ROB ZOMBIE Shuts Down WHITE ZOMBIE Reunion Talk: "I've Moved On From It"

Nearly three decades after White Zombie called it quits, frontman Rob Zombie is once again making it clear: don't expect a reunion.

Though he revisited the band's 2x multi-platinum Astro-Creep: 2000 during a special anniversary performance at Louder Than Life last year – backed by his current solo band – Zombie says the chapter is firmly closed. Speaking to Revolver, the 61-year-old musician and filmmaker reflected on performing the 1995 industrial-metal landmark three decades later.

"It was a bit of a challenge. Thirty years is a long time, so it's sort of hard to remember where my head was at when I was making that record," he admitted. "It was not exactly the greatest of times [for White Zombie]. I knew as we were making that record that it would most likely be the last one since the band was falling apart, but obviously, I wanted to stick it out… I'm definitely proud of the record. It was a good one to end on."

Released at the height of alt-metal's commercial explosion, Astro-Creep: 2000 became the band's defining statement – but behind the scenes, fractures were already spreading. Personality conflicts and strained relationships ultimately led to White Zombie's dissolution in 1998, a breakup that has remained permanent despite persistent fan hope.

Instead of looking back, Zombie pivoted forward. Launching his solo career with 1998's Hellbilly Deluxe, he assembled a new lineup with a deliberate mindset.

"After White Zombie disbanded and I had to create another band, I really wanted to be very exacting with the people that I chose to work with again," Zombie explained. "I couldn't deal with any more conflicts. Everything worked out perfect, both of these guys [guitarist/vocalist Mike Riggs & bassist/vocalist Blasko] contributed greatly to the Hellbilly Deluxe tours being the absolute best time I ever had in my life being on the road."

It's a pointed contrast to the tension-filled final days of his former band. And while he still peppers his live sets with White Zombie staples, Zombie says nostalgia won't override reality.

"That was a very long time ago and I've moved on from it to do other things," he stated plainly.

As for hanging it up entirely? That decision, he says, will come down to standards – his own.

"I think all the time about what it would take for me to step away from the stage – the main thing would be if I didn't think we were capable of delivering the show at the level it should be delivered. Once I feel that the excitement and the energy and the drive is gone, I will just walk away. I take the show very seriously and I want it to be great, simple as that. And if I feel that it's not great anymore, then I'll be done."

For now, the curtain remains up. Just don't expect White Zombie to rise from the grave with it.