Defend the indefensible: White Zombie

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Come on, guys - some of those songs are pretty good. That "Black Sunshine" song or whatever was pretty kickass. Never heard any of their albums, tho - anyone care to share?

― roger adultery, Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:39 (twenty-two years ago)

White Zombie are totally defensible, but I like Rob's solo stuff even more. Haunted house disco-metal. I keep forgetting to buy that new compilation.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:44 (twenty-two years ago)

the music for quake2 is great!!

― Pashmina (Pashmina), Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:46 (twenty-two years ago)

They're rubbish, but I once sold one of their albums for £10, thus making a profit from their success.

― udu wudu (udu wudu), Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:51 (twenty-two years ago)

White Zombie are totally defensible

Yeah, completely. They did what Ministry were trying to do in the early nineties but better.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Saturday, 25 October 2003 18:57 (twenty-two years ago)

i still have a soft spot for la sexorcismo, esp. "welcome to planet motherfucker." i'm slightly embarrassed by this, for whatever reason. at their best, they're like some kinda maniac's mash-up of ministry and swervedriver (esp. cause of all the songs about cars and girls).

― Eisbär (llamasfur), Saturday, 25 October 2003 19:02 (twenty-two years ago)

Dude, there's nothing indefensible about White Zombie at all! Out of all the music that I used to listen to in junior high, WZ is the only stuff I ever still listen to. And that includes, like, Beck and stuff. Hard rock radio is worthless except for White Zombie! I can see now that all that Metallica they play sucks; but white zombie is still good. It's too bad they play Rob Zombie's solo stuff more than WZ, because he sucks alone.

― Dan I., Saturday, 25 October 2003 19:08 (twenty-two years ago)

All the Metallica that the radio stations play, I mean.

― Dan I., Saturday, 25 October 2003 19:09 (twenty-two years ago)

I will not tolerate "Dragula" hate.

― Anthony Miccio (Anthony Miccio), Saturday, 25 October 2003 19:11 (twenty-two years ago)

We need more metal bands that sample dialogue from Shaft and write songs about really fucking fast cars.

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Saturday, 25 October 2003 19:29 (twenty-two years ago)

White Zombie/Rob Zombie never took themselves/himself particularly seriously, thus there's nothing to be embarassed or apologize about. They themselves were well aware of the inherent silliness of their mission. Thus, "indefensible" is not applicable.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Saturday, 25 October 2003 20:30 (twenty-two years ago)

Rob Zombie's a really nice guy, apparently.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Saturday, 25 October 2003 20:36 (twenty-two years ago)

Through my work, I've had to deal with Rob Zombie on two different projects. He's an exceptionally down to earth guy, very good to everyone on the totem pole. I remember a conversation that I (and others) had with him about horror movies, which he's real knowledgdable about.

I've never spent any time with his music, though.

― Hildy, Saturday, 25 October 2003 22:00 (twenty-two years ago)

Hard rock radio is worthless except for White Zombie!

Dan I OTM.

― sucka (sucka), Saturday, 25 October 2003 23:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Agree 100% about hard rock radio. More Human than Human was one of the few things that brightened up the end of high school for me.

― daria g (daria g), Sunday, 26 October 2003 01:20 (twenty-two years ago)

Does anyone have the new Best Of from Rob/White Zombie? It seems like it would be a good listen. AND HE COVERS BRICK HOUSE!!

― Sonny A. (Keiko), Sunday, 26 October 2003 01:29 (twenty-two years ago)

I saw'em the summer before Freshman year in HS and it was with Kyuss, then Babes in Toyland, the Rev Hortone H., then WZ, and it rocked the fuck out.

― Helltime Producto (Pavlik), Sunday, 26 October 2003 03:19 (twenty-two years ago)

This is an uber-indie thing to say, but they were really great back when they were this totally weird, freaked-out band outta NY releasing records that hardly anyone heard (Psycho-Head Blowout, the Pig Heaven 7") and touring basically behind the strength of a cool name. Saw 'em at a floating (i.e., not venue-specific) club called Alcohol Salad in '87 and they were like people from another planet.

