love you to Death or Red Water. Die With Me deals more with being separated from a significant other, and wondering if she still loves you in the end. Again, this song is sad, but it has a string of hope within somewhere.
Burnt Flowers Fallen: Burnt Flowers Fallen is one of two simplistic songs on this, the other being right after the Cinnamon Girl cover. The simplicity of this song comes down to 3 things: Pete Steele’s singing hardly changes in volume (He goes between a soft kind of loud, and something similar to whispering), the lyrics hardly change (There’s about 3 or 4 lines used), and the instrumentation hardly changes at all (Only about 3 or 4 beats are used). Although I find this to be a good song, Burnt Flowers Fallen is definitely one of the weaker tracks on October Rust.
In Praise of Bacchus: For a song title In Praise of Bacchus, it feels very pessimistic. Right out of the gate, you hear Pete Steele singing the line “Hey Bacchus/She Hates Me”, and immediately you feel a little uncomfortable. This whole song feels rather uncomfortable, but I can’t seem to step away from it for some reason. Perhaps is because Pete’s trying to make the song sound a little uplifting, or maybe it’s because the instrumentation tries to sound mystical & ethereal, like how Love You To Death did. Regardless, In Praise of Bacchus is a good song, but you might want to wash yourself afterwards.
Cinnamon Girl: Here’s the song that harkens back to Type-O Negative’s previously harder material. The lyrics themselves haven’t changed, as the band going along with Neil Young’s original lyrics. What has changed is the song’s tone: the instrumentation creates a more heavy atmosphere than the more lighthearted rock approach in the original, and Pete Steele’s voices adds a erotic vibe to the atmosphere if the song. Not quite as erotic as Be My Druidess was, but not necessarily subtle either.
The Glorious Liberation of the People's Technocratic Republic of Vinnland by the Combined Forces of the United Territories of Europa: For starters, this song’s name is long! Secondly, this is the only instrumental piece that Type-O Negative has done (As far as I know, at least). Third, this tune goes by rather quickly, playing at just over a minute (1 minute & 7 seconds). With that said, the instrumentation & sound effects combine to make a great, but very short, listening experience.
Wolf Moon (Including Zoanthropic Paranoia): We again come back to nature with the mystical-themed Wolf Moon, a tune that harkens back to primal love, to lust, and perhaps, to carnage. The instrumentation is slow, but not sluggish like in Red Water. There’s more of a faster pace in the song, as evidenced by the guitar work, and to a lesser extent the drumming. Pete Steele’s voice knocks this out of the park, as his voice is intertwined with passion and ferocity. Another great song to make out to with the one you love.
Haunted: Haunted marks the end of the songs on October Rust, as the last clip is just another sound file, but I’ll get to that in a second. The songs itself is a perfect closer to this album, and it’s one of Type-O Negative’s longest songs. Clocking in at a little over 10 minutes, the slowness of the instrumentation create a haunting atmosphere, as if the song itself was inhabited with the spirits from beyond. Pete’s singing once again sends it out of the park, as his voice feels like a cold wind caressing all over you, leaving you chilled to the bone. Keep a blanket around for this one!
Untitled (2): Like the second part of the CD, this is just another sound byte of the band. In this case, it’s Pete Steele talking for 9 seconds, saying that he’ll see you during the next tour, and saying that he hopes the album wasn’t too disappointing. A nice sendoff, actually.
Overall Impression & Rating
October Rust is about as perfect as a metal album gets! The gripes I had with it were small, and easily forgettable because of how good the music is. This album is what really propelled Type-O Negative into the spotlight a little more, but they never sold out because of it. If you are a metalhead, then this is a requirement to keep the “Metalhead” title!
October Rust gets a 9.5 out of 10.
See you in November, when we’ll look at the black sheep of the Call of Duty series. Until then, stay Otaku!
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