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Rating: The unstable mind of Al Jourgensen is well known, and his band is one of the most loved and hated/criticized. The journey of Ministry is entirely incomparable, outside the box. The initial synth pop, dance rock, and then the boom, the turning point of 1988 with "The Land Of Rape And Honey" that established them as pioneers of industrial. The latter, however, is invigorated by the drum machine coined with the maximum saturation of the guitar and the avalanche of samples, EBM sequences, and film dialogues.
There is always a need for an original idea. (Otherwise, no way would Ministry have become Ministry… with all the industrial, noise, shoegaze bands...)
Their atypical approach and daring moves are the fruits of the next step. In 1989, "The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste" was released, a title that already foreshadows the scenario one witnesses... The sound persists with that of the debut but certainly there is greater prominence of the guitar. It is the work that sits in the middle ground, as with the third "Psalm 69" there will be even less air with those trivial panzer at full throttle of "N.W.O.", "Jesus Built My Hotrod," and "Just One Fix."
We are welcomed, in fact, by the quintessential shredding riff of "Thieves," five minutes of pounding, android choirs, and scornful lyrics. It borders on metal, but the industrial cadence of the drum machine excludes clear contamination with Bay Area thrash, for example. In short, we face the brazen cornerstone track typical of a Ministry album.
Another rage is spat out with the following "Burning Inside," the second heavyweight track. A position that inevitably makes us assume in front of the oppressive "mechanized" riff. The multi-effected voice of the damned Jourgensen is a tornado that establishes itself in the wild land of the rhythm.
Obsessively square tracks and cyber fury in bunches. Yet it's all so "alive," "human." Because the album is permeated with euphoria, suffering, shock, and jolts. Sensations that we also experience with more "timid" tones. We therefore find as another feature the tribalism stuffed with "high-tech" electronics. Beyond the two initial missiles, we come across the bizarre dances of "Cannibal Song" and "Breathe" and the blend of hard rock riffs and shouted slogans of "So What."
We travel relentlessly through the short films of the human psyche.
Tracklist and Lyrics
01 Thieves (05:02)
thieves, thieves and liars, murderers
hypocrites and bastards [in laughter]
hey thanks for nothing!
morals in the dust
two-faced bastards and syncophants
no trust
thieves! liar!
inside, outside, which side, you don't know
my side, your side, their side, we don't know
which side are they? which side are they?
which side of their mouth do you suppose that it came?
which side are they? which side are they?
which side of the grass is greener?
inside, outside, which side, you don't know
my side, your side, their side, we don't know
you're like a great big fucking sponge,
just waiting to get squeezed!
breathe, forfeit erection!
toxical injection
geriatric fuck-fest
we still believe in lies
thieves! liar!
inside, outside, which side, you don't know
my side, your side, their side, we don't know
who started it? who started it?
which side are they? which side are they?
which side of their mouth do you suppose that it came?
which side are they? which side are they?
which side of the grass is greener?
inside, outside, which side, you don't know
my side, your side, their side, no one knows
you're like a great big hit of acid,
waiting to be taken!
02 Burning Inside (05:20)
Will these dreams still follow me
Out of dark obscurity?
Can't you see it up in the sky
As it kicks you in the face and sucks you dry
You never had the answers
And now you tell me the facts of life
I really couldn't be bothered with you
Get out of my face and watch me die
Burning inside! Burning inside!
Absolution and a frozen room
Are the dreams of men below
I try to grab it but the touch is hot
The mirror collapses, but the image can not
I'm scared of the darkness and light
I scare myself because i know i'm right
I see the evil in your savage eye
As it cuts right through the sky
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
Turning to shadows, turn them away
You throw the man through the window pane
Another slave and a victim of fate
Another lesson in hate
Burning inside! Burning inside!
03 Never Believe (04:59)
is anybody here?
is everybody here?
the service is about to begin!
i make my servant by fires insidious
instead of the laughter, there's the last of the separated jewels
i'll make dust of the whole damned wall
i'll make hovels for all the worms
i left off my hands to save these idiot bastards
bastards!
me and cellmate have lost again for ever
the sun shines and i breathe 'my father...'
i want so much to remove your past
and deliver your neurotic flesh from evil
grab this giant's hand
grab this giant's hand
grab this giant's hand
grab this giant's hand
but i'm only allowed to touch what i know
and all that i know are hypocrites
liars and witches who burned in the name of human fear
you will never believe
never believe
we haven't much time left
evening will come
and with it the equivalent
of the devil's animals
with fear to come
they ask of us favors we cannot fulfill
they ask, curse at us, and we smile
caught in conviction
a crowd of senseless individuals
will go further than both love and greed
as the clear salvation -- the future is here!
you will never believe
never believe
05 Breathe (05:40)
breathe!
corporate causes with self-served denial
the raping of the land
collapse
the lungs malfunction
they never learned to breathe
breathe!
rusted syringes and half-thought disposal
a burial at sea
waste water graveyard
swimming in disease
breathe!
this is the world
it's not working
this is this earth
breathe! breathe, you fucker!
children gasping the second-hand air
death and desperation
we've got to cut the lies with truth
we breathe
breathe!
this is the world
the clock's ticking
is this this earth?
breathe! breathe, you fucker!
hope springs eternal but there's no conviction
action mistaken for ransom is paid
all this concern is the true contradiction
the world is insane
breathe!
this is the world
it's got no future
is this this earth?
breathe! breathe, you fucker
07 Test (06:04)
yo! this is a test
you say this when i say that
you say this when i say that
you say this when i say that
you say this when i say that
but i'm not with that
so step back or kiss my...
cos i won't be held back
so don't fight or dis' or piss me off
cos i'm not soft or weak
running down in the maze of the day
this is a new phase
don't be commercial or sell out
or get the hell out of this business
but i won't be caught in that net of suckers
and glass people, weak, beaten down and feeble
society probably wants me to give up
society probably wants me to give up
as i live up to be my best
in a test
a fight for death
as i fight for my very last breath
and etc.
and etc.
gotta be strong
but wait a minute
now could i be better?
now could i be better?
well, only i know
well, what about you?
or do you have a clue?
could've, would've, should've - it's too late
could've, would've, should've - it's too late
why you waiting, laying, sit there? move!
be your own person!
wake up, make up your mind
seek the knowledge that you will find
be your own person
wait for it from the weak
cos they make the people level
and with you make a team
so believe, and be your best
cos this is a test
go for the top chart
rock with all your heart
rock-hard, stay up, go
deal with what's going on
in this crazy world
man woman child boy girl
insane to the playing
love music power pain
be what you gotta do
get the knowing attitude
cos this is a test
that we suggest
be your own person!
cos this is a test!
this is... a test!
cos we all know who is the real victim
society does not want them picked on
labelled or staked, don't raise his guilt,
don't miss your boot and kicked him
faceless in the morning in their urban plight
felt like a symbol with every situation
any one tour already overcrowded
project nation, more inflation
better your damn situation
but how can you better your situation
if you have no occupation?
ten of us said, watch the rolodex center
see how many different schools you can enter
they're out turning in the pit, but life's a bitch
the world's unconcerned
i'll tell you why it's stuck in a ditch
you own the key to the damn city
but it's a damn pity
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