I figured someone would post something regarding the passing of Mr. Steele.
Growing up I never listened to Carnivore, but I knew that Peter Steele was in that band after watching a Billzebub documentary on Death Metal and it's early influences (whether Carnivore actually had an influence on Death Metal or that was just a subjective opinion by Mr. Billzebub is not for me to say as I don't know the full history and importance of the band).
With that being said, sometime last year the jukebox at the Bar in which I am a regular got Carnivore's "Retaliation" their availability list to order. It took maybe three Saturdays before I began spinning Carnivore regularly at said jukebox. One day I decided to order both "Carnivore S/T" and "Retaliation" in the recently re-released digipack versions. Instantly I thought the albums were excellent but it took a few hundred compelled listens to truly appreciate what I had purchased.
Carnivore S/T and Retaliation both consumed my musical appetite in two different ways, the first being Speed Metal akin to Venom and the latter being one of the best exercises in Punk/Hardcore Crossover with a unique Black Sabbath influence. All of the songs seemed constructed in an epic style, giving them an edge over the likes of the other Speed Metal albums that I own which seemed straight forward in comparison. Not to say that Speed Metal lacks this element, as "Kill Em' All" by Metallica is very epic, but not to this degree.
Retaliation being my preferred of the two is what really blew me away though. Aggression like none other can be heard in every song, fast d-beats, three-chord guitar slashes with searing screams like he's being gutted during the entire take track by track. The production rivals even contemporary releases. Then each track contains sections in which the slowest of Black Sabbath's career is accented in movement and what feels like motifs at certain points.
Retaliation ultimately presented to me what I never thought Punk/Hardcore Crossover could be: Neo-Classical in the ANUS lens and definition. Lyrically, the theme of "Darkness" is presented uniquely in the mediums of topics such as gang warfare, urban violence, depression/suicidal emotions and nationalism in a country/genre that scorns the very idea of such.
I never got too much into Type-O-Negative, but from the two albums I own it doesn't seem like total shit. The first album, "Slow, Deep and Hard" apparently is unused Carnivore material with an stronger focus on urban doom and sludge. The other one I own is "October Rust" which seems like the Beatles gone Doompop with Ildjarn playing keyboards.
I am not saddened by Peter Steele's passing because if he truly was a Heathen (which he so strongly professed during his career in TON), then according to his metaphysical paradigm, he was Valhalla-bound.