(Rob Zombie) "There's nothing I do that's a stage persona. Everything I do is anything I like. I looked the way I look now before I had a band and was obsessed with the same things I'm obsessed with now, way before I had a commercial purpose for it."

(MUEN) DOES BAD PRESS STILL HURT YOU?

(Rob Zombie) It's really funny 'cause at this stage of the game, none of it matters to me. When I was first starting, I'd read something and it would really bother me, but now it doesn't matter. It's all so meaningless and everyone forgets it. The records that we've had out up until now that have sold millions of copies, people forget that the reviews were atrocious, as were the reviews for many records that people now consider things that they love. There was one review I remember for La Sexorcisto in the Alternative Press, in which he was basically saying "This is the worst band ever!" I mean, it really can't get any worse than that. It was so over the top, I was convinced I'd done something to this guy on a personal level. It was so non-objective. It was like, (I hate this band, I hate this band, I hate this band!) But now it just doesn't matter. Now I just expect it and I'm more surprised when I read something good. You can't get upset with bad press and you can't get too happy with yourself over good press. You have to take it for what it is.

(MUEN) DO YOU COLLECT HORROR MEMORABILA?

(Rob Zombie) Oh yeah! I have tons of it. I have a really good collection of posters, like really vintage from the '30's and '40's, that I'm really happy with and I have a lot of life-size things like a Creature from the Black Lagoon and other things like that.

(MUEN) WHAT ARE SOME OF YOUR FAVORITE FILMS?

(Rob Zombie) I'm a huge movie fan on all levels, but if I had to narrow it down, horror films are definitely the ones. I have a lot of favorites, but over the years there's a couple that are kinda the ones that I saw at a young age, that stuck with me. They're kinda old movies like Clockwork Orange and Dawn of the Dead. For some reason I saw that when I was really young! I think the first movie I ever saw was King Kong.

(MUEN) DO YOU HAVE ANY PRE-STAGE RITUALS?

(Rob Zombie) No, pretty much I drive everyone crazy! Hopefully there is a TV working, that'd be my biggest pre-stage ritual.

(MUEN) DOES IT MATTER WHAT IS ON?

(Rob Zombie) I prefer it if it's something that I'll enjoy, but I'll pretty much watch anything. Right now I'm watching Wonder Woman and I was watching Tiny Toons on the way over in the car!

(MUEN) TELL ME ABOUT THE PLAYFUL SIDE OF ROB ZOMBIE. HAVE YOU PLAYED ANY TRICKS ON ANYONE LATELY?

(Rob Zombie) Probably one of the best practical jokes, and this really worked good, was at the Reading Festival in England, and I brought this really really realistic-looking fake human shit! It also came in a spray can, so you could spray it out, and it also smelled. One of the big phobias on a tour bus is that you are not supposed to poop on it, 'cause it doesn't actually flush like pe. So, I put tons of fake shit in the toilet and all around the toilet floor and I then started everyone thinking with "I don't know who that was, but something @#!! up just happened in there!" Everyone walked in there and was immediately gagging and nearly vomited from the smell. It went on for hours. It was so @#!! funny. It worked like a charm.

(MUEN) DID YOU EVER GET BUSTED FOR IT?

(Rob Zombie) No, I never did! What actually happened was the bus driver got mad and he just started cleaning it all up. So everyone still thinks to this day, it was real. Nobody wants to be known as a practical joker, 'cause you end up as the target.

(MUEN) GOT ANY GROUPIE STORIES?

(Rob Zombie) There's always something weird. Even the other night as I was doing an in-store in Boston, these two girls came up to me and told me that they would like to do a lesbian show for me right there and then. I'm like, "yeah, that would have gone down great with the ten-year old kids standing behind you!"

(MUEN) WHAT QUESTION REALLY ANNOYS YOU THESE DAYS?

(Rob Zombie) I'm kinda tired of talking about this Barbara Streisand thing. There's not even a story there, it just kinda happened.

(MUEN) QUICKLY TELL ME MORE.

(Rob Zombie) She played one of my songs at her wedding, over and over to sway paparazzi. I only knew about it from seeing it on the news.

(MUEN) HAVE YOU EVER BEEN CLEAN-CUT?

(Rob Zombie) The only time I never had a beard was because I couldn't grow one yet! Once it grew in, it stayed and I've also been growing my hair since 1984!

(MUEN) YOU DON'T LOOK 32.

(Rob Zombie) I guess I have one of those looks that was never based around looking youthful.

(MUEN) IF THE WORLD WAS TO END TOMORROW, WHAT WOULD YOU DO?

(Rob Zombie) I might just set fire to everything I own. I have such baggage. I love all the stuff I have and at the same time it's just a bunch of crap and I should get rid of it and live in an empty room! But, then I'd go crazy, I know I would, but it might have been kinda fun to watch it all burn!

COMMENTING ON WHAT A PLEASANT AND WELL-MANNERED GENTLEMAN HE'S BEEN DURING THE INTERVIEW, HE ADDS HIS OWN THOUGHTS ON THE SUBJECT:

(Rob Zombie) I always find that anyone who seems to do a lot, always seems to be nice and polite. You gotta be able to hold that side of yourself in check long enough to get stuff accomplished. I let it all out when I get on stage and then I go back to earth later.

(MUEN) DESCRIBE ROB ZOMBIE IN THREE WORDS.

(Rob Zombie) Work-a-holic...

Interview by Russell A. Trunk

www.robzombie.mu