Lots of good observations in this thread…
grmpysmrf, I see your point, and kudos for sticking to your guns, but Peligro probably said it best:
“To put that into perspective, imagine how stupid Black Sabbath, Zeppelin or Pink Floyd would have looked today if in the early seventies they had put out three freakin’ albums dedicated to Nixon’s involvement in Watergate.”
Seriously, one album of anti-Bush would’ve been enough…for ANYBODY! I was sick of the guy BEFORE Houses came out. There’s enough websites, articles, parodies, news and critics out there covering Bush. Al could’ve taken his best shot and moved on to something else…for the sake of the fans, at least. I feel like we’re about to get some Rio Grande Blood re-runs this fall. Please, PLEASE let me be wrong.
This is a guy who was always proud of never looking back, and moving forward. This is why we don’t hear Halloween live. This is why a few cities were lucky enough to hear WE Believe performed live 4 years ago. He was always about progression, and changing things up with each new album. Really, he stuck to that until Houses hit. Great album, I still love it, but that was 2004, and by 2005 I was already sick of anything having to do with Bush. Then RGB came along. The change of overall tempo was nice, but the subject matter got old, quick.
I know that RGB isn’t exactly a Houses clone, but Al has confirmed the sameness by calling these final 3 albums a ‘trilogy’. He’s made it clear that these 3 albums are following the same course, and he’s proud of it. So, even if the new album musically sounds completely different, it’s still a third of the freaking Bush Series. But hey, at least it was our President, and not some old news story like Gary Condit, or O.J., right?
The lyrics? Yeah, they’re bad, but I don’t think Al was thinking about quality control while writing them. I think my biggest problem with them (aside from an entry into the Ministry canon titled “The Dick Song”) is that they already sound like songs from the past two albums. Just look at the metre of the lyrics…I can already imagine the music that encompasses them. I realize we’ve never claimed Al to be the quintessential lyricist, but look at the lyrics of “The Dick Song” versus something a little more cerebral, like “Burning Inside”:
Burning Inside
calling a mantra with a blade in the skin
for the demons within
i feel the pain is the death and decay
but the lesson never fades away
too little shadows, turn away
you throw the man through the window pane
another slave and a victim of fate
another lesson in hate
burning inside! burning inside!
(simple melody, but intriguing lyrics)
The Dick Song
He’s starting wars at the drop of a hat………… run run run Cheney’s got a gun
He says he’s certain he’s driving them back
Were almost done
Let’s have another let’s fuck with Iran………. run run run Cheney’s having fun
(ahem)
“Cheney’s got a gun”?! It puts that goddamned Aerosmith song in my head everytime I see it! See, the older songs have a longer shelf life because Al avoids the name-dropping and acute historical references. The lyrics aren’t as plain or ‘in your face’ as “Dick” (or so pedestrian for that matter). Take “Just Like You”, where Al says, “The 1980s was run by a person who’s crazy…”. No Reagan or Ollie North references (deja vu, didn’t I mention that somewhere else?), so that song stands the test of time better (dated drum hits aside). Who knows, maybe Al was a Reagan fan back in those days? These final 3 albums really will become a product of their era as time goes by, and not in a good way. Relevance and impact will be diminished. Does 242’s “Funkhadafi” still make you want to bomb Libya today? Probably not. Seriously, what would you think of Dark Side Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here, and Animals if they were all about Nixon, Haldeman, Ehrlichman, etc.? If the music was the same, great, but pepper the lyrics with name-drops and “I am not a crook” samples, and you have 30-year-old cousins to the Bush Trilogy.
I realize we’re judging only song titles, lyrics, and a press release, but I think the overall concern and criticism is certainly justified.
1002
my personal feeling aside, i think this may be one of the best explanations of how i’m feeling at the moment about the bush topic.
i remember getting into a discussion about this before RGB came out on the piss army. some people liked anti-bush, others not. i had made a similar point, about the spacey non-specific lyrics from the past being more enjoyable to me than the current obvious anti-bush rants. i’m interested in whatever al puts out, but i would have to say that this is just one more thing that bush have fucked us over on. the last 3 ministry albums are about him.
dammit.
but far be it from me to dictate the lyrical content from one of my favorite bands. would i rather hear a song about al’s morning shit instead of one called “the dick song”? yes. but do is till listen to on occasion, the 2 of the 3 anti-bush records already released and get enjoyment from them, even though i am tired of anti-bush rants? yes.
it’s probably just because i am an angry kind of guy. i get so mad at so much for so long. it’s not healthy, lemme tell you. it seems to me that al’s really hates W. not just your normal “what a prick” type of shit, but 3 WHOLE FUCKING ALBUMS worth of hate.
and that’s the kind of hate i can relate to on a personal level. and, as arguably silly as some of these lyrics may seem, behind it all is this seething hatred, or animosity if you will. animositisomina. hatred forwards and backwards, hatred through and through. this is what excites me about the newer ministry. this is what keeps me listening.
and ultimately buying.