Perfect for the Promise of a Full Moon
A big thanks to Mary Wolfe
I can't decide which picture I like best ...
Your Thoughts?
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A Big Thank You to another Special American Friend
Who Graciously Shared This With Us and the Family
Thank YOU Miss M:
I had a terrible childhood and really clung to music to make it through. And the 13 year old version of myself was absolutely besotted with Peter Steele. I remember when October Rust came out - me and a friend of mine sat in her room listening to it all the way through - giggling and bouncing like two teenagers in the front row of a rock concert. Life was really hard for me, and although he never knew it, Peter and I made it through that together. (And by Peter - I really mean his ideas and voice, I never actually met Peter.)
Time went on ... I got older - as did Peter. Music became less of a crutch then it had been when I was younger. Then Peter dissapeared off the face of the planet for a while, so I lost touch with my former love of Type O. (Still listened to Type O when I could, but between raising kids and going to school, there wasn't a lot of time for any of that.) Some years later I did a google search on Peter and found videos of a much older, very different looking Peter. ... I looked into his situation further and realised he had been sober for some time after a long battle with it. He had become a much more tolerant person, he had pulled himself into sobriety out of the pits of hell - not to mention that it was appropriate that Peter should age, because he was in fact *getting older*. Not only that, but the internet has been full of interviews where Peter takes responsibility for his shortcommings and the harm that has done others - in other words - he had matured into a much more honourable human being. I always thought Peter was likeable, but I was really excited to see that as he had gotten older, that had become much more true!!!
As far as I have been concerned, at the age of near-50 - Peter Steele never looked better. I genuinelly looked forward to more of hearing what Peter had to say as he continued to age and mature. I really believed in him, as I always did. When I listened to his music, it always felt like he believed in me. (As he generally did of all my generation.)
I have had many life goals, and achieved much of them. One that I sincerely wanted though was to meet him. I wanted to thank him and his bandmates for the contribution they had made to my life. When he died, it immediately occured to me that this was someone's son, someone's sibling, but that sadly he would never be someone's Dad. It had become irrelevant that he was a rock icon. When someone dies, all the superficial stuff gets lost in the seriousness of that. So I don't want to belittle how much more important his family is in all of this then his fans. But can I just say - that although I had never met Peter, I felt genuine mourning. I've even cried a few times (though I'd dare not let anyone in my household know that.) I have felt silly for it. I never met him - he's just been some posters on my teenage wall. But yet, I definitely feel hurt about it. I had followed Peter's story for over half of my life, he was so deeply embedded in my make up. Although I hadn't listened to Type O very much for years, I suddenly felt a little lost without the possibility of more of it in future.
So when I came to your blog, I experienced something really great. I got to hear all these real stories of Peter, and see that there were countless others who appreciated him for what he was at the time of his death, that I wasn't the only one who thought he was beautiful, perhaps more so, in his older age. That others felt the same sense of loss despite not ever knowing him. That his family was real, and most importantly, ok. I feel like I had caged in this big sense of loss and that upon reading your blog, I was allowed to have feelings about it. That the family had given their ok for that. It means an enormous amount and I feel like I can now allow myself that and then, let it go.
It's been a truly great ride Peter Steele, and since I never get to say that to you, it's wonderful that I can say that to your family.
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Interview from a French show ... a little short, but very clear:
Biohazard's Evan Seinfeld's Interview with TON: