Type O Negative

Type O Negative can embrace only about three emotions: misery, anger, or some combination of the two. So it's no surprise to encounter more morose melodrama, haunted-house synthesizers, Sabbathian sludge, and the phantom-like baritone of vocalist/ bassist/beefcake brooder Peter Steele. Life Is Killing Me isn't as dark as its predecessor, 1999 World Coming Down, as it rises over that stoner-rock cloud. Songs like "IYDKMIGTHTKY (Gimme That)" and "A Dish Better Served Coldly" are distinctive Type O negativity, the latter track opening with chiming acoustic guitars and keyboards that drive straight into a wall of distortion that crumbles and gives way to siren-like harmonies. The uptempo "I Don't Wanna Be Me" offers punk-inspired valor, while the heavy-bottomed balladry of "We Were (Electrocute)" allows reverb-soaked guitars to shed some light on the murky passages. Straying from the solemnity and emphasizing the band's jaded sense of humor, "I Like Goils" finds Steele still satisfyingly heterosexual ("There's no damn way I'm playing 'drop the soap!'"). "Angry Inch" (from the transsexual-based cult flick Hedwig and the Angry Inch) fulfills the obligatory cover-song requirement for each album. (Past renditions include Seals and Crofts' "Summer Breeze" and the Beatles' "Day Tripper"). Life Is Killing Me offers few surprises but captures the essence of what made Type O Negative the band of choice for the wrist-slashing sulk set.