Rob Zombie Revisits Past on ‘Hellbilly Deluxe 2′

There's a reason Rob Zombie's new album is called 'Hellbilly Deluxe 2 – Noble Jackals, Penny Dreadfuls and the Systematic Dehumanization of Cool.' Like Zombie's 1998 solo debut 'Hillbilly Deluxe,' the album is a spectacle of campy pop culture and galvanic rock that encapsulates the over-the-top aesthetic Zombie pursued from the beginning of White Zombie in 1985 up until the release of his less-theatrical 2006 album 'Educated Horses.'

"The plan was always to make this kind of like the sequel to 'Hellbilly Deluxe,' but I didn't want to force it," Zombie tells Noisecreep. "I always figure records dictate their own journey. You might say, 'Oh, we're going to write the heaviest thing ever.' But you get in there and, you know, you might write things that aren't heavy that are great, so you kind of go with it. But this one seems like a great follow-up to that record."

In addition to being brash and fun, the songs on 'Hellbilly Deluxe 2' are pretty eclectic, ranging from the chugging riffs, stomping beats and chant-along chorus of 'Sick Bubblegum' to the Farfisa organ-embellished garage rock freak-out of the first single, 'What,' which explodes with distorted vocals and praises "vampire lovers in wild bikinis."

"The record's really varied, just like the first one," Zombie says. "There are huge, epic songs with 100-piece orchestras. And then there's something like 'What,' which is just the four of us in a garage literally playing live together and making a big noise."

Zombie plans to direct a video for 'What' after the band returns from playing the Loud Park Festival in Tokyo. Rob Zombie's North American tour launches Oct. 28 in Toronto and runs through Dec. 5 in Washington D.C. 'Hellbilly 2' is scheduled for release on Nov. 17.