Many instances all through his profession, Rob Zombie has proven himself to be a person who doesn’t concern change. Because the world – and the sounds that occupy it – strikes on, so does Zombie. The sheer selection and degree of experimentation in his discography is a testomony to that. However, of all of the issues he’s put his identify to, there is no such thing as a greater instance of Zombie’s willingness to adapt than his second remix album, launched on August 6, 2012 as Mondo Intercourse Head.
Very similar to Zombie’s earlier remix report, 1999’s American Made Music To Strip By, Mondo Intercourse Head took songs from Zombie’s canon and reworked them to suit what was happening in digital music on the time. However for Mondo Intercourse Head, as a substitute of focusing solely on remixes of songs from one explicit album (as he did with American Made… and Hellbilly Deluxe), Zombie handed his collaborators the keys to the vault and invited them to make their mark on songs from throughout his whole catalog – together with his work with White Zombie.
A degree of controversy
Earlier than the report was even launched, nevertheless, it turned some extent of controversy. As on American Made…, Zombie selected to incorporate his spouse, Sheri Moon Zombie, on the album’s paintings. This time round there was just a little extra flesh on show than shops had been snug with, and nobody would inventory the discharge. Zombie was pressured to design another cowl, that includes a close-up of a cat’s face. In an interview with Rolling Stone, he quipped, “Instead of censoring that cover and ruining it, I just removed the ass shot and replaced it with a pu__y.” Sensible.
In that very same interview, Zombie went on to clarify his choice to launch a second remix album after a 13-year hole since its predecessor. “I’ve made records like this in the past, but over the years it seems like the interest in this type of thing had waned… so I stopped for a while,” he stated. “But recently I had been hearing how a bunch of the new DJs and mixers were using my stuff in their shows and mixes. So I figured the demand had returned.” Zombie was little question referencing, amongst others, the Skrillex remix of Hellbilly Deluxe 2’s ‘Sick Bubblegum’. “Everything old is new again, I guess. I let the remixers run wild.”
And run wild they did. The album opens with a transforming of White Zombie’s “Thunder Kiss ’65,” attributed to JDevil (the EDM alter-ego of Korn’s Jonathan Davis). Eliminating the sleazy necro-glam of the unique, Davis brings a dance membership bounce to the desk, using what he’d discovered from his band’s electronic-laden 2011 album, The Path Of Totality, to include grinding dubstep breaks into the tune’s present framework.
“Foxy, Foxy,” nevertheless, retains its inherent sleaze issue by the hands of indie/electronica author and producer Ki:Principle. What he alters, as a substitute, is the world through which the tune is about. Fairly than a strip membership soundtrack for some Mad Max-esque post-apocalyptic wasteland – as per the supply materials – this remix feels extra at dwelling as an anthem for a hedonistic future, because of the dream-like soundscape juxtaposed in opposition to the stabbing guitars and untamable power of the model that seems on Educated Horses.
The duty of remixing Zombie’s largest tune, “Dragula,” fell to ††† (or, for the sake of simplicity, Crosses), the electro-leaning side-project of Deftones frontman Chino Moreno, Far guitarist Shaun Lopez, and Chuck Doom. In opposite to the stomping drive of the unique, Crosses solid a trippy, ambient haze over proceedings, evoking serenity for essentially the most half whereas nonetheless managing to retain the plain energy of the tune’s refrain.
Getting just a little bizarre
It’s one thing of a miracle that an album with this many collaborators, drawing on materials from so many various releases, manages to sound as cohesive as Mondo Intercourse Head does. However, maybe owing to Zombie’s knack for collaborating with simply the correct individuals, it manages to search out an natural groove amongst all upheaval. There are moments that can little question catch Zombie followers off guard – “Living Dead Girl” being became a seven-minute straightforward listening piece pushed by hypnotic electronics, to call only one – however, in the end, all of it simply feels proper. Of course “Lords Of Salem” now feels like a very darkish comedown. Of course “Superbeast” works with a drum’n’bass sample all through. Of course he did that with the paintings. It’s Rob Zombie, and getting just a little bizarre is all a part of the method.
By opening his previous to new concepts, Zombie and his collaborators breathed thrilling new life into a set of already traditional songs. These remixes could not knock the originals off their perch, however for example of the person’s drive to maintain his music recent, they provide essential perception into the form of considering that makes Rob Zombie the artistic powerhouse he’s.
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