This edition of the "Icon" series focuses on the one and only Industrial Shock Metal master Rob Zombie and fortunately for all of his fans this one does a proper job of presenting a little bit of everything from his wildly interesting career. I'll be honest and admit how when I first heard about him that it was not my thing and back in the day, it was true that White Zombie was not for everyone. This was a new kind of Groove based Industrial Metal that you either loved or hated and at the time I was strictly supporting the Old School (which was not quite "old" per se at that time in music history). Eventually I came to appreciate what they were all about so I was happy to find the compilation beginning with some of their most notable tracks. "Black Sunshine" and "More Human Than Human" were and still are my favorites from the band. The collection continues on to when Rob decided to venture off on his own and leave the ranks of White Zombie behind him and of course for the most part the premise seemed to remain the same. The contribution to the Howard Stern "Private Parts" movie is offered up with "The Great American Nightmare" as are five numbers from his "Hellbilly Deluxe". Personally I really enjoyed that particular album and was impressed that the decision to include its five best tracks was made. From this section I would have to say that "Dragula" and "Living Dead Girl" still sound fresh to my Metal ears. From here I can say that I was not really following his adventures so many of the next group of songs were a good primer for someone like myself as it gave me some insight into what I had been missing.
Zombie also became a bit of a movie director and we find offerings from his films delivered to the listener in the event that they have not been able to hear them. There are even three newer numbers from his recently released "Hellbilly Deluxe 2" which hails on Roadrunner Records. While I have not yet heard this album in its complete fashion, it is safe to say that the singer is trying to get back into his classic form based on the sound of these selections. I did find it interesting to find three songs from a relatively new release on a different record label being delivered but as far as the fans are concerned this is a good thing. In the end we get a wide-scoping view of his body of work and this is the perfect place to start your own investigation into Rob Zombie and even some White Zombie material. I cannot stress enough that "La Sexorcisto, Devil Music Vol. 1" and "Astro Creep 2000" are worthwhile additions to your Metal music library since they were on the fresher side when they hit the shelves. The down side of these "Icon" releases is that they are very bare bones and only are good as straight ahead music pieces. There is not a lot in the way of liner notes and the photos being delivered are at best minimal. If you are a fan of Rob Zombie and a completist when it comes down to his work you might want this but if you are trying to turn a friend onto his stuff then this is a perfect gift for them. They are certainly priced affordably depending on where you find them being sold.
Track Listing:
1. Thunder Kiss '65
2. Black Sunshine
3. Super Charger Heaven
4. More Human Than Human
5. Feed The Gods
6. The One
7. The Great American Nightmare
8. Superbeast
9. Dragula
10. Living Dead Girl
11. Demonoid Phenomenon
12. Meet The Creeper
13. Feel So Numb
14. Never Gonna Stop (The Red Red Kroovy)
15. Scum Of The Earth
16. House Of 1000 Corpses
17. Foxy Foxy
18. American Witch
19. The Lords Of Salem
20. Let It All Bleed Out
21. The Devil's Rejects
22. What
23. Sick Bubblegum
24. Mars Needs Women
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