― J0hn Darn1elle (J0hn Darn1elle), Sunday, 26 October 2003 03:32 (twenty-two years ago)

Search: Waves of grinding, screechy geetar fed into the drum machine for added metallicious percusiosity!
Destroy: Lame, moronic, pointless, shapeless, meaningless lyrics.

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Sunday, 26 October 2003 04:07 (twenty-two years ago)

You know what, Custos, fuck lyrics. I think that David Byrne said something about that once.

― Helltime Producto (Pavlik), Sunday, 26 October 2003 04:09 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah...but Byrne's lyrics, even when they were lame, made a perverse kind of sense. Rob Zombie -- as much as I love the guy* -- his lyrics are unavoidable, and get irksome after awhile.

Footnotes:
* First guy to take the "cookie monster vocal"** into the mainstream
** I mean besides the cookie monster himself.

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Sunday, 26 October 2003 04:14 (twenty-two years ago)

Footnotes:
* First guy to take the "cookie monster vocal"** into the mainstream
** I mean besides the cookie monster himself.

-- Lord Custos Omicron

ohmigaud...that is freaking funny.

I totally love my memories as Rob as a performer and neighbor...he was as a really nice guy, long on hair, short on shampoo...he gave us a kitten...maybe he even gave us first dibs from the litter, not sure...anyhow, I also remember him insisting that this mangy dog be in all the photos with them when I was taking some photos of em on ave b. The dog just started hanging out with us when I was trying to shoot. I couldn't believe Rob actually HELD the dog during all the photos. I mean the dog was nice, but his hair looked JUST LIKE ROB's! I was afraid of what was in the hair.

― BurmaKitty (BurmaKitty), Sunday, 26 October 2003 15:49 (twenty-two years ago)

hey were really great back when they were this totally weird, freaked-out band outta NY

Don't believe the hype. I saw them perform back then (at the Pyramid) and they were pretty dreadful (pardon the pun). Moving to L.A. and investing in the spit'n'polish of the studio was the best thing for that band.

― Alex in NYC (vassifer), Sunday, 26 October 2003 17:26 (twenty-two years ago)

Ladies and Gentlebeings...the amazing and long-awaited return of BurmaKitty.

― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Monday, 27 October 2003 01:20 (twenty-two years ago)

re: Ministry comparisons...ah, yes, but without the added, er, something of With Sympathy, yessss? >D

i have to say that White Zombie live was a LOT of fun. i saw them as part of some festival thing sometime after La Sexorcisto... had been released, although i don't remember exactly when. hadn't gone to see them (hadn't really intended on going in the first place; actually got talked into it by a friend with an extra ticket), but was quite pleasantly surprised.

and Sean Yseult rocks. <3

― janni (janni), Monday, 27 October 2003 17:28 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah, Astro Creep 2000 was a great record. Especially near the end, some really cool songs with clanky percussion detuned spooky chants. Very wise of them to break up after making the best possible White Zombie record. I saw them on that tour too, it was probably the best rock show I saw in high school. John Tempesta's a great drummer.

― Jordan (Jordan), Monday, 27 October 2003 17:35 (twenty-two years ago)

No dissing _With Sympathy_ is allowed seeing as it completely kicks the ass of everything they've released since 1989 and is pretty much their second-best proper album (the best being _Twitch_, of course).

― Dan Perry (Dan Perry), Monday, 27 October 2003 17:38 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh yeah: best consistent use of vocal samples by a rock band?

― Jordan (Jordan), Monday, 27 October 2003 17:49 (twenty-two years ago)

nine years pass...

WTF ... how is White Zombie "indefensible" in any way?!?

granted, upthread 9 years ago i said that i was a bit "embarrassed" -- but that's different than "defending the indefensible."

