Ministry

Jumping back into the fray is Al Jourgenson, brain trust of Ministry, rehashing and re-touching his industrial-goth rock hits of the 1990s and sounding startlingly fresh in the process.

Despising U.S. President George W. Bush is all the rage these days, but one suspects Jourgenson’s disdain for his country’s top puppet runs much deeper than for show. Thus he’s gone to lengths to rework his past material with new influences of the current problems of the world as he sees them. Fancy that.

This 15-song CD is a must-have for Ministry fans and no doubt an eye-opener for the young’uns who thought Trent Reznor was the first angry goth kid to emerge from the States.

Of the tracks, certain songs rise above the others though it’s tough to find any faults at all on this greatest hits package. For instance, ‘Jesus Built My Hot Rod’ (from Psalm 69) has never exploded better. Likewise, ‘Stigmata’ (from The Land of Rape & Honey) is enough to make the most docile dope smoker get up and put his fist through the wall. Could be what’s needed in this apathetic society right now.

Believe it or not, it’s been 25 years since Jourgenson founded Ministry. The light-hearted electro-pop Ministry of the 1980s (who could forget the song ‘Everyday Is Halloween’?) is absent from Rantology, and perhaps it’s for the best. Ever eruptive, abrasive, dark, and pissed off, Ministry is just what democracy disordered.