''Astro-Creep: 2000 – Songs of Love, Destruction and Other Synthetic Delusions of the Electric Head'' (or simply ''Astro-Creep: 2000'') is the fourth and final studio album by American
heavy metal band
White Zombie, released on April 11, 1995, by
Geffen Records
Geffen Records is an American record label established by David Geffen and owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M Records imprint.
Founded in 1980, Geffen Records has been a part of Interscope Geffen A&M since 1999 and ...
. The album proved to be their most commercially successful recording, peaking at number six on the
''Billboard'' 200 with the aid of the popular hit singles "
More Human than Human
"More Human than Human" is a song by the American heavy metal band White Zombie from their album '' Astro-Creep: 2000'' (1995). It was released as the first official single from the album and is also included on Rob Zombie's '' Past, Present & ...
" and "
Super-Charger Heaven
"Super-Charger Heaven" (sometimes referred to as "Devil Man" due to its chorus) is the third and final single off White Zombie's 1995 studio album, '' Astro-Creep: 2000''. The song can also be found on Rob Zombie's '' Past, Present & Future'', t ...
". It was the band's only studio album to feature
John Tempesta
John Tempesta (born September 26, 1964) is an American drummer known for his work in hard rock and heavy metal. He has been a member of the Cult since 2006.
Biography
Previously, Tempesta played with several bands including Exodus, Testament ...
on drums.
Production
The album was highly anticipated due to the surprise success of the band's previous release ''
La Sexorcisto: Devil Music Volume One''.
Ivan DePrume, the band's long-time drummer, had left the band to start Burningsound studios during their touring sessions for that album. The band later recruited former
Exodus
Exodus or the Exodus may refer to:
Religion
* Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible
* The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan
Historical events
* Exo ...
and
Testament
A testament is a document that the author has sworn to be true. In law it usually means last will and testament.
Testament or The Testament can also refer to:
Books
* ''Testament'' (comic book), a 2005 comic book
* ''Testament'', a thriller nov ...
drummer
John Tempesta
John Tempesta (born September 26, 1964) is an American drummer known for his work in hard rock and heavy metal. He has been a member of the Cult since 2006.
Biography
Previously, Tempesta played with several bands including Exodus, Testament ...
for the recording of this album. The album had help from significant industrial musicians, such as the keyboard work from
Charlie Clouser
Charles Alexander Clouser (born June 28, 1963) is an American keyboardist, composer, record producer, and remixer. He worked with Trent Reznor for Nine Inch Nails from 1994 to 2000, and is a composer for film and television; among his credits are ...
, who had worked with artists like
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN and stylized as NIИ, is an American industrial rock band formed in Cleveland in 1988. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the ban ...
,
Rammstein
Rammstein (, "ramming stone") is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band formed in Berlin in 1994. The band's lineup—consisting of lead vocalist Till Lindemann, lead guitarist Richard Kruspe, rhythm guitarist Paul Landers, bassist Oliver Riede ...
,
Marilyn Manson
Brian Hugh Warner (born January 5, 1969), known professionally as Marilyn Manson, is an American rock musician. He came to prominence as the lead singer of the band which shares his name, of which he remains the only constant member since it ...
,
Killing Joke
Killing Joke are an English rock band from Notting Hill, London, England, formed in 1979 by Jaz Coleman (vocals, keyboards), Paul Ferguson (drums), Geordie Walker (guitar) and Youth (bass).
Their first album, '' Killing Joke'', was released ...
, and more. They had also hired
Terry Date
Terry Date (born January 31, 1956) is an American record producer and audio engineer specializing in rock genres, especially heavy metal. He is well known for his work with Metal Church, Dream Theater, Soundgarden, Overkill, Pantera, Dark Ange ...
(
Deftones
Deftones is an American alternative metal band formed in Sacramento, California in 1988. They were formed by Chino Moreno (vocals, guitar), Stephen Carpenter (guitar), Abe Cunningham (drums), and Dominic Garcia (bass). During their first f ...
,
Pantera
Pantera () is an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas formed in 1981, and currently comprised of vocalist Phil Anselmo, bassist Rex Brown, and touring musicians Zakk Wylde and Charlie Benante. The group's best-known lineup consist ...
,
Soundgarden
Soundgarden was an American rock band formed in Seattle, Washington, in 1984 by singer and drummer Chris Cornell, lead guitarist Kim Thayil (both of whom are the only members to appear in every incarnation of the band), and bassist Hiro Ya ...
