Finally another release from the seminal industrial "band" MINISTRY. I use the term band loosely, as we all know that Mr. Al Jourgensen runs the show here. This is a compilation of demos, live tracks, and remixes. I also use the term "remix" loosely as the tracks remain fairly unchanged, save for the inclusion of some topical soundbytes from GW Bush and Condoleezza Rice. Granted, I haven't seriously listened to Ministry since I was in High School, and my appreciation of them even then was tenuous at best, but I know the tunes well enough to know that not much was done to them.

I'm of two minds about the "remixes." The fierce liberal in me wants to applaud anything that flies in the face of the current presidential administration, but the cynic in me wonders if this is just a product thrown together to cash in on the wave of anti-Bush sentiments sweeping the country. Given Jourgensen's obvious political bent, I want to believe that this is not the case, but it still seems kinda desperate. I would have loved it had Jourgensen gotten off the smack long enough to create another record of new, memorable material skewering Bush and his cronies. Instead, sound clips are shoehorned into tracks he made back when he was relevant; tracks that, left untouched, would still stand as potent stabs at the establishment. Overall, I think that whenever an artist goes back and messes with earlier works, the show is pretty much over. Too bad.

Still, this is a great collection, and if you were ever a MINISTRY fan, you have to have it. Even in their new forms, the old tunes have aged well. Also, the unreleased and live tracks are worth the price alone. Hearing "Thieves" after not listening to it in years almost got me a speeding ticket! It's a shame that many of the crap bands that followed in Jourgensen's wake are more well known to a mainstream audience. If even one moron picks up "Rantology", and discovers that there was life before Korn and NIN, then I would consider it a smashing success.

- Broadbent

OFFICIAL SITE: www.ministrymusic.org

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