Billy Corgan, the frontman of two-time Grammy® Award-winning rock band, The Smashing Pumpkins, has released the latest episode of his new podcast, “The Magnificent Others”, via Bill Maher’s Club Random Studios.
In the new episode, Corgan sits down with musical trailblazer Al Jourgensen for an unvarnished dive into four decades of boundary‑pushing music. Jourgensen walks through Wax Trax’s cash‑on‑the‑table sessions, the house‑mix side hustles at Chicago Trax, he unpacks leaving Arista via bankruptcy, reclaiming control on Twitch, and bringing Paul Barker back for what he insists will be Ministry’s final record and tour; the pair compare production habits and trade stories about Timothy Leary’s psychedelic “experiments,” psilocybin‑fueled hangs with Gary Numan, and the grind of touring versus the lure of studio life; they trace the influence of the Chicago scene on countless other artists, and debate writing politics that outlast news cycles; to wrestle with whether creativity comes from a universal signal or something like a digital matrix.
Listen at Apple Podcasts here, watch the video below:
Ministry recently released the first-ever official music video for the eternal hit, “Everyday Is Halloween”. Originally released in 1984, Al Jourgensen’s rally cry for the goth community and misunderstood creatures of the night has remained a cult classic over the decades and is finally being given the visual treatment it deserves.
Said Jourgensen, “I’m amazed and honored that folks are still listening to this song 40 years on. Fly that freak flag proudly.”
They also released behind the scenes footage from the “Everyday Is Halloween” video shoot. Watch below:
“Everyday Is Halloween” is one of the cuts on the new album, The Squirrely Years Revisited, out now via Cleopatra Records that sees Jourgensen making peace with the past. After the incredible reception to Ministry’s With Sympathy and Twitch-heavy set at Cruel World 2024, Jourgensen decided it was time to reexamine his long-dormant synth pop hits and give them a fresh polish 40 years later.
Featuring nine tracks (three additional bonus tracks on CD), The Squirrely Years Revisited offers reworked versions of not only “Everyday Is Halloween,” but also “Work For Love,” “I’m Not An Effigy,” and “I’ll Do Anything For You.”
To celebrate the album and the new-old era of Ministry, the band – also including John Bechdel (keyboards), Monte Pittman and Cesar Soto (guitars), Pepe Clarke Magaña (drums) and Paul D’Amour (bass) – have embarked on The Squirrely Years Tour, with a set dominated by Jourgensen’s earliest works. Opening support will come from Ministry’s old-school comrades, including Nitzer Ebb for the first half of the tour, My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult for the second half of the tour; and Die Krupps on all dates.
“Since I hated my early stuff for decades, I decided to take ownership of it and do it right,” says Jourgensen.
The Squirrely Years Revisited follows the release of Ministry’s 16th studio album in 2024, HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES, and comes ahead of the final new studio album from Ministry in 2026, a record that has Jourgensen teaming up with Paul Barker once again.
The Squirrely Years Revisited is available in all formats including digital, CD and 4 different vinyl configurations. Order digital copies of the album here, order CD/vinyl copies here.
Tracklisting:
“Work For Love”
“Here We Go”
“All Day”
“Everyday Is Halloween”
“Revenge”
“I’m Not An Effigy”
“I’m Falling”
“Same Old Madness”
“I’ll Do Anything For You”
“Just Like You” (CD only)
“We Believe” (CD only)
“Over The Shoulder” (CD only)
Tour dates:
May
8 – Columbus, OH – Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival
9 – Chicago, IL – Riviera*
10 – Detroit, MI – Masonic Cathedral*
12 – Baltimore, MD – Soundstage*
13 – Philadelphia, PA – Franklin Music Hall+
14 – Boston, MA – Roadrunner+
16 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount+
17 – Montreal, QC – MTelus+
18 – Toronto, ON – History+
20 – Minneapolis, MN – Palace+
21 – Winnipeg, MB – Burton Cummings Theatre+
23 – Edmonton, AB – Midway Music Hall+
24 – Calgary, AB – Palace Theatre+
26 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore+
28 – Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo+
29 – Spokane, WA – Spokane Live Casino+
31 – Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom+
June
1 – Salt Lake City, UT – Union+
3 – San Francisco, CA – Warfield+
4 – Los Angeles, CA – Palladium+
5 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues+
* Nitzer Ebb appearing
+ My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult appearing
Note: Die Krupps appearing on all dates except May 8
For tickets and more information, head here.