) to produce ''Astro-Creep: 2000'' for them. According to J., the album comprises seventy-two track recordings, forty-eight of which are analog and twenty-four being digital recordings. The entire album took three months to write and another three to record. For the album, the band had a much bigger recording budget and more freedom in time.
Music and lyrics
The album is much heavier than ''La Sexorcisto'' and has been called "white-trash-on-acid metal" by
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...
of
AllMusic
AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the dat ...
.
The band also down-tuned the guitars and bass to give it the darker sound that the songs required, going from standard E tuning to dropped C# (1.5 steps below standard E).
Much of the lyrics are also darker and more disturbing than on the previous album, and are arranged more like twisted poetry than ''La Sexorcisto's'' pseudo-rap scores, dealing with murder, the undead, blasphemy, and satanic elements.
As with the previous two albums, many of the songs feature snippets of dialogue from
horror
Horror may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media
Genres
*Horror fiction, a genre of fiction
**Japanese horror, Japanese horror fiction
** Korean horror, Korean horror fiction
*Horror film, a film genre
*Horror comics, comic books focusing on ...
and
cult film
A cult film or cult movie, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a film that has acquired a cult following. Cult films are known for their dedicated, passionate fanbase which forms an elaborate subculture, members of which engage i ...
s including ''
The Omega Man
''The Omega Man'' (stylized as ''The Ωmega Man'') is a 1971 American post-apocalyptic action film directed by Boris Sagal and starring Charlton Heston as a survivor of a pandemic. It was written by John William Corrington and Joyce Corrington, ba ...
'', ''
Shaft
Shaft may refer to:
Rotating machine elements
* Shaft (mechanical engineering), a rotating machine element used to transmit power
* Line shaft, a power transmission system
* Drive shaft, a shaft for transferring torque
* Axle, a shaft around wh ...
'', ''
The Haunting'', ''
The Curse of Frankenstein
''The Curse of Frankenstein'' is a 1957 British horror film by Hammer Film Productions, loosely based on the 1818 novel '' Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus '' by Mary Shelley. It was Hammer's first colour horror film, and the first of t ...
'' and ''
To the Devil a Daughter
''To the Devil...a Daughter'' is a 1976 British-West German horror film directed by Peter Sykes, produced by Hammer Film Productions and Terra Filmkunst, and starring Richard Widmark, Christopher Lee, Honor Blackman, Nastassja Kinski and ...
''. The title "More Human Than Human" is the motto of the Tyrell Corp. from the film ''
Blade Runner
''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, and written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick ...
'' and "I am the nexus one, I want more life fucker, I ain't done, yeah" is an artistic rephrasing of lines from ''
Blade Runner
''Blade Runner'' is a 1982 science fiction film directed by Ridley Scott, and written by Hampton Fancher and David Peoples. Starring Harrison Ford, Rutger Hauer, Sean Young, and Edward James Olmos, it is an adaptation of Philip K. Dick ...
''.
Rob has said he favors this album to the previous one, stating, "I was never that happy with it
'La Sexorcisto''">La_Sexorcisto.html" ;"title="'La Sexorcisto">'La Sexorcisto'' In some respects, it was probably the best thing we could do at the time under the circumstances; and that this record was exactly what we wanted it to sound like."
Reception
The album is White Zombie's best-selling album, being certified double Platinum by the RIAA and selling over 2,600,000 copies in America since its release. There was also a limited 50,000 pressings of this album on see-through blue vinyl. The album has been certified by CAN platinum. The album was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album, Non-Classical">Grammy Award for Best Engineered Album and the band's biggest hit, "
More Human than Human
"More Human than Human" is a song by the American heavy metal band White Zombie from their album '' Astro-Creep: 2000'' (1995). It was released as the first official single from the album and is also included on Rob Zombie's '' Past, Present & ...
", nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in Grammy Awards of 1996, 1996.
To promote the album, music videos for "
More Human than Human
"More Human than Human" is a song by the American heavy metal band White Zombie from their album '' Astro-Creep: 2000'' (1995). It was released as the first official single from the album and is also included on Rob Zombie's '' Past, Present & ...
", "
Electric Head Pt. 2 (The Ecstasy)", and a live video for "
Super-Charger Heaven
"Super-Charger Heaven" (sometimes referred to as "Devil Man" due to its chorus) is the third and final single off White Zombie's 1995 studio album, '' Astro-Creep: 2000''. The song can also be found on Rob Zombie's '' Past, Present & Future'', t ...
