Type O Negative - Bloody Kisses
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Free Music Notes for Bloody Kisses
Free Music Review: Where do I start?
Hit: 5 Stars
The truth is that, it's next to impossible to do justice to the phenomenon that is Type O Negative and in particular to this album which was my introduction to them. As a lowly metal buyer in a record shop, my musical life changed the day a promo copy of Bloody Kisses came from the record company. This album simply knocked my socks off and started a love affair with this incredible bands music that has now lasted 13 years. I remember repeatedly breaking my shops policy by telling potential customers to "....buy it, listen to it and if you don't like it bring it back and I'll give you your money back" I never did get a single copy returned, but I do remember getting phone calls from them hours later saying how they haven't stopped listening to it and how much they love it. So if you like honest, epic and hauntingly beautiful music with a wonderful sense of dark humour. then you won't be disappointed. Be prepared to buy everything else they have released cos you will....Free Music Review: BLOODY KISSES = Bloody Fantastic
Hit: 5 Stars
I have to agree with a vast majority of the other reviews here, when they sing the praises of this album. BLOODY KISSES was my first introduction to Type O Negative (courtesy of a friend - thanks Jim!), and of course became my first TON album added to my music library. The instant sellers on this album (for me, anyway) were (and still are) CHRISTIAN WOMAN, BLACK No 1, SUMMER BREEZE, and the title track BLOODY KISS (A DEATH IN THE FAMILY).
With the exception of SUMMER BREEZE, all these songs are epic classics running anywhere from just under 9 minutes to a little over 11 minutes each. What made these songs such instant gems (aside form the excellent musical arrangements), was the unique, unmatched vocal styling of Peter Steele. His deep, baritone vocals stand alone in a class all their own, and in effect, make the songs that much more unique as well. I have yet to meet a woman who was not "affected" by his voice. Aside from other, um, "attributes" that Peter Steele possess, his voice is something that many men would envy (I sure do, anyway).
An almost 180 contrast to their debut album (SLOW, DEEP, AND HARD) where the tracks were more typical metal, with the speed & thrash elements one would expect from such a genere, BLOODY KISSES slows things down, but not in a boring way, rather in a deeper, more emotionally connective sort of way. You can almost "feel" the despair, sadness, and melancholy in some of these songs, just from the music alone, before even a single lyric is uttered. It almost makes one wonder if these two albums could actually come from the same band. But they do.
Where I feel SLOW DEEP AND HARD was an experimental album for Pete & Co to get themselves on the music map (amidst the thrash & speed of SDAH, there is a balance of slower, heavy riffing which would become more evident and refined in following albums), BLOODY KISSES is the album where I feel the band finds their perfect niche that firmly places them among other great bands of the goth metal genre.
Additionally, while a lot of the music can invoke feelings of melacholy, some the very same tracks can also simultaneously invoke more positive feelings as well. Not a lot of music can do that.
As mentioned in many of the other reviews, this album had two "versions". An original 14-track version, released in a standard jewel case, and a remastered 9-track version, released in a digipak. There is so much contention as to which is the "better" version - I say they're both good in their own right, and any true TON fan will make sure to have both in their collection/library, even if it's for 1 song.
While the original version boasts more tracks, those etxra tracks (which were omitted from the remastered release) are really not all that great, as they are mostly made up of these bizarre interludes (not the last to be seen/heard from TON however!), which seem to only serve to segue from one musical track to the next, and hardly warrant the fuss over the original version of the album being "better". These "interlude" tracks would be 3.0.I.F. (which sounds like some auto accident scenario), DARK SIDE OF THE WOMB (the crying infant and macabre sounds suggest to me some sort of "Rosemary's Baby" thing going on), MACHINE SCREW (mechanical eroticism, I guess you could say), and FAY WRAY COME OUT AND PLAY (the overall sounds and ambience here suggest to me like it's a tribute to the classic 1933 movie King Kong, when the tribe make their female sacrifice to Kong).
I find these tracks do serve rather well as intros to specific main musical tracks, but they're not anything you'd really miss, especially if you never heard them. In other words, you wouldn't miss much. Among these omitted tracks, however, only 2 are actual musical compositions (KILL ALL THE WHITE PEOPLE and WE HATE EVERYONE), and while these are not bad and pretty good, respectively, I have to strongly disagree with any reviews that say these (or any of the omitted tracks, for that matter) are better than SUSPENDED IN DUSK, which was the "bonus track" included on the remastered digipak version, in these other tracks' absence.
In fact, if there was any track that made buying a second copy of BLOODY KISSES worth while, it would be the digipak for SUSPENDED IN DUSK. If you have an avid interest in vampires, you will agree, this song makes it worth a second investment in the "same" album. But even if you're not a vampire enthusiast, this is one of those great songs that rank alongside CHRISTIAN WOMAN, et al.
