BIRMINGHAM'S BEST RETAILER FOR METAL AND HARDCORE
MINISTRY
Until Nine Inch
Nails crossed over to the mainstream, Ministry did more than any
other band to popularize industrial dance music, injecting large
doses of punky, over-the-top aggression and roaring heavy metal
guitar riffs that helped their music find favor with metal and
alternative audiences outside of industrial's cult fan base. That's
not to say Ministry had a commercial or generally accessible
sound: they were unremittingly intense, abrasive, pounding, and
repetitive, and not always guitar-oriented (samples, synthesizers,
and tape effects were a primary focus just as often as guitars
and distorted vocals). However, both live and in the studio, they
achieved a huge, crushing sound that put most of their
contemporaries in aggressive musical genres to shame; plus,
founder and frontman Al Jourgensen gave the group a greater aura
of style and theater than other industrial bands, who seemed
rather faceless when compared with Jourgensen's leather-clad
cowboy/biker look and the edgy shock tactics of such videos as
"N.W.O." and "Just One Fix." After 1992's
Psalm 69, which represented the peak of their popularity,
Ministry's recorded output dwindled, partially because of myriad
side projects and partially due to heroin abuse within the band,
but continued to resurface through the rest of the decade.
Ministry was formed in 1981 by Alain Jourgensen (b. Oct. 8, 1958,
Havana, Cuba); he had moved to the U.S. with his mother while
very young and lived in a succession of cities, eventually
working as a radio DJ and joining a new wave band called Special
Affect (fronted by future My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult
leader Frankie Nardiello, aka Groovie Mann). Featuring drummer
Stephen George, Ministry debuted with the Wax Trax! single "Cold
Life," which -- typical of their early output -- was more in
the synth-pop/dance style of new wavers like the Human League or
Thompson Twins. The album With Sympathy appeared on the major
label Arista in 1983 and followed a similar musical direction,
one that Jourgensen was dissatisfied with; he returned to Wax
Trax! and recorded several singles while rethinking the band's
style and forming his notorious side project the Revolting Cocks.
In 1985, with Jourgensen the only official member of Ministry,
the Adrian Sherwood-produced Twitch was released by Sire Records;
while not as aggressive as the group's later, more popular
material, it found Jourgensen taking definite steps in that
direction. Following a 1987 single with Skinny Puppy's Kevin
Ogilvie (aka Nivek Ogre) as PTP, Jourgensen once again revamped
Ministry, with former Blackouts bassist Paul Barker officially
joining the lineup to complement Jourgensen's rediscovery of the
guitar; fellow ex-Blackouts William Rieflin (drums) and Mike
Scaccia (guitar), as well as vocalist Chris Connelly, were
heavily showcased as collaborators for the first of several times
on 1988's The Land of Rape and Honey. With Jourgensen and Barker
credited as Hypo Luxa and Hermes Pan, respectively, this album
proved to be Ministry's stylistic breakthrough, a taut, explosive
fusion of heavy metal, industrial dance beats and samples, and
punk aggression. 1989's The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste
built on its predecessor's artistic success, and In Case You Didn't
Feel Like Showing Up (Live) was recorded on its supporting tour,
introducing other frequent Ministry contributors like drummer
Martin Atkins (later of Pigface) and guitarist William Tucker (as
well as featuring a guest shot from Jello Biafra). Jourgensen
next embarked on a flurry of side projects, including the
aforementioned Revolting Cocks (with Barker, Barker's brother
Roland, Front 242 members Luc Van Acker and Richard 23, and many
more), 1000 Homo DJs (with Biafra, Rieflin, and Trent Reznor),
Acid Horse, Pailhead (with Ian MacKaye) and Lard (again with
Biafra, Paul Barker, Rieflin, and drummer Jeff Ward).
In late 1991, Ministry issued the single "Jesus Built My
Hotrod," a driving rocker featuring manic nonsense vocals by
co-writer Gibby Haynes of the Butthole Surfers; its exposure on
MTV helped build anticipation for the following year's full-length
Psalm 69 (subtitled The Way to Succeed and the Way to Suck Eggs,
although the only title that appears on the album consists of a
few Greek letters and symbols). The record reached the Top 30 and
went platinum, producing two further MTV hits with "N.W.O."
and "Just One Fix," and Ministry consolidated its
following with a spot on the inaugural Lollapalooza tour that
summer (joined by new guitarist Louis Svitek). However, drug and
legal problems sidelined the band in the wake of its newfound
popularity, resulting in the clouded Filth Pig being released in
1995, too late to capitalize on their prior success. More
problems with drugs and arrests followed, and Jourgensen returned
to some of his side projects, recording a new album with Lard,
among others. In 1999, the new single "Bad Blood" was
featured prominently in the sci-fi special-effects blockbuster
film The Matrix, setting the stage for the release of Dark Side
of the Spoon (the title a reference to the band's heroin problems)
later that summer. Guitarist William Tucker committed suicide in
May 1999.
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