" were released. In 1995, "More Human than Human" won the
MTV Video Music Award
The MTV Video Music Awards (commonly abbreviated as the VMAs) is an award show presented by the cable channel MTV to honour the best in the music video medium. Originally conceived as an alternative to the Grammy Awards (in the video category) ...
for
Best Rock Video
The MTV Video Music Award for Best Rock was first given out in , one of the four original genre categories added to the VMAs that year. In its first year, the award was called Best Heavy Metal Video, and from 1990 to 1995, it was renamed Best Meta ...
and was considered by Rob Zombie to be his favorite White Zombie video.
There were also plans to start filming a video for "Blood, Milk and Sky" after Christmas as well as eventually filming a video for every song on the album. However, these plans were scrapped when the band dissolved.
Accolades
Track listing
I "Blood, Milk and Sky" contains the
hidden track
In the field of recorded music, a hidden track (sometimes called a ghost track, secret track or unlisted track) is a song or a piece of audio that has been placed on a CD, audio cassette, LP record, or other recorded medium, in such a way as to ...
"Where the Sidewalk Ends, the Bug Parade Begins" at 8:45, after 3 minutes of silence. On the digital version, however, the hidden track is its own 2:33 track.
Personnel
Adapted from the ''Astro-Creep: 2000 – Songs of Love, Destruction and Other Synthetic Delusions of the Electric Head'' liner notes.
;White Zombie
*
Rob Zombie
Rob Zombie (born Robert Bartleh Cummings; January 12, 1965) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and voice actor. His music and lyrics are notable for their horror and sci-fi themes, and his live shows have be ...
–
vocals
Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or witho ...
,
illustrations
An illustration is a decoration, interpretation or visual explanation of a text, concept or process, designed for integration in print and digital published media, such as posters, flyers, magazines, books, teaching materials, animations, vide ...
, art direction
*
Jay Yuenger
Jay Noel Yuenger (born December 26, 1966), also known by the stage name "J.", is a rock guitarist best known for his work with Grammy-nominated heavy metal band White Zombie.
Music career
As a teenager, Yuenger's interests quickly progressed ...
–
guitar
The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or plucking the strings with the dominant hand, while simultaneously pressing selected string ...
s
*
Sean Yseult
Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as ''Shaun/ Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; angl ...
–
bass
Bass or Basses may refer to:
Fish
* Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species
Music
* Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range:
** Bass (instrument), including:
** Acoustic bass gu ...
,
art direction
Art director is the title for a variety of similar job functions in Theatre, theater, advertising, marketing, publishing, fashion, film industry, film and television, the Internet, and video games.
It is the charge of a sole art director to supe ...
*
John Tempesta
John Tempesta (born September 26, 1964) is an American drummer known for his work in hard rock and heavy metal. He has been a member of the Cult since 2006.
Biography
Previously, Tempesta played with several bands including Exodus, Testament ...
–
drums
A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair of matching drumsticks ...
;Additional musicians
*
Charlie Clouser
Charles Alexander Clouser (born June 28, 1963) is an American keyboardist, composer, record producer, and remixer. He worked with Trent Reznor for Nine Inch Nails from 1994 to 2000, and is a composer for film and television; among his credits are ...
–
keyboard
Keyboard may refer to:
Text input
* Keyboard, part of a typewriter
* Computer keyboard
** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping
** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware
Music
* Musi ...
s,
programming
;Production and additional personnel
*
Terry Date
Terry Date (born January 31, 1956) is an American record producer and audio engineer specializing in rock genres, especially heavy metal. He is well known for his work with Metal Church, Dream Theater, Soundgarden, Overkill, Pantera, Dark Ange ...
–
production
Production may refer to:
Economics and business
* Production (economics)
* Production, the act of manufacturing goods
* Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services)
* Production as a stati ...
,
recording
A record, recording or records may refer to:
An item or collection of data Computing
* Record (computer science), a data structure
** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity
** Boot sector or boot record, r ...
,
mixing
* Lamont Hyde –
mixing assistant
*
Ted Jensen
Ted Jensen (born September 19, 1954) is an American mastering engineer, known for having mastered many recordings, including the Eagles' '' Hotel California'', Green Day's '' American Idiot'' and Norah Jones' '' Come Away with Me''.
Biograp ...
–
mastering
* Wade Norton –
recording assistant
*
Ulrich Wild
Ulrich Wild is an American record producer, engineer and mixer specializing in the rock and metal genres. Born and raised in Switzerland, Ulrich is now a naturalized citizen in the United States, living in Los Angeles, California. In a career th ...
– recording
Chart positions
Album
Singles
Release history
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Astro Creep: 2000 - Songs Of Love, Destruction And Other Synthetic Delusions Of The Electric Head
White Zombie (band) albums
1995 albums
Geffen Records albums
Albums produced by Terry Date