I will confess, I am a very new Rob Zombie fan, I know he’s been around for decades. I remember I wanted to check out his music (and maybe his films too) back when I was in college, but something stopped me and as I write this I try to recall what it was.
Now I think I finally remember. Back in college, I followed him on social media as a reminder, but then I stumbled upon something he posted, or maybe it was something his wife shared that he was tagged in, that indicated that he supported an organization that I despised. (not a political one, but a rather disgusting one either way) During that time I was still learning to separate the creator from creation so I unfollowed.
Then this year, something sparked in me that hey I never got to listen to his music, and now that I am more mature, I realized it’s not worth it to close myself off from all these great artists just because they say, do, or believe in something I don’t agree with, I just want to focus on the good things that they have created, you know, find the silver lining in the clouds because life is too short to get worked up over one bad thing when there are hundreds of good things that outnumber it. So when a friend suggested the song Dragula I listened and remembered hey I meant to check him out years ago! Now here we are, a new fan! Really late to the party but I guess that’s better than never.
I listened to a few more songs, hence why some of them made it to my monthly music posts, three months in a row, and then I bought one of his albums digitally on payday, so I’m gonna give my thoughts on it!
Call of the Zombie
One thing I love about rock and metal albums is that they often have these overtures like this to get the listener ready for what they’re about to experience. This one, in particular, is quite eerie with a child speaking a poem, like you’re in a haunted mansion when there’s a thunderstorm outside with music straight out of a classic horror movie. It’s like a buildup, and it gets me pumped for what’s next.
Superbeast
And this is where the fun begins, a great start to the album. This song is epic, I can imagine it would be a great show-opener! Some of my friends have seen Rob live and have told me he’s a great showman on stage, likes to jump around a lot too!
I like to listen to this when I’m walking, and I have a hard time not jumping or skipping during that “HEY YEAH!” part! It has a great riff too, in fact, it sounds a lot like power metal I listen to with a touch of horror. Now that we’re into the essence of this album, I have to say that I find the vocals are like Lordi, but the American version, but like I said, he did all this first before them. (the latter was probably inspired by it) anyway, I love this song and would turn it up any day to block out the world.
Dragula
So this is probably his most popular song and it’s the very first that I listened to. It starts off strong and continues to be epic from start to finish. Another live-worthy track, it’s one that makes me want to sing it loud and headbang when nobody is watching. I’ve seen a few memes related to it as well which were all pretty funny. If you’re not a fan of him at all, even this song is good on its own. But in my case, I wanted to get into more than just it. Still, it’s a great catchy tune.
The music video is also colourful and badass which suits it very much. It was recently re-uploaded so that the quality was better than in the ’90s. It came out quite nicely, I want to think that it and the music video for the next track are what made me realize that I like him.
Living Dead Girl
The second song that I came to love as a fan. It’s catchy, eerie, mysterious and other ways I can’t explain that makes me love it. It could be that it’s just really unique which is what makes his sound stand out like he created his own genre. I love to listen to it loud like it’s my own theme and my place as a new fan. My friends sometimes tease me that way! I’ll leave out those details of how that goes!
I also love how the music video takes classic horror at its own level and the girl is in a tattered white dress like she was killed on her wedding day or something. Rob himself looks like a magician which is something different for sure! I love this song so much.
Perversion 99
This is like a quick interlude for the album, rather interesting take on this instrumental. It begins with a beat and the melodies that follow sound creepy to me like it’s preparing you for the next set of songs. Not sure why it has this name, but I’m sure he’s got reasons for it.
Demonoid Phenomenon
So this one still has to grow, but I really like the riff between the first verse and the chorus. Also, I couldn’t help but notice that this song also has a very industrial feel to it at the bridge, it’s also very fast-paced compared to the other songs so far. I will say that I don’t dislike it, but nor do I love it, it’s definitely something worth trying to give a chance. The way it ends with the bass is epic too.
Spookshow Baby
I never thought I would like this one, the title didn’t make sense to me, but the riff and melody grabbed me quickly after a few listens. I also really love how it has an acoustic intro before jumping into the metal part! It’s like he’s experimenting a little with his music, but doesn’t forget the sound that he’s known for and that’s what I like about his music so far once I began this journey.
It does sound like it’s trying to be like Superbeast a little at certain points in the song, but I still think I like that one better.
How to Make a Monster
Another interlude in this album, and this one has vocals instead of being entirely instrumental. How do you make a monster anyway? Depends on what kind of monster you want to make! It’s easy to make zombies in horror films, just bring someone back from the dead and there you go. Definitely something fresh to add between songs before we move onto the next bundle.
Meet the Creeper
Why do I get the feeling I’ve heard of the Creeper before? Like from some Scooby-Doo flick or something?
This is a pretty cool song, it makes me want to find some horror film that does feature a monster like that, whatever sort of movie that is. I’ve always been into horror films that feature monsters, supernatural events like demonic possession or psychological ones. There must be a Creeper one out there! Maybe he did a film on one? I guess I won’t know until I search. It”s definitely growing on me, so we’ll see how much I love it later on.
The Ballad of Resurrection Jose and Rosa Whore
This is definitely experimental, at least the way it opens. I will confess, I’m not a huge fan of it, it’s not as catchy as some of the earlier tracks. To others, it might sound appealing, but it really isn’t to me for some reason.
What Lurks On Channel X?
Another really eerie interlude. Imagine sitting in a dark room and the TV is static at first and you hear strange noises around you until it breaks into the guitar riff. Then comes the vocals, and you see him on the screen in black and white, that’s exactly what I picture when I listen to this.
If I can do that, it means I like it.
Return of the Phantom Stranger
Of all the tracks on this album, this one is definitely the most sinister, and the most satanic. You can clearly tell that from beginning to end. I love some aspects of the melody and the deep vocals. It makes me picture myself wandering in an abandoned church and the whole time I hear strange noises. I rush around trying to find the source, and that’s when the beat of the song starts and there he appears playing it with his bandmates.
Interestingly enough, you don’t hear any guitar until the bridge of the song which shows that his music is more than just those riffs.
It’s a very vivid song in its own way and I enjoy it a lot.
The Beginning of the End
And with that, we have reached our conclusion, one eerie industrial outro at your service! That was definitely not something I expected to hear. It sounds like a whole mixture of things, but still, it’s not something you forget once you listen to it.
It’s like this and that thrown together but it’s done well and it certainly serves as a good ending to a good album.
Overall, let me say, this is my first album from this legend of heavy metal, hard rock and industrial metal combined to form something unique. The first half of the album I absolutely loved, even the songs that I wasn’t totally fond of still found a way to get me to give them a chance. The second half was decent, not absolutely grabbing to a point where I’m jumping and headbanging about, but I definitely didn’t dislike it and it had parts that were very unique that made the album as a whole very good.
My favourite tracks are:
Superbeast
Dragula
Living Dead Girl
Spookshow Baby
Meet the Creeper
Return of the Phantom Stranger.
Well done, Rob, I’m your new fan now! You probably won’t ever see this, but that’s okay with me, I’m loving you already.
👽Emily
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