Ministry-Last Tangle In Paris Live 2012

UDR
2014

Chances are that most of our readers (if not all) are familiar with Ministry. First formed in 1981, with their 1983 debut album, "With Sympathy", showcasing a pop-oriented/synth-driven new wave sound (of which the danceable track "Work For Love" has always been a guilty pleasure of mine!), this on again/off again Chicago act as long been considered one of the grandfathers of the industrial rock/metal genre. With founder Al Jourgensen (vocals, guitars, keyboards and programing) serving as the one constant member of Ministry since day one this oft-times socially-conscious/political act is arguably the most well-known industrial metal band ever! In spite of that fact, and the knowledge that the group's 3rd LP, "The Land of Rape and Honey", has been a long-time comfort (!) through days of darkness, Ministry was one band I never had the privilege of seeing live. Sure, I've ventured out and about in order to lay witness to both KMFDM and Skinny Puppy (along with, over the course of some 20 or so years, a dozen-plus underground/unsigned industrial rock/metal bands whose names have long since escaped me), but I've never had the opportunity to catch  Al and his cohorts in a live setting. That begs the question then. Is "Last Tangle In Paris Live 2012" the next best thing? Well, if it isn't as good as being there in the flesh then it's good to be pretty damn close! And one thing it most certainly has going for it is the price! While I can't vouch for every online music store I will say that if you are a Prime member of Amazon then you can get this DVD/2CD set for a mere $10! Here's the link for that beauty of a deal (http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00KCDTX0I?ie=UTF8&tag=encymetatheme-20&linkCode=as2&camp=1789&creative=9325&creativeASIN=B00KCDTX0I) and given the fact that there is a SHIT load of goodies crammed into this collection I'd say that is one hell of a deal! The DVD part of this collection comes from the DeFiBrilLaTouR and features not only the band live, but it comes with interviews, behind the scenes footage as well as backstage moments! Of course it does feature footage of long-time Ministry guitarist Mike Saccia which only serves as a sad reminder of the tragedy of his untimely passing. But anyway, here is the track-list from said show:

1.	Ghouldiggers
2.	No “W”
3.	Senor Peligro
4.	LiesLiesLies
5.	99%ers
6.	Life Is Good
7.	Relapse
8.	The Last Sucker
9.	Psalm 69
10.	New World Order
11.	Just One Fix
12.	Thieves

As one can see, Al Jourgensen (lead vocals and guitars) and the rest of Ministry (guitarists Mike Scaccia & Sin Quirin, bassist Casey Orr (who played alongside the late great Mike Scaccia in Rigor Mortis), keyboardist/sampler John Bechdel and drummer Aaron Rossi) do cover quite a bit of ground on the live DVD, but it is disappointing to see that nothing is represented from "The Land of Rape and Honey". Regardless, it is a damn good live show with spectacular effects and just going by the audience's response it's plain to see that Ministry really connected with their fans! Meanwhile here is the set lists from the two live CDs included in this package. The first one is from 2008 and features a killer line-up including Tommy Victor (of Prong fame naturally!) on guitars and special guest Burton Bell (Fear Factory).

1.	Ghouldiggers
2.	No “W”
3.	Senor Peligro
4.	Rio Grande Blood
5.	LiesLiesLies
6.	99%ers
7.	Life Is Good
8.	Relapse
9.	The Last Sucker

The second live CD comes from a 2006 show with the impressive line-up of lead vocalist Al Jourgensen, guitarist Mike Scaccia (Rigor Mortis), guitarist Tommy Victor (Prong), keyboardist John Bechdel (Fear Factory), Killing Joke bassist Paul Raven (R.I.P.) and drummer Joey Jordison (Slipknot). The track listing for that CD is:

1.	Psalm 69
2.	New World Order
3.	Just One Fix
4.	Thieves
5.	Khyber Pass
6.	Fear Is Big Business
7.	Let’s Go
8.	Watch Yourself
9.	So What

It's worth noting that Al Jourgensen sounds great during all of the live performances as do all of the misc. backing musicians he manged to aligned himself with. Other then the bit about the missing "Land of Rape and Honey" numbers there was little to complain about when it comes to this collection of live material. Given the impressive amount of footage that was crammed onto the live DVD and the overall sound quality of all of this it's well-worth investing in especially if you are in any way, shape or form a fan of Al Jourgensen and his work. Whether this release (or if you will the group's last studio album, 2013's "From Beer To Eternity") proves to be the last we here from this industrial metal outfit remains to be seen. If the group is really over though and Al has finally gone and closed the door on this part of his life then "Last Tangle In Paris" is as good a final curtain call as they come. 