― عليك ارتداء ماكياج من مهرج مثلي الجنس المتداول مائة عميق في سيارة مصغر (Eisbaer), Saturday, 25 May 2013 16:04 (twelve years ago)

Well it seems like most of the posts are actually defending them. Coincidentally, one of my best friends is passing thru a white zombie obsession at the moment so Ive been overhearing their music a lot. They're a tad homogenic but I like their thing. The geeky references and how powerful some of their music sounds. Somehow I dont think it translates well into a live setting.

― Moka, Saturday, 25 May 2013 16:23 (twelve years ago)

Well it seems like most of the posts are actually defending them.

yeah that's true and heartening. i'm more o_O as to why the thread was created in the first place.

― عليك ارتداء ماكياج من مهرج مثلي الجنس المتداول مائة عميق في سيارة مصغر (Eisbaer), Saturday, 25 May 2013 16:34 (twelve years ago)

i only have the sinister urge by rob zombie.
but damn, its a fun album (the chugga chugga guitars + big tunes + horror cliches = mark e hotspot).
are they all as good as that ?

― mark e, Saturday, 25 May 2013 16:35 (twelve years ago)

three years pass...

name five records that exemplify ~~90sness~~ more than 'astro-creep 2000'

― j., Tuesday, 10 January 2017 03:50 (nine years ago)

two years pass...

Footnotes:
* First guy to take the "cookie monster vocal"** into the mainstream
** I mean besides the cookie monster himself.
― Lord Custos Omicron (Lord Custos Omicron), Sunday, October 26, 2003 12:14 AM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

lol this was totally RONG

― fuck the NRA (Neanderthal), Thursday, 10 January 2019 23:54 (seven years ago)

two years pass...

the very early stuff is incredible and original

but WOW i love make them die slowly

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 04:40 (five years ago)

More Human Than Human was such a jam for teenage me. Haven't thought of this band in so long

― Party With A Jagger Ban (dog latin), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 11:28 (five years ago)

These days I prefer Rob’s solo work to the band’s albums, which are super patchy and *incredibly* front-loaded, La Sexorcisto in particular. I like the fact that Rob has taken Steve Albini’s old line “lyrics seemed necessary, so we had some” to heart - they’re total jabbering nonsense at this point, punctuated by “Yeah” and “Awright.”

― but also fuck you (unperson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 12:39 (five years ago)

Sounds lovely of my kind of thing

― Party With A Jagger Ban (dog latin), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 13:48 (five years ago)

make them die slowly is like trash metal and stoner metal at the same time, there was not a single point during that album where i didn't think "this is awesome"

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 14:20 (five years ago)

the production even sucks in a good way

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 14:21 (five years ago)

I'm willing to listen to it again — I liked the two before it, Psycho-Head Blow-Out and Soul-Crusher — but I don't remember it being entertainingly bad, just bad. But you're tuned differently than me. There's no such thing as "sucks in a good way" in my world.

― but also fuck you (unperson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 14:23 (five years ago)

idk i feel like i enjoy the production in the same way i enjoy the production on sst hardcore records

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 14:29 (five years ago)

it's not good but the vibe it gives off is tremendous

― mellon collie and the infinite bradness (BradNelson), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 14:29 (five years ago)

Spring and Summer of 1993 was La Sexorcisto time. It soundtracked an overnight road trip from PA to Ithaca to Boston with a friend. Every sample is imprinted on my brain like a tattoo.

― perhaps I myself was the object of my search (PBKR), Wednesday, 3 March 2021 17:12 (five years ago)

Not yet glanced at this thread and not thought it was about Warren Zevon.

― Josh in Chicago, Wednesday, 3 March 2021 17:36 (five years ago)

I’ve never really listened to White Zombie but my fiancé is into Rob Zombie as a filmmaker

― brimstead, Wednesday, 3 March 2021 21:06 (five years ago)

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