For Those About to Read

Sinister Urge: The Life and Times of Rob Zombie by Joel McIver
My rating: 3 of 5 stars

If you're looking forward to reading this book because you think it will give you some personal stories and more information about Rob Zombie himself, like I did, then you may want to think again. I was very disappointed when I realized that's not what this book was about. Even though the author tells us from the beginning that Sinister Urge is a look at Rob Zombie's career, I was still hoping for it to be a little more intimate. The information is based on things any fan of Zombie's will already know. So, I guess if you don't know much about his career, this book would be a good place to start.

The author did an excellent job of gathering up all this information, however, and of course he cites it all at the end. He also gives us a brief history of Nu-metal and he breaks down every CD and critiques every song. I think my favorite part of the book was the section on House of 1000 Corpses and Devil's Rejects. The author and I had very differing opinions when it came to Zombie's Halloween remakes. I liked the first one, but despised his Halloween II.

This book will tell you everything you need to know about Rob Zombie's career, including his time in White Zombie and the other bands he has toured with or worked with in any way. It is very instructive as far as that goes. I need to mention one thing that really got on my nerves, though, was the author didn't have much hope in the reader completing the book. I know I read the phrase "if you made it this far..." (or something along those lines) at least three times.

Still, it wasn't a complete waste of time, it was like reminiscing for me. I became a fan of Rob Zombie in my later teen years, and it was nice to go back and relive that time in my life.

ARC provided through Netgalley in exchange for an honest review

View all my reviews