Former Type O Negative guitarist Kenny Hickey has once again addressed the lingering possibility of reuniting with his surviving bandmates to stage a special tribute concert for their late frontman, Peter Steele.
During a recent interview with Cassius Morris, the musician discussed the logistical hurdles of putting together such an event alongside various guest vocalists. The primary obstacle remains former Type O Negative keyboardist Josh Silver, who left the music industry to become a New York City paramedic and happens to be married to the sister of Kenny Hickey‘s wife.
When asked if the keyboardist is still unwilling to commit to honoring the legendary goth-metal outfit on stage, the guitarist offered a blunt update.
“He doesn’t wanna do it. So maybe it’ll take some convincing…” Hickey shared.
Elaborating on why Silver continues to turn down the idea of a reunion, the guitarist pointed to his former bandmate’s notoriously dedicated, all-or-nothing personality.
“He would have to answer that question. He was always the kind of guy who’s 150% guy. If he’s not 150%, then he’s not gonna do it. He’s got other things going on. So, we’ll see. We’ll see how things pan out. Maybe he won’t have other things going on in the near future,” Kenny explained.
Despite the keyboardist’s ongoing reluctance, Hickey confirmed that both he and former Type O Negative drummer Johnny Kelly are fully on board to celebrate their musical legacy if the opportunity arises.
“We would be into doing it in a tribute fashion, yeah. Yes. It would be cool to do maybe a dozen shows or something like that. Have some great stand-in singer — [or] singers — it would be a cool thing to do. Absolutely.”
Beyond the possibility of live performances, Hickey also shared some concrete good news for long-time fans. He confirmed that a full-length archival concert recording from the band is currently being prepped for an official release in the near future.
“It’s in the works right now, so it might take a month or whatever to get it together,” he explained. “And then it will probably be at least a couple of months after that before it’s released. Hopefully [it will be out] by the end of the year.”
Speaking in an October interview with Scott Penfold of Loaded Radio, Hickey confirmed that the increasing demand from fans and interest from the music industry have made the possibility of a tribute more real than ever.
“There has, yes. A lot of people are approaching us. There are a lot of agents [contacting us]. There’s money in it, so the more the value goes up, the more they’re gonna hound us,” he said at the time.
“Josh is really, at this point, he’s very resistant,” Hickey continued. “But we’ll see. We don’t know what’s gonna happen. Josh is about to retire [from his job as a paramedic] soon, so we don’t know what’s gonna happen. It all depends on how much money it’s worth and how much is waved [in front of us].”
While fans have often speculated about who could possibly fill Peter Steele‘s vocal role, Hickey revealed that, for him, the bigger challenge is finding someone who can replicate his unique bass playing.
“It’s a very hard thing to get my head around,” he said of potential guest singers. “[Peter‘s] bass playing was more unique than his vocals. Deep, baritone vocals — a lot of people with a deep voice could do that s**t and roll your Rs… But his bass playing was very, very unique.”
Type O Negative officially disbanded following the tragic passing of Peter Steele in April 2010. The beloved frontman died of heart failure at the age of 48. Born Petrus T. Ratajczyk on January 4, 1962, in Brooklyn, New York, the iconic singer was famously known for his towering 6’7″ frame and the deep, booming, bass-heavy vocals that defined the band’s unmistakable sound.
