Today (1/12) is the birthday of shock-rock torchbearer Rob Zombie. Born Robert Bartleh Cummings in 1965, he merged his love of horror and music to make waves in the industrial scene with White Zombie in the mid 80s, releasing four LPs with them before shifting gears to go solo. His debut solo album, Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International, came out in 1998 and remains a hard rock creepster staple to this day.

Zombie’s love of gore and his chilling delivery are felt beyond his music. He’s directed seven feature films over the last 20 years, each more twisted than the last, solidifying his status as a horror icon. The “Firefly” family are now legendary characters in the genre and helped Zombie build a cult following. His vision translates to the stage; his concerts feature massive puppets, wild costumes and violent theatrics – an obvious homage to the OG shock-rocker Alice Cooper – all soundtracked by his hits that span from the 80s to now.

GALLERY: Rob Zombie at Freedom Mortgage Pavilion

It’s easy to get caught up in the heavy grooves of Zombie’s songs, so much so that you might not understand – or care – what he’s actually singing about. In the spirit of an avante-garde Frank Zappa, or Zombie’s alt-rock contemporary Anthony Kiedis of the Red Hot Chili Peppers, there are times when RZ gets caught up in the poetic wave and spits out lyrics that are straight up ridiculous. It’s as if he’s casting tribal spells on anyone who dare enter his devilish lair.

From his primal sounds to the more preposterous lines, here are some of our favorite lyrics from Rob Zombie, listed with their song title (most of which are just as bizarre as the song itself).

Birds of a feather…

• "Dragula"

  “Dead I am the rat
  Feast upon the cat
  Tender is the fur
  Dying as you purr”

  Album: Hellbilly Deluxe: 13 Tales of Cadaverous Cavorting Inside the Spookshow International 

• "Shake Your Ass, Smoke Your Grass"

  “I’m a long-gone daddy in a boogaloo
  And I stitch it all together with super glue”

  Album: The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy

• "Ging Gang Gong De Do Gong De Laga Raga"

  “High on the fumes and high on the gas
  Rally round the girl with the skull on her ass

  Ging gang gong de do gong de laga raga
  Ging gang gong de do gong de laga raga
  Ging gang gong de do gong de laga raga
  Ging gang gong de do gong de laga raga”

  
  Album: Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor

• "The Ballad of Sleazy Rider"

  “Rama-lama, rama-lama-loo
  Rama-lama, rama-lama-loo
  My name is Sleazy Rider, man
  High above the Earth in a garbage can
  My name is Sleazy Rider, man
  An outer space m*******ing boogeyman”

  Album: The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy

• "Well, Everbody's F*****g in A UFO"

  “This is the story of the one-eyed wolf
  Called, ‘The Honey of Super Doom’
  She rode her five-legged beast
  In a mirrored bikini right out of the womb”

  Album: The Electric Warlock Acid Witch Satanic Orgy Celebration Dispenser

• "Dead City Radio and the New Gods of Supertown"

  “I want to tell you about dead city radio man
  And the new gods of supertown.
  A world of magic lanterns and chemical blues.
  A world where x stands of the unknown and y is the zero

  Sluggish drones assault my radio
  20 mortal lashes of grotesque audio
  Glittering fountains
  Misspent youth
  I’m a rhinestone tiger in a leisure suit”

  Album: Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor

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