Greatest Fits [PA]

Performer: Ministry
Distributor: WEA (Distributor)

Notes: Ministry: Alain Jourgensen (vocals, guitar, organ, programming); Paul Barker (bass, programming). Additional personnel includes: Gibby Haynes, Ty Coon (vocals); Louis Svitek (acoustic guitar); Mike Scaccia (guitar); Duane Buford (keyboards); William Rieflin (drums, background vocals); Rey Washam, Jeff Ward, Max Brody (drums); Michael Balch (programming); Joe Kelly (background vocals). Engineers include: Jeff Newell, Paul Manno, Ministry. Additional personnel: Al Jourgensen (vocals, guitars, slide guitar, programming); Ty Coon, Gibby Haynes (vocals); Mike Scaccia, Louis Svitek (guitar); Duane Buford (keyboards); Paul Barker (bass guitar, programming); Max Brody (drums, programming); William Rieflin (drums, background vocals); Rey Washam, Jeff Ward (drums); Michael Balch (programming). Presenting tracks dating back to1988, when Ministry mastermind Al Jourgensen decided to get hyper-aggressive with his increasingly metal-tinged industrial music, GREATEST FITS is an aptly named collection, since it offers a sampling of the band's fiercest work (up to 2001). Although the classic transitional albums THE LAND OF RAPE AND HONEY and THE MIND IS A TERRIBLE THING TO TASTE, where Jourgensen abandoned his early-'80s dance-pop sound, are underrepresented, there's no shortage of distorted vocals, crushingly heavy guitar riffs, and machine-gun-like beats here. With the exception of the scathing opening track, "What About Us?," (featured in the film A.I.), GREATEST FITS moves in (roughly) chronological order. "Stigmata" is a vitriolic primal scream synced up to keyboards, while "Thieves" focuses its anger to laser-like precision, a surgical strike powered by relentless guitars. Other highlights include the gleefully absurd "Jesus Built My Hotrod" (with vocals by Butthole Surfer Gibby Haynes), a pummeling 12" mix of "Reload," and a potent cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut." Although, GREATEST FITS makes for a solid introduction to latter-day Ministry, those seeking more should look to the group's mid-to-late '80s albums to discover the sound that inspired Nine Inch Nails and numerous other industrial acts.

Q (8/01, p.153) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...[They] took heavy metal to boot camp, returning it lean, disciplined and well-drilled in the pummelling repetition of industrial dance music..." NME (Magazine) (7/28/01, p.41) - 7 out of 10 - "...Like disgustingly expensive disaster movies, it's all big dumb fun..."

Though Chicago's Ministry is known as the archetypal industrial rock band, they actually started out as a dour synth-funk outfit before founder Alain Jourgensen really ratcheted up the noise and the gloom on 1988's THE LAND OF RAPE & HONEY. In so doing, Ministry became the template for scores of industrial bands to come, combining roaring, metallic guitars, distorted, demonic vocals, and relentlessly pounding electronics. By the '90s, they were alt-rock icons, getting heavy play on MTV and appearing at the Lollapalooza festival. Even after Jourgensen's musical partner Bill Rieflin left in 1994, Ministry continued making dark, disturbing music for their legions of admirers.

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