Born in 1981 in Chicago, Ministry has been the lifetime passion project of founder Al Jourgensen, considered to be the pioneer of industrial music. In its early days, Ministry was identifiable by its heavy synth-pop material in line with the new sounds and technology that were being developed in the ‘80s.
Ministry’s output began with four 12” singles on Wax Trax! Records in 1981 before the first LP With Sympathy in 1983 via Arista Records. As time progressed however, so did Ministry, quickly developing a harsher, and more stylized sound that the band soon became infamous for on seminal albums Twitch (1986), The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), and The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste (1989).
With the release of Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and The Way to Suck Eggs (1992), Ministry hit an all-time high in the mainstream musical realm and received its first Grammy nomination.
In total, Ministry has been nominated for a Grammy award six times. Eight more albums would follow before an indefinite break in 2013, only to be unearthed again in 2018 with AmeriKKKant, continuing to reflect Jourgensen’s views on the frightening state of society and politics.
The 2021 album Moral Hygiene marked a new creative era of Jourgensen and the band. Ministry’s 16th studio album, HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES, was released March 1, 2024 via Nuclear Blast Records.
(Photo – Derick Smith)
BraveWords Records… home for Paul Di’Anno’s Warhorse, The Chris Slade Timeline, Rhett Forrester & Rob Robbins, Prophets of Addiction, Jack Starr, Crimson Glory, ASKA and Lillian Axe.
Make sure you are following the label on Facebook. >> https://www.facebook.com/bravewordsrecords
The post MINISTRY Legend AL JOURGENSEN Guests On BILLY CORGAN’s “The Magnificent Others” Podcast; Video appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
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In the new episode, Corgan sits down with musical trailblazer Al Jourgensen for an unvarnished dive into four decades of boundary‑pushing music. Jourgensen walks through Wax Trax’s cash‑on‑the‑table sessions, the house‑mix side hustles at Chicago Trax, he unpacks leaving Arista via bankruptcy, reclaiming control on Twitch, and bringing Paul Barker back for what he insists will be Ministry’s final record and tour; the pair compare production habits and trade stories about Timothy Leary’s psychedelic “experiments,” psilocybin‑fueled hangs with Gary Numan, and the grind of touring versus the lure of studio life; they trace the influence of the Chicago scene on countless other artists, and debate writing politics that outlast news cycles; to wrestle with whether creativity comes from a universal signal or something like a digital matrix.
Listen at Apple Podcasts here, watch the video below:
Ministry recently released the first-ever official music video for the eternal hit, “Everyday Is Halloween”. Originally released in 1984, Al Jourgensen’s rally cry for the goth community and misunderstood creatures of the night has remained a cult classic over the decades and is finally being given the visual treatment it deserves.
Said Jourgensen, “I’m amazed and honored that folks are still listening to this song 40 years on. Fly that freak flag proudly.”
They also released behind the scenes footage from the “Everyday Is Halloween” video shoot. Watch below:
“Everyday Is Halloween” is one of the cuts on the new album, The Squirrely Years Revisited, out now via Cleopatra Records that sees Jourgensen making peace with the past. After the incredible reception to Ministry’s With Sympathy and Twitch-heavy set at Cruel World 2024, Jourgensen decided it was time to reexamine his long-dormant synth pop hits and give them a fresh polish 40 years later.
Featuring nine tracks (three additional bonus tracks on CD), The Squirrely Years Revisited offers reworked versions of not only “Everyday Is Halloween,” but also “Work For Love,” “I’m Not An Effigy,” and “I’ll Do Anything For You.”
