During a recent appearance on the “Loaded Radio“ podcast, Type O Negative drummer Johnny Kelly told host Scott Penfold that he uncovered a lost piece of the band’s history: a fully unreleased song recorded during the writing sessions for their classic 1996 studio album, October Rust.
“I dug up a whole bunch of cassettes recently and I found a lot of stuff — demos. I actually found a song that we never used,” Johnny Kelly revealed (as transcribed by Blabbermouth).
Explaining how the tape survived for three decades, the drummer shared that it originated from his time working at the home of Type O Negative keyboardist Josh Silver.
“I would go to Josh‘s [Silver] house when we were working on the records. I would always go home — say, after the day, we were working on a song. This was back when cassettes were being used. CDs really weren’t standard yet as far as in the studio for refs and stuff like that. So I have a bunch of ref[erence] cassettes from demos that we did and stuff. And then I was just listening to them, and I came across the song. Part of it wound up getting cannibalized. Parts of the song wound up on other songs, on Life Is Killing Me and stuff like that. But it’s a complete song.”
When asked if fans might finally hear the forgotten track, Johnny seemed open to the idea, provided the aging audio quality holds up to modern standards.
“At the time, the song wasn’t strong enough to be on October Rust. And if we were releasing October Rust today, it still wouldn’t make the record… But 30 years later, to release it as a bonus track on something, it’s worth it — it’s worth it for that,” he said. “Now, if we can get a good transfer from a cassette and actually get a good mastering out of it and make it sound good…”
With 2026 marking the 30th anniversary of October Rust, the timing seems perfect for a special reissue. However, the drummer noted that scheduling might be complicated by other releases already in the pipeline.
“This year is the 30th anniversary of October Rust, but I don’t know if it’s good policy to have the [previously announced Type O Negative] live record coming out this year and a box set for October Rust. Maybe. I don’t know. We’ll have to see,” he cautioned. “But right now I’m just going through the cassettes and seeing what I have.”
Type O Negative officially disbanded in 2010 following the tragic passing of legendary frontman Peter Steele. Born Petrus T. Ratajczyk in Brooklyn, New York, the towering bassist and vocalist died from heart failure at age 48. Before defining goth metal, he cut his teeth in the heavy acts Fallout and Carnivore.
Formed in 1990 by Peter Steele, Josh Silver, guitarist Kenny Hickey, and original drummer Sal Abruscato (who was later replaced by Johnny Kelly), Type O Negative carved out a massively influential sound. Following their 1991 debut Slow, Deep And Hard and 1992’s The Origin Of The Feces, the group broke into the mainstream with 1993’s Bloody Kisses, driven by the massive single “Black No. 1“. The band’s discography expanded with celebrated records like October Rust (1996), World Coming Down (1999), Life Is Killing Me (2003), and Dead Again (2007).
Currently, a full-length Type O Negative live concert recording is in the works, tentatively scheduled for a late 2026 or early 2027 release.