Ministry-From Beer To Eternity

AFM Records
2013

Plain and simple folks the back-story to this one sucks. It big time sucks. In case you don't know Mike Scaccia, who also played guitar with his other band Rigor Mortis, died three days after the rough tracks for this album were finished. It's understandable that Al Jourgensen both decided to still release the album and that he plans for this to be the last Ministry release. That doesn't make it any easier to listen to this release, but it does put an album like "From Beer To Eternity" into perspective. And while I would normally not take stock in too much of what Al has to say, as he jumped the shark years back when he became overly obsessed with anything/everything George Bush Jr. did and said (it's not as if there were/still are literally hundreds of other politicians from both sides of the isle who deserve such special "attention"), I will agree with him that these recordings are something special. That's not to say that lyrically and sample-wise he doesn't still come off as a one-trick pony. As talented as Al is, he handles vocals, guitars and programing with ease, it would be nice if at some point in time he (like millions of  his fellow countrymen) would actually wake up and see the lies all around him that start from the very top and work there way down. Our freedom is being pulled out from under our feet like a rug and yet those that we depend on, specially artists like this and any number of punk acts, are walking around buying the party line! If half of what is happening now would have happened while a rhino was in charge it would be all that Al and his friends would talk about! That said it's neither here nor there so these people will have to live with their hypocrisy and will sadly have a rude awakening all their own when any kind of political disagreement will be considered a crime. Back to this album we will go as there really is a lot musically to appreciate. Along with guitarist Sin Quirin, bassist Tony Campos and drummer Aaron Rossi the pair of Al and Mikey really put a lot into this release, effort-wise, as is obvious from start to finish. Here Ministry walks the line between industrial metal and thrash metal as if they are one in the same. Credit should go as much to his backing band as it does to Al as (all-together as a band) Ministry has served notice that album number 13 is every bit as soul crushing as all the rest. Only difference here seems to be the fact that Al leaned on Mike and his fellow band-mates as much as possible in an effort to make these 11 tracks pop-out and rip-out the listeners eardrums! If this is truly to be the last Ministry album then Al and company has gone out at the top of their game and they've done it in a way that serves as a fitting tribute to Mike Scaccia's skills.

Ministry-Adios...Puta Madres [Live]

13th Planet
2009

"Adios...Puta Madres" is a 13-track live disc featuring performances from Ministry's final world tour, "C U LaTouR 2008". This disc was recorded over the course of the band's 75-city global farewell jaunt which began on March 25, 2008 in Spokane, Washington and ended with a pair of final sell-out shows in Dublin, Ireland on July 19, 2008. The performances contained here were recorded in Serbia, Warsaw, Los Angeles, Chicago, Germany, Czech Republic, and Slovakia, to name a few. The tour was to support their killer 2007 release "The Last Sucker". Al Jourgensen has had this act going for a long time with a changing cast of supporting players. During that lengthy ride the band has gone through synth-pop, industrial chaos and thick, skull bashing metal. Much of the Ministry's more recent material and the bulk of the songs presented here fall into the last of those three categories. There's not a lot of between song banter or unnecessary build-up during these performances. Instead they charge forward with more volume than finesse, but that's the kind of approach that has always worked for them. There's plenty of bashing of former president Bush as well. That comes as no surprise since he had been the target of their last several studio albums. The sound quality is stellar as their raw brutality shines through. They don't even seem to stop for breath at any time. Honestly I wasn't that big on the Ministry in their early days. However, they have grown on me more in recent years with their massive sound and relentless attack. It many ways it's a shame that Jourgensen has decided to call it quits, but of course that is very much his prerogative. Still this live release is certainly a high note to end on if indeed this really is the end.

Ministry and co-conspirators-Cover up

13th Planet
2008

Al Jourgensen and his associates have spent recent years cranking out tracks ripping apart our current president. So by comparison this album of 60’s and 70’s cover songs seems far lighter in spirit. It may take a little time to adjust to the difference in the feel of the album, but once you have made that adjustment then you will be in for a good time. My take on cover songs has always been that if you must do them then be somewhat respectful to the song, but add your own sound as well or it isn’t worth doing. Much like Dr. Frankenstein in his lab the eleven covers here have been taken, twisted and put back together with monstrous results as Al and his cohorts have given each track some major treatment to to make them their own. Does every song work? Of course not, but the important thing is they kept the right approach for the majority of the songs. It's no coincidence that this was released on April Fool's Day because this album was obviously done with in a tongue in cheek manner. I think they had fun doing these songs and that is so key to making good covers as well. If you don't enjoy the songs then don't even attempt them, that sounds simple yet so many bands don't follow it. The Ministry have some charged up versions of "Radar Love", "Mississippi Queen" and "Space Truckin'" that all sucked me in immediately. "Roadhouse" and "Supernaut" are very cool too, but I had heard those when they were first released on other albums. "Under my thumb" seemed a bit too silly to me, I mean it was funny the first time just because of how much it was blown out of proportion, but it will likely not be as amusing on repeated plays. Most of the other tracks here are decent or fairly good. So overall this is a likable, better than average cover album.