To celebrate the album and the new-old era of Ministry, the band – also including John Bechdel (keyboards), Monte Pittman and Cesar Soto (guitars), Pepe Clarke Magaña (drums) and Paul D’Amour (bass) – have embarked on The Squirrely Years Tour, with a set dominated by Jourgensen’s earliest works. Opening support will come from Ministry’s old-school comrades, including Nitzer Ebb for the first half of the tour, My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult for the second half of the tour; and Die Krupps on all dates.
“Since I hated my early stuff for decades, I decided to take ownership of it and do it right,” says Jourgensen.
The Squirrely Years Revisited follows the release of Ministry’s 16th studio album in 2024, HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES, and comes ahead of the final new studio album from Ministry in 2026, a record that has Jourgensen teaming up with Paul Barker once again.
The Squirrely Years Revisited is available in all formats including digital, CD and 4 different vinyl configurations. Order digital copies of the album here, order CD/vinyl copies here.
Tracklisting:
“Work For Love”
“Here We Go”
“All Day”
“Everyday Is Halloween”
“Revenge”
“I’m Not An Effigy”
“I’m Falling”
“Same Old Madness”
“I’ll Do Anything For You”
“Just Like You” (CD only)
“We Believe” (CD only)
“Over The Shoulder” (CD only)
Tour dates:
May
8 – Columbus, OH – Sonic Temple Art & Music Festival
9 – Chicago, IL – Riviera*
10 – Detroit, MI – Masonic Cathedral*
12 – Baltimore, MD – Soundstage*
13 – Philadelphia, PA – Franklin Music Hall+
14 – Boston, MA – Roadrunner+
16 – Brooklyn, NY – Brooklyn Paramount+
17 – Montreal, QC – MTelus+
18 – Toronto, ON – History+
20 – Minneapolis, MN – Palace+
21 – Winnipeg, MB – Burton Cummings Theatre+
23 – Edmonton, AB – Midway Music Hall+
24 – Calgary, AB – Palace Theatre+
26 – Vancouver, BC – Commodore+
28 – Seattle, WA – Showbox SoDo+
29 – Spokane, WA – Spokane Live Casino+
31 – Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom+
June
1 – Salt Lake City, UT – Union+
3 – San Francisco, CA – Warfield+
4 – Los Angeles, CA – Palladium+
5 – Las Vegas, NV – House of Blues+
* Nitzer Ebb appearing
+ My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult appearing
Note: Die Krupps appearing on all dates except May 8
For tickets and more information, head here.
Born in 1981 in Chicago, Ministry has been the lifetime passion project of founder Al Jourgensen, considered to be the pioneer of industrial music. In its early days, Ministry was identifiable by its heavy synth-pop material in line with the new sounds and technology that were being developed in the ‘80s.
Ministry’s output began with four 12” singles on Wax Trax! Records in 1981 before the first LP With Sympathy in 1983 via Arista Records. As time progressed however, so did Ministry, quickly developing a harsher, and more stylized sound that the band soon became infamous for on seminal albums Twitch (1986), The Land of Rape and Honey (1988), and The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste (1989).
With the release of Psalm 69: The Way to Succeed and The Way to Suck Eggs (1992), Ministry hit an all-time high in the mainstream musical realm and received its first Grammy nomination.
In total, Ministry has been nominated for a Grammy award six times. Eight more albums would follow before an indefinite break in 2013, only to be unearthed again in 2018 with AmeriKKKant, continuing to reflect Jourgensen’s views on the frightening state of society and politics.
The 2021 album Moral Hygiene marked a new creative era of Jourgensen and the band. Ministry’s 16th studio album, HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES, was released March 1, 2024 via Nuclear Blast Records.
(Photo – Derick Smith)
BraveWords Records… home for Paul Di’Anno’s Warhorse, The Chris Slade Timeline, Rhett Forrester & Rob Robbins, Prophets of Addiction, Jack Starr, Crimson Glory, ASKA and Lillian Axe.
Make sure you are following the label on Facebook. >> https://www.facebook.com/bravewordsrecords
The post MINISTRY Legend AL JOURGENSEN Guests On BILLY CORGAN’s “The Magnificent Others” Podcast; Video appeared first on BraveWords - Where Music Lives.
Continue reading...