White Zombie was an American metal band named after the 1932 horror film. Based in New York City, White Zombie was originally a noise rock band but is better-known for its later experimental heavy metal-oriented sound. The group officially disbanded in 1998.
White Zombie was co-founded by writer, vocalist and graphic artist Rob Zombie (later a solo artist and film director). Zombie’s girlfriend at the time, Sean Yseult, was the other co-founder. They then recruited Peter Landau to play drums. White Zombie’s first release, Gods on Voodoo Moon, was an EP and was recorded on October 18, 1985.
In 1986, the band started touring, making their live performance debut at CBGB on April 28, 1986. White Zombie released their second EP, Pig Heaven, that year.
In 1987, the band released their third EP, Psycho-Head Blowout. Later that year, the band released their first full-length album, Soul-Crusher, which was their first release to feature sound clips from movies in the songs and music samples, a trademark that would continue for the remainder of the band’s lifespan.
In 1988, the band signed to Caroline Records. Their second album, Make Them Die Slowly (named after the US release title of Cannibal Ferox), was released in February 1989. The album was a musical shift for White Zombie. While their previous releases had been strictly punk-influenced noise rock, Make Them Die Slowly had more of a heavy metal sound. This is also the first album crediting “Rob Zombie” instead of his previous stage name, “Rob ‘Dirt’ Straker”.
With J. G. Thirlwell of Foetus the band signed to Geffen. On March 17, 1992, White Zombie released La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One, the album which launched them into mainstream recognition.
The music video for the song “Thunder Kiss ’65” went into heavy rotation on MTV in 1993.
TV show Beavis and Butt-head began featuring their music videos, boosting the band’s popularity. By the end of 1993, the album had been certified gold. By the time the tour ended in December 1994, Zombie and Yseult had broken up, and La Sexorcisto had gone platinum. In 1995, Astro Creep: 2000 was released, featuring the hit single “More Human than Human“.
In 1996, an album of remixes was released under the title Supersexy Swingin’ Sounds. After making one last song for the 1996 film Beavis and Butt-head Do America, titled “Ratfinks, Suicide Tanks and Cannibal Girls”, White Zombie broke up in 1998.
After the breakup of White Zombie, Sean Yseult joined the surf rock band The Famous Monsters, and started playing bass for horror-themed band, Rock City Morgue. She also briefly played bass for The Cramps.
In June 2011, Rob Zombie told Metal Hammer magazine why the band split: “It had run its course. Success is a big thing that you can never plan for, because it affects everybody differently. I don’t want to blame myself or anyone else in the band — it’s just that the band didn’t work anymore. Rather than continuing on and making shitty records and having it all fall apart, I thought: ‘Let’s just end it on a high point'”.