Speaking of CHRISTIAN WOMAN, the one thing that DOES suck about the digipak (aside form the fact that it IS a digipak! grrr), is that Pete's spoken intro for the song ("Forgive her... for she knows not what she does") was also omitted (at least it was on MY copy!). That makes no sense to me.
Maybe because I got the digipak first, and then the original later on, (not knowing I got them in "backwards" order), perhaps this may have influenced my acceptance of the digipak version as being "just as good", cos in essence, my second purchase was like getting stuffed added on, rather than left off. Still, had I gotten them in their proper sequence, I think I would have been ok with paying a full CD price for one song (and not just cos I'm the kind of music junkie who wants ANYthing and EVERYthing released from whatever band I am into), cos SUSPENDED IN DUSK is actually THAT good. In fact, I recall thinking the original wasn't that great after all, since the "extra" tracks weren't even "real" tracks, and the 2 that were, were mediocre at best.
If you value quantity over quality, then the original BLOODY KISSES will suit you fine. If you prefer quality over quantity, you may prefer the digipak (except for that clipped CHRISTIAN WOMAN intro!) instead. However, if you are a true Type O Negative fan, then not only will you not be sorry to have both versions, but you will also make a point of doing so - for collector's item reasons if nothing else.
In closing, I would have to say that while all the albums that followed were very good (even excellent!) in their own right, there is just something about BLOODY KISSES that makes it stand alone as an unmatched classic. A must!
I give 5+ stars, in the context of both versions combined as one release.
Seperately, I'd give the original version 4 stars, and the digipak 3 stars (the only reason it did not get an equal 4-star rating, is for the omitted intro to CHRISTIAN WOMAN, and for being in a digipak - I HATE those things! So in essence, the 3-star rate goes to the one song not on the original : SUSPENDED IN DUSK).
WTW
Free Music Review: Great album, the one that got Type O known
Hit: 5 Stars
I bought this album as soon as I first saw the song black number one on MTV, and have almost played my original cassette to death. The video was just plain entertaining, childishly "scary", and I hope they were not taking themselves as seriously "evil". It was goth, and metal at the same time, yet poking a bit fun at goth by going over the top. This album is Dark at times, fast thrash like at others, and then just plain funny at other times. Where else can you strech a song like summer breeze into a huge epic of a song. This has the classic songs Christian Woman, and Black NO 1. Also blood and fire is a great tune too. It is a shame they re-mastered and took off kill all the white people and we hate everyone on the re-masters, cause those were just brutal and funny songs. I one both versions now, like them both. Be happy with either, but the first version is actually better. Pick it up, you will like it. Free Music Review: Tongue Firmly In Cheek...
Hit: 5 Stars
The clues are everywhere from cover to lyrics that this band is in it for the fun. My introduction to them was by a friend who played their irreverent cover of Summer Breeze to get my attention. After the laughter died down, he played the rest of Bloody Kisses and I was hooked. I enjoyed them through October Rust and World Coming Down, but Bloody Kisses remains my easy favorite. I own both issues, each of which holds its integrity all the way through. The one with the longer track list is more entertaining by far. The other one has the advantage of a more interesting cover photo. Either way you go, Type O Negative's sardonic take on dreary goth metal is a keeper.Free Music Review: Buyer Beware - Two Versions
Hit: 1 Stars
Please note that there are two versions of "Bloody Kisses." This review seems to have appeared on both of them. The one star review is intended for the re-released version (as described below). For the original I agree with all of the 5 star reviews: simply a brilliant album.
When I asked for "Bloody Kisses" as a gift (I had owned it before, but needed a replacement) I was given the new version and was so disgusted that I threw it out and bought the original. The major changes on the new version are:
A.) The replacement of the wonderful "Kill all the White People" and "We Hate Everyone" with "Suspended in Dusk," one of the few genuinely bad TON tracks in their entire catalogue.
B.) The rearrangement of the track order.
The overall effect is to not only decrease the overall song quality ("We Hate Everyone" is WAY better than "Suspended in Dusk"), but to ruin the cool attitude of the album by getting rid of the humor (which was a crucial element in the original). Don't get me wrong, the album is still brilliant (it's TON after all), but not *nearly* as much so as the original. Seeing, then, as how the original is still available here on Amazon, why not get that instead? You'll know it by the presence of "Kill All the White People" and "We Hate Everyone."
***Update***
I can no longer find the older version on Amazon, which sucks. Still, it's worth looking around to see if you can find it somewhere else (possibly used).