The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy
Rob Zombie is back with his latest album “The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy”. What does that title mean? I don’t know. Did I really comprehend most of what I heard on the album? Not really, but it still rocked.
Hellbilly Deluxe
“Hellbilly Deluxe” is a masterpiece. Rob Zombie blended rock, electronic, and even some hip hop into his 1998 album “Hellbilly Deluxe”. “Hellbilly Deluxe” was ahead of its time and still holds up 20 years later. It was weird, dark, cartoonish, and rocked hard. 1998 was a beautiful time for music. Artists weren’t afraid to really express themselves creatively and step outside the box. Rob Zombie had recently departed from his band White Zombie when he decided to embark on “Hellbilly Deluxe”. There are many aspects of “Hellbilly Deluxe” on his newest album “The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy”.
The Triumph of King Freak
Rob Zombie has had many accomplishments in his dynamic career. From music to movies, he has made himself a legend. Many of his movies were masterpieces and many were not. His newest offering falls somewhere in between. This album is not a disaster, but it is not a masterpiece. There are many elements of experimentation and it makes it appealing, but it doesn’t have any real bangers. Most of the songs are okay at best. “The Triumph of King Freak” was the first single released and it has many interesting elements, but it doesn’t make me want to dig through the ditches.
The instrumental hooks on the album are my favorite parts. There are many cool breakdowns in the songs and I really appreciate the artistic vision.
John 5
When you have a guitar rock god like John 5 on your album, why wouldn’t you have more shredding? I know, I know, that is not Zombie’s style, but it would be nice to hear John 5 do what he does best. There are moments of guitar shredding, but Zombie prefers to stick to the format that he does and knows best. The effects and tones that John 5 produces are quite exhilarating and unique. The music itself is better than a lot of the vocal parts on this album.
One thing about Zombie’s music that I wish there was more of is bass. The bass parts are always blended into the back without any real emphasis. In my opinion, if there were more pops and more bass emphasis the music would be ten times better. The bass is too blended and I would love more of a primus vibe to some of the tracks on this album especially on songs like “Shadow of the Cemetery Man”.
18th Century Cannibals
Country, metal, and avant-garde lyrics. That pretty much sums up “18th Century Cannibals”. Once again there’s a lot of potential in these songs but they almost don’t feel like complete songs. The creativity is there, but Rob Zombie is maybe going a bit to far out with his lyrics and long song titles. “Eternal Struggles of the Howling Man” sounds like a standard Rob Zombie offering from the 90s and the drum fills are very appreciated. This is probably one of my favorite songs from the album. It reminds me of something that would be on “Hellbilly Deluxe” and then it goes to a funky breakdown. There are a lot of funky breakdowns on the album, which is what sets Zombie apart from many of his rock peers.
The Much Talked of Metamorphosis
Another song that I really like, is “The Much Talked of Metamorphosis”. This song is just an interlude, but it’s a beautiful acoustic guitar solo that shows of John 5’s versatility and melodic abilities before we get hit with “The Satanic Rites of Blacula”. Honestly, “The Much Talked of Metamorphosis” feels like something on a Ghost album, and that is not a bad thing. Zombie’s vocals are very mushy in most places and sometimes it works really well, other times, it doesn’t. It works very well for “The Satanic Rites of Blacula”. This song channels that old school Zombie feel very well. Then it transitions us into a more electronic bit called “Shower of Stones”, which feels like something from out of this world.
Shake Your Ass-Smoke Your Grass
Hip Hop meet Rob Zombie. “Shake Your Ass-Smoke Your Grass” has some southern rock elements mixed with hip hop. Juvenile would be so proud! This song also has a lot of funky elements and it is very different from a lot of the other tracks on this album. Dance, Dance, Dance! This song is the most danceable track and I think should have been the first single. It would have worked well as a crossover to many people who aren’t familiar with Zombie’s work.
Boom-Boom-Boom
Dark, melodic, slow, and sexy is “Boom-Boom-Boom”. By far, this is the best song on the album. It is so sexy and catchy. Rob Zombie’s vocals perfectly line up with the eerie melody and this song is a hit. The vibe of this track reminds me of “From Dusk Til Dawn”. I can picture a vampire sucking someone’s neck to this song. It is beautiful and one of the highlights on this album.
The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse
Overall, this album is pretty good. There are many stand out tracks and interesting melodies. The problem is that I was initially trying to compare it to “Hellbilly Deluxe” and that isn’t fair. It is a great album, but it isn’t a masterpiece. There are highlights throughout the album, but there are some weaker moments. “The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse” is definitely worth a listen though.
