Rob Zombie’s Venomous Rat Regenerator Vendor
I have a very short list of people with whom I would like to sit down and share some time…A cup of coffee, a cold beer, a shot of Jager…all of the above.
Rob Zombie is on that list and I’ll tell you why. I have a tremendous amount of respect for those who do their own thing. Now I don’t mean someone who dresses, talks, walks or acts a certain way. There is a calling inside all of us…OK, most of us…alright, a few of us. This “calling” can be a curse for those who have found success in other avenues of life. To be successful at something but know, deep down, you want to be doing something else is an ultimate frustration. How can you justify taking a chance on something unproven, something merely “felt,” especially if that means walking away from something tangible?
Rob Zombie did just that. He disbanded White Zombie at the height of their popularity to pursue his truest calling (or callings, if you care to separate his horror films from his music)..
Granted, Rob’s solo offerings have never been considered a huge departure from White Zombie’s stuff, but those of us who are fans of both recognized the transition, the experimentation that has been a part of each one of Rob Zombie’s solo efforts.
This experimentation is the main reason Zombie’s latest effort, Venomous Rat Regenerator Vendor, in stores 4/23/13, is a rousing success and arguably Rob Zombie’s best solo record to date.
Venomous is very much a traditional Zombie record (perhaps a bit heavier than earlier efforts), from the opening dirge of “Teenage Nosferatu Pussy” to the blistering “Lucifer Rising.” Each track contains Rob’s signature sound bytes, appropriately placed for feel and effect. I have never been more convinced that Rob is a preferred customer of Something Weird Video. If that site doesn’t ring a bell and you’re a fan of Rob Zombie, B-Horror, Burlesque and just fantastically weird “Creature Double Feature” shit…check out somethingweird.com.
Where Venomous excels are the “off tracks,” the experiments that are bit left of what you might expect (from someone who is already spectacularly far left of what most of the world would expect…or can handle).
“Ging Gang Gong De Do Gong De Laga Raga” will get your head bobbing even if you can’t understand what the hell Zombie is talking about and with a pre-chorus of “…Strapped behind the wheel of a flat bed truck, a payload of pussy and Peking duck, high of the fumes and high on the gas, rally ’round the girl with the skull on her ass,” how can you NOT already love it, even if you haven’t had the pleasure of hearing it yet. A cover of Grand Funk Railroad’s “We’re an American Band” fits perfectly with the vibe of the record and “Rock and Roll (In a Black Hole)” has a distinct Grindhouse feel…dirty and driving. You can almost picture a Snake Pliskin type behind the wheel of an ink black Dodge Charger circa 1970-something, moving down a desert highway at Mach 10 for no other reason than “Fuck you, that’s why.”
Zombie’s band is as tight as ever, too. John 5 shreds when needed and Piggy D and Ginger Fish hold down a killer groove that infects the entire album.
There is no weakness in Rat Vendor; Rob Zombie’s vision has never been clearer and we, the fans, will appreciate this album for years to come.
Photo courtesy of facebook.com/RobZombie
Also worth checking out ~ Rob conducting a “What’s Trending” video interview, talking about his new film Lords of Salem (in theaters 4/19), his fascination with dark stories, and the next big pop culture trend.