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Ministry
Cover Up

13th Planet Records

Posted: Friday, March 21, 2008
By: Ilker Yücel
Editor

As a companion to their swansong, The Last Sucker, the godfathers of industrial metal dubiously release but one more album. Of course, as part of Ministry's ever present sense of humor, with the cover of John F. Kennedy in the crosshairs, and Al Jourgensen in the guise of Jackie O., the album is a collection of cover tunes, appropriately titled Cover Up - get it? Adding to that is that the album is credited to Ministry and Co-Conspirators, pushing the joke just a tad further. The majority of the songs presented seem to have been recorded during and after sessions for the last album, along with some other tidbits from across the band's career, including the ill-advised cover of Bob Dylan's "Lay Lady Lay," which was apparently done initially to "piss off a former band mate," and the 1,000 Homo DJs' hit cover of Black Sabbath's "Supernaut." The remaining songs prove to be a testament to Jourgensen & co.'s fondness for the 8-track era as the band takes on a series of '60s and '70s hits that will surely send listeners cruising down two-lane blacktop at 120 MPH. This is especially true of "Radar Love" and "Black Betty;" sure, we all know and love the originals, but Ministry's brand of industrialized thrash suits the songs rather well, and credit should be given to guitarist Sin Quirin for keeping the down-and-dirty attitude turned up to 11 with his gritty soloing. Much like the cover of The Doors' "Roadhouse Blues" on The Last Sucker (also presented on Cover Up), Ministry's version of The Rolling Stones' "Under My Thumb" remains faithful to the original song, but owes more of its sleazy exuberance to the lyrical intent. As Jourgensen puts it, "it's the most misogynistic song ever made," and so he and Fear Factory's Burton C. Bell do well to bring that element to the fore with their performances. Josh Bradford from The Revolting Cocks exudes the spirit of T. Rex's Marc Bolan with their take on "Bang a Gong," with just a touch of added humor as an annoyed voice states at the end of the song, "What the fuck does 'Bang a Gong' mean?" Prong's Tommy Victor ain't no Ian Gillan or Richie Blackmore, but his vocal and guitar performance on "Space Truckin'" certainly does Deep Purple proud, especially when he hits those almost humorous falsetto squeals. For Ministry to cover so lovely a song as "What a Wonderful World" may seem out-of-place, perhaps even blasphemous, but it seems strangely appropriate that it should close Cover Up out as the last gasp from this influential band. Jourgensen makes no attempt to subdue his venomous rasp, though he is uncharacteristically melodic over the lush, slightly out-of-tune piano. Midway through, the song does finally explode into a scathing assault of punk metal that is sure to send listeners into a thrashing frenzy. What more could one want or even expect from Ministry? Oh, there are the tiny little surprises that run all the way to track 69, but those are for the listener to discover. Suffice to say, Ministry are going out with one hell of a bang as Cover Up not only pays homage to their musical heroes, but also to their fans with what Jourgensen calls their ultimate party album - there's certainly no argument here. R.I.P. Ministry... you will be missed!