Seems like there’s plenty of music anniversaries this years. Plenty of 30 year anniversaries, and a few that turned 15 years old. Back in June, Type-O Negative’s Life Is Killing Me had it’s 15th anniversary, and today another of their releases has it’s birthday. More specifically, it’s the 25th birthday of the band’s first full-blown Gothic Metal record, and by god is it good! So sit back, put on your Black No. 1, and enjoy my review for the iconic Bloody Kisses. Let’s begin!
Background
With Slow Deep & Hard garnering Type-O Negative some fame from those that listened to it, Roadrunner Records were convinced to push the band a little more. At first it didn’t go so well (See below for details), but eventually this gave the group some energy. At first they produced the fake live album The Origin Of The Feces, but then they released a bombshell by the name of Bloody Kisses. Recorded at Systems Two in Brooklyn, Bloody Kisses was the first album on Roadrunner Records to achieve gold and platinum certification. Steve Huey of AllMusic gave the album a 4.5 out of 5 and wrote that "though it sounds like a funeral, Bloody Kisses' airy melodicism and '90s-style irony actually breathed new life into the flagging goth metal genre", Rock Hard from Germany gave the album a 10 out of 10 rating, and Loudwire called Bloody Kisses their best album of 1993.
Basic Description
Gothic Metal Cornerstone!
As fantastic as the band’s first two releases, they weren’t exactly Gothic. Not a hundred percent at least. Bloody Kisses changed all of that: forgoing the punk & hardcore elements of Slow Deep & Hard (Not to mention The Origin Of The Feces if you count it), Type-O Negative truly delved into Goth territory. From cemeteries, to black no. 1hair dye, to dark sensuality, and combined with Pete Steele’s typical dry wit & humor, this album really feels like it’s miles apart from the ones that came before. The instrumentation is perfect, and the vocal work from Pete & the rest of the gang is top notch. All of these elements make Bloody Kisses really incredible, and is yet another example of metal not dying in the 90s.
Best Track
Summer Breeze comes out of nowhere on Bloody Kisses. Taking the iconic Seals & Croft song, Type-O Negative swaps out the happy summertime vibes, and instead replaces it with summertime gothic sensuality & Pete Steele’s dry wit. Ironically, the band had got in trouble by attempting to create a more vulgar interpretation of the song (See here). After Seals & Croft told the band to knock it off, Type-O Negative just redid the original song.....and Seals & Croft still complained. That alone makes this version more superior in my mind, and it should in your mind as well.
Summer Breeze
Apart from that, I had to give a shout out to two songs that definitely know how to rile people up. First, we got Kill All The White People. An ode to some of the anti white people sentiments brought up by some black militant groups, Type-O Negative really managed to conjure up the negative feelings that said groups were feeling. Second, there’s We Hate Everyone. In the earliest years of their career, the band was accused by a variety of groups (Some left, some right) of being sexist & Nazis. Getting pissed at these accusations, the band decided to make this song, raising a middle finger to both sides of the fence.....I can appreciate that!
Kill All The White People
We Hate Everyone
Worst Track
Nothing. None. Nada. Zip. Zilch. Bloody Kisses has no bad songs on it. Nuff said!
Other
If you’re curious about listening to this album, then check out the link below:
Bloody Kisses
Overall Impression & Rating
Bloody Kisses is just wonderful. From the beginning notes to the final vocals, you are listening to one of the most iconic Gothic Metal releases ever. Sure there was a little bit before this album, and some even in the same year as this record, but very few can stand right alongside this CD (Paradise Lost’s Icon comes immediately to mind). If you have an afternoon available for yourself, find this album, and let Pete Steele and the rest of the Type-O Negative crew take you to gothic paradise. You won’t forget the trip!
Bloody gets a 10 out of 10. It earns every point!
So that was my review for Type-O Negative’s first full-blown Gothic Metal release, Bloody Kisses. Spearheading the emergence of a metal subgenre that could have only come from the 90s, it has endured the years with incredible aplomb, and is still held up by fans as one of the many pinnacles of the style. Well, with this review done, I’m taking a break for the rest of the month, as I’ll be working on posts for the 4-year anniversary of this blog. See you all in September!
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