Ministry - From Beer To Eternity.

[NapalmKev]

Finally listened to this after a three week Stocktake frenzy.

The Boxeset is very well presented (my lack of photography skills aren't doing it justice) and bought from Amazon for £35. The tobacco box is for the benefit of scale.

The album itself is a bit of a mixed bag, and probably not a high-note to end their career (again) on.

The industrial elements are more prominent here than on the last couple of albums which were very Heavy Metal, IMO.

The first track on the album is 'Hail To His Majesty (Peasants)' which sounds like it could have come from 'The Land of Rape and Honey', and is a worthy album opener. Other highlights include 'TV 4' a continuation of Uncle Al's anti-advertising jingles, and It's fast as hell. 'Change of luck', again this sounds like Ministry of Yore, more in the vein of tracks like 'Breathe' or 'So What'.

Other highlights: Thanx but no Thanx has a very different sound for Ministry, Uncle Al basically Lambasts his own nation over the top of a sublime reggae bassline. 'The Horror' is pretty much pure Techno, and lesson unlearned has shades of sixties Disco, especially in the vocals.

Dishonourable mention goes to second track on the album 'Punch in the Face', musically It's very good but the lyrics are fucking awful, the same line of "I'm gonna punch you in the face is repeated throughout; Crap.

So, on the whole it's quite good, and better than some of the albums they've done but It's far from their best.

Cheers

[NapalmKev]

Different pic, my file was too large apparently.

[CrazyFoxMachine]

There's a great site called Rate Your Music that I've been using for years -

I reckon this post'd go well on there, it's like a goodreads for music. I love it.

http://rateyourmusic.com/release/album/ministry/from_beer_to_eternity/

[Jo-L]

Nice looking box, unfortunately Ministry's music has been shit for 20 years.  Twitch, The Land of Rape and Honey, and The Mind is a Terrible thing to Taste are all genre classics.  The next one was pretty good too, though the best track on the album is more of a Butthole Surfers than a Ministry song.  Everything since has been a retread of what they did during the late 80's/early 90's, and doesn't compare well.

[Frank]

Everything since has been a retread of what they did during the late 80's/early 90's, and doesn't compare well.

That's what happens when junkie musicians don't OD and die.

[JOE SOAP]

Ministry came to its natural conclusion with Psalm 69. I enjoy Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters far more.

[shaolin_monkey]

Jesus (built my hotrod) H Christ - are Ministry still around?!?  I haven't listened to them for nearly two decades. Crazy!

[Ancient Otter]

Al is writing a comic now too. Picked the best of they had out 10 (plus?) years ago, Greatest Fits, I liked the later songs like Supermaniac Soul and Bad Blood which people seem to really hate.

I have the Pailhead band EP, really like that.

[NapalmKev]

Ministry came to its natural conclusion with Psalm 69. I enjoy Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters far more.

Psalm 69 is definitely their finest hour, but I think Rio Grande blood  deserves an honourable mention because that album is outstanding in its own right.

Cheers

[Jo-L]

Ministry came to its natural conclusion with Psalm 69. I enjoy Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters far more.

Psalm 69 is definitely their finest hour, but I think Rio Grande blood  deserves an honourable mention because that album is outstanding in its own right.

Cheers

Try the Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste: 'Burning Inside', 'Thieves' and  'So What'.  Also, off of Land of Rape and Honey: 'Stigmatta' and 'Flashback'.  All brilliant songs.  Much stronger than anything off of Psalm 69, when they were already in decline.

[NapalmKev]

Ministry came to its natural conclusion with Psalm 69. I enjoy Buck Satan and the 666 Shooters far more.

Psalm 69 is definitely their finest hour, but I think Rio Grande blood  deserves an honourable mention because that album is outstanding in its own right.

Cheers

Try the Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste: 'Burning Inside', 'Thieves' and  'So What'.  Also, off of Land of Rape and Honey: 'Stigmatta' and 'Flashback'.  All brilliant songs.  Much stronger than anything off of Psalm 69, when they were already in decline.

I've got all their albums. Land of Rape and Honey has some of the best tracks they've done; 'Stigmata', 'Deity' and 'I Prefer' is probably my favorite Ministry track.

I think Paul Barker had a bigger influence than Uncle Al is prepared to admit as the music definitely lost something after his departure.

Cheers

[Jo-L]

Art is weird because it's not always explainable in mechanical terms.

Agreed, though Barker was around for some bad albums as well.  I'm intrigued by the "Fix" Documentary, which filmed the behind the scenes of their 2006 tour.  I've never seen it, but purportedly Al F##ks a chicken in it so it's probably a spectacle at least. 

I saw MInistry live in 1992, and they were outstanding.  I saw them again in about 2007, and while they worked hard, it was pretty underwhelming.  Revolting Cocks were really good though on that same bill.  I think he had Tommy Victor backing him up during the Ministry set, which helped about 1000 percent, but still the songs off of the latest record at that time were not very interesting.

[JOE SOAP]

Try the Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste: 'Burning Inside', 'Thieves' and  'So What'.  Also, off of Land of Rape and Honey: 'Stigmatta' and 'Flashback'.  All brilliant songs.  Much stronger than anything off of Psalm 69, when they were already in decline.

I'd bought all those albums back in the day (plus the more interesting Twitch and the poptacular With Sympathy) before Psalm 69- which I still believe is where the band came to its sonic conclusion.