When Did It All Go Wrong?

Discussion
22

Personally, Houses wasn’t a terrible album.

There were some decent songs on there.

But… it just didn’t compare to the old Ministry. And the Carmina Burana sample? Yeah, I guess that was cool when I was 15. HA.

The lyrical content, on the other hand, was FUCKING AWFUL.

That’s what has killed nu-Ministry for me. The god awful lyric content characterising all of the latest albums.

I mean, musically, the new albums aren’t bad as thrash albums. But it just doesn’t sound like anything Ministry would do. Ministry influenced thrash, but it’s so far detached from the glory days.

Honestly… the decline was so gradual, it’s hard to say where to ‘put a stop to things’, so to speak.

Each album had elements about it which could’ve been improved, and I’m not sure if any would have proven a fitting swansong to Ministry’s sound. I guess that’s a testament to the general diversity of Ministry’s sound over the years.

Personally… if I HAD TO make a choice, I’d say it should’ve ended once Rieflin and Connelly left the fold.

We should look at it that way; what did future band members offer to the sound?

So, I think that would’ve been a good time to stop. Yes, I know Rey was a great drummer, but I honestly felt his style was a little too ‘loose’ to have truly characterised that of the old-Ministry sound. Granted, it did take them in interesting directions. I really do think the drummer can change the sound of a band, and look when happened when Al just decided to program everything…

23

I am so done discussing the Bush trilogy. I just treat it like I treat Alien: Resurrection…as if it never happened.

Helps me get through the day.

24

Prongs, everyone!

25

When Paul left, that’s when Ministry should have ended. Ministry was Al and Paul, despite what Al says that he alone is Ministry. Bill Rieflin leaving was certainly a big turning point, but Washam was a great drummer and DSOTS and Animosity still kept that post-punk artistic integrity that made Ministry great, even though Animosity was a relatively weak album.

It’s funny because in that older “filth pig” era interview posted recently Al was talking about the “knuckle-heads”, the anti-intellectual mosh crowd that was part of their fan base, and how there was another part of the fan base that was much more intellectual and saw beyond the thrash-metal. After Paul left, it seems Al chose to cater to the knuckle-heads exclusively, in hopes of getting some mainstream attention and retirement money. I think that move really backfired on him, as most of us here on prongs have lost all respect for the guy.

If he wanted to make a thrash/punk/metal band to pretty much attack Bush exclusively it should have been a side project under another name. And the cover albums and incessant remix albums have just drug the name even further through the gutter, to the point where I would almost feel embarrassed wearing a Ministry shirt these days.

Thanks for the memories and great albums Al. Now please fuck off and enjoy your retirement.