Peter Steele²

GENERAL

Petrus Thomas Ratajczyk (January 4, 1962, Brooklyn, New York), better known as Peter Steele, was an American musician; founder of the gothic metal band Type O Negative and the hardcore project Carnivore. As the frontman for Type O Negative, Steele was known for his vampiric appearance, towering 6 ft 8 in (2.03 m) stature, rich bass vocals, and a dark, often self-deprecating sense of humor. His lyrics have been described as "often intensely personal, dealing with subjects including love, loss and addiction." Steele credited Black Sabbath and the Beatles as his key musical influences. He has been listed among the "66 Best Hard Rock and Metal Frontmen of All Time" by Loudwire.

BIOGRAPHY

Peter Steele was born on January 4, 1962 in Brooklyn, New York, to a family of Icelandic, Scottish, Irish, Russian, and Polish roots. His parents, Peter and Annette, were from Poland. Externally, the musician was very similar to his father. Peter had five siblings—Annette, Barbara, Patricia, Pamela and Katie. According to Peter, it was they who taught him how to communicate with women. During his school years, Peter was shy and lonely. He preferred his family to the company of his peers. When he was 12, his sister decided to give her daughter, his age, and him guitar lessons. The boy, trying to get ahead of his niece in everything, tried very hard, and as a result, he became really interested in music. As a teenager, he played in his first band, Fallout, along with Josh Silver, the future keyboardist of Type O Negative. In 1981, they released a recording of the only song, Batteries Not Included, which was played on the college radio station. The band didn't exist for long, then they and Josh went their separate ways for a while. In 1982, Peter founded and led the thrash metal band Carnivore, which became his first serious musical project.

PERSONAL LIFE AND HOBBIES (1)

Peter owned a Harley Davidson Softail motorcycle and an old Pontiac Grand Prix car from 1985. He worked hard to modify his car: he completely redesigned the exterior and installed a megaphone on the roof, which he could shout into if someone displeased him. It was in the spirit of the musician's peculiar humor. Steele was athletic and liked to build up his muscles. In 1989, Peter attempted suicide due to a breakup with his girlfriend. In a 2003 interview, Steele said he suffers from bipolar disorder. The musician was abusing drugs. In 2005, he was jailed for 30 days for beating up his rival. Steele stood 6' 8" (203 cm) tall, giving him a menacing stage appearance. Despite that perception, Steele admitted to suffering from stage fright, which he overcame by drinking alcohol before shows and by drinking red wine when on stage. He was also described as a person who was "friendly, funny and had a reputation for being generous to his longtime bandmates ... and kind to the bands he toured with." In his autobiography Iron Man, Black Sabbath's Tony Iommi described his shock at Steele's death: “Peter was a big, tall, and very, very nice guy." Outside of music, Steele lifted weights at home and on his tour bus. Steele also enjoyed reading books on the subject of science, engineering, art, languages, and math, and he had an interest in European culture. Steele liked working on his house and was interested in architecture and civil engineering. Steele also worked on his cars, including a heavily modified 1985 Pontiac Grand Prix he customized. Steele loved cats and kept several of them as his children. In the booklet for the 2009 "Top Shelf" edition re-release of Bloody Kisses, Steele confirmed that the album's dirge-like 11-minute title track had, in fact, been written about the death of a family cat called Venus he had owned for 17 years.

PERSONAL LIFE AND HOBBIES (2)

In 2005, Steele disappeared for an extended period with no explanation. Rumors of his death, terminal illness, and other speculations increased until the mystery was dispelled in an interview on the 2006 DVD Symphony for the Devil. In the interview, Steele briefly mentions his incarceration in Rikers Island and "the psych ward at Kings County Hospital.” Steele's family members had staged an intervention and insisted he check into a mental institution. Steele later confirmed he had been suffering from paranoia caused by his heavy substance abuse. Steele had been using cocaine since the age of 35, a decision he expressed great regret about. Steele then attended rehab for cocaine dependence and alcoholism and later served a 30-day prison term for assaulting a love rival. Steele made light of his incarceration by wearing a prison uniform on stage during live performances.

MUSICAL CAREER (1)

In 1985, Carnivore's first self-titled album was released on the Roadrunner Records label. The music was a high-speed crossover thrash, sometimes turning into lingering slow melodies. The album received high marks from critics and listeners, and the band began to gain popularity. In 1987, the second album, Retaliation, was released, before the recording of which the guitarist changed in the band. At that time, Steele was communicating with punks and skinheads, and this influenced the music of the album — it approached the sound of furious New York hardcore, the compositions became even faster and shorter. The new release was a success with critics and listeners. After becoming a sex symbol, in 1995, Steele posed nude for the August issue of Playgirl magazine. In 2005, the French magazine Rock Hard compiled a list of The 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time, in which Retaliation was ranked 316th. Despite the success, Steele disbanded Carnivore, explaining that he became lonely in the punk scene: many of his friends and colleagues on the scene scattered around the world, died or went to prison. After that, Peter worked for two years as a heavy equipment operator in the New York City Parks Department. Then Steele decided to become a police officer, and he already began to prepare for this — he cut his hair short and started taking courses. When he wasn't on tour, he lived in Brooklyn in the basement of his mother's house. Before Type O Negative, Peter also played in the bands Aggression and Repulsion.

MUSICAL CAREER (2)

Type O Negative was the most stable and successful project of the musician. His childhood friends Sal Abruzzato (later replaced by Johnny Kelly), Josh Silver and Kenny Hickey played in this band. Steele signed a contract with the music label RoadRunner Record. The band's lyrics are influenced by the work of such bands as Black Sabbath, The Doors, as well as other punk, post-punk and new wave bands. Most of Steele's songs are about love, loss, and addiction. However, his compositions are witty and tinged with self-deprecating black humor, which was especially appreciated by the band's fans. During the recording of the album World Coming Down, Steele lost many people dear to him and even went into a binge for a while, which was reflected in his lyrics.: they became more gloomy, carrying a sense of hopelessness. The music on this album has also become heavier: the old doom elements have returned.

INFORMATION

FULL NAME: Peter Thomas Ratajczyk NATIONALITY: Icelandic, Scottish, Irish, Russian, and Polish roots AGE: 32 (The plot takes place in 1994) born on the 4-th January in 1962. OCCUPATION: Rockstar

APPEARANCE

Tall; Toned body; 6'8; Long black and slightly wavy hair; Handsome; Pale skin; Green eyes.