Al Jourgensen of Ministry

That’s right, Ministry and Co-Conspirators. It’s called Cover Up.

[Laughs] It’s gonna be good! Let’s see, The exact running order is “Black Betty” (originally) by Ram Jam, “Space Truckin’” by Deep Purple, “Mississippi Queen” by Mountain, “Just Got Paid” by ZZ Top, and then some of the other ones we’ve released before: “Roadhouse Blues” and “Supernaut”. Robin Zander from Cheap Trick is singing on “Radar Love” and Foghat’s “Slow Ride”. [Fear Factory’s] Burton Bell sings on the Stone’s “Under My Thumb," and Wayne from Static X sings on “She’s So Heavy” by The Beatles. Then there’s Van Morrison’s “Baby Blue” and my favorite, “What a Wonderful World” by Louis Armstrong. They’re all Ministry-sized.

Well part of them were from a contest we held on the website with the Piss Army [Ministry’s “Fan Club”]. Some of them were from that, and some of them came from knuckleheads like [Prong’s] Tommy Victor going “That’s my favorite fucking song!” [laughs]. So there’s no real rhyme or reason to it, it’s just a big party album. No politics! All party!

No, I’m not burnt at all. I’m not burnt as a concerned citizen, a person just doesn’t live by bread alone. You can protest all day, but you gotta go drinking at night.

[Laughs]

Done! Done! Next!

I don’t think so, my friend. First of all, who am I gonna get to reunion-ize with? I’m the fucking band. So unless I make a reunion with myself …whatever, no. I’ve got a lot of other stuff going on. Literally, I’m booked solid for the next 15 months. I know exactly what I’m doing for the next 15 months, plus I’ve got a record label [Thirteenth Planet Records], I’ve got a lot of other bands I need to baby-sit for. There would be no time, need, or inclination to every get some kind of redundancy going on.

Yeah, now I’m the Jimmy Page instead of the Robert Plant. Now I live in a weird castle, I read Crowley, I twiddle knobs, and get to be the mysterious producer guy that wears a cloak around town! [Laughs] Right?! Well, something like that.

Not so far on this label. There is a general malaise and discontent amongst the populous, whether it’s related to politics or not. I mean, these are very confusing times, but this is not a war protest, Cindy Sheehan record label. I sign good artists that have good shit to say and it doesn’t have to be about Bush. Everyone has this idea that I’m completely obsessed with this guy. You know what? He’s an Idiot and that’s granted, but I’m not obsessed. I’m just pissed off at what’s going on and as are a lot of other people. But other people might feel more comfortable singing about other stuff and that’s great, that’s what it’s supposed to be about. This just so happens to be what I’m comfortable singing about. And I say “singing” in a loose way, so let’s not get carried away!

I really don’t see a lot of fundamental change coming up after a Democrat gets in office, because to me that’s pretty obvious that’s what’s going to happen. The problem is that the system is broken. All the candidates from either party are owned by the same people. So we’ll see some cosmetic changes, like I keep saying, we’ll probably see some cheaper iPhones.

We’ll probably see a couple attempts at alternative fuel, and I say attempts mind you. That’ll keep people pacified, so they’re not rioting in the streets and screaming, “The world’s falling apart! You guys suck!”

I think we’re at the breaking point now. It’s really great in the short term to get governed by fear, which is what’s happening now. I pretty much put that out there in that Eisenhower speech from ’59 on this new record.

Yeah. So we’ve come a really long way, yeah? [Laughs] You Know? It’s the same shit. In a short term solution to ascend and hold on to power, fear is a great motivator, just ask Joseph Goebbels from the Nazi party. It works great in the short term. But not if you’re talking about a ten thousand year Reich, which is what Karl Rove thought. It only works in the short term because people reach the fulcrum or the tipping point and say, “Fuck this! I’m tired of looking for terrorists under my couch, bed and pillows and everywhere I go. I’m not going to live like that.” Fear is a motivator for only a short period of time and I think people are fed up with it.

Well, like I said, I think the election will get us cosmetic changes. Everyone asks me, “Are you gonna vote for Hillary?” Well, no.

Exactly! Why should I (vote for her)!? It’s the same fucking zebul. Not even if it’s Clinton, even if it’s Barrack Obama. I don’t wanna hear about how he’s the new face of politics, give me a fucking break. They’ve all been bought and sold by special interest. Until we change the system, nothing is going to happen. When people ask me who I’m going to vote for, I’ll tell you what, I’m going to vote for any other party except the two names that we have, Democrat or Republican. If enough people…well, everyone says that’s a wasted vote, everyone got all mad at Nader, “Oh, he ruined the election, “ all that shit.

Yeah, exactly. But what I’m trying to say is, if more people voted independently and voted their conscience, voted with their brains instead of voting for the lesser of two evils, we might actually have a third party or a fourth or a fifth or a sixth. It is not a wasted vote. Stay informed, stay active because it affects your future, but just don’t vote for the lesser of two evils, vote for what you believe.

Cosmetic change, sure. I think that is where the country is going and everyone will feel all warm and fuzzy for six or seven years. Oh yay! But it’s been the same old bullshit since the mid-1800s. The assassination of Lincoln, that started it all. Cosmetic changes are great, but I don’t see a fundamental change. We have to look within ourselves. It’s not just fixing the political system by taking the special interest out of democracy. Because the money is already spent, the people are all ready bought, the candidates are already sold. There’s nothing you can really do unless we get rid of this actual system. The system has to be changed so money is not the only factor. So that it’s ideas not money that gets somebody elected to govern for the people, not against the people. But it’s also a fundamental change from within. Do we really need all this shit that advertisers just shove down our throats? Like the only way that you’re a cool person is if you have flat abs and own a BMW? It’s this kind of consumerism that’s consumed us.

[Laughs] There you go. It’s the same thing that happened in Rome. We’re at that stage.

Of course. I wouldn’t be doing the right thing if that didn’t happen.

Of course. These days that’s the feather in your cap. Old Uncle Georgie sicked the IRS on me a couple years ago and tried to make it as painful as possible. They figured me being named Al and from Chicago that they’d take the tax route to get me in jail, but that didn’t work because all my taxes were in order. As far as my phones being tapped, I can’t think for one possible second that they’re not. Whatever, I’ve got nothing to hide. I don’t do drugs, I don’t drive drunk, I don’t rob banks, I don’t have extramarital affairs, I don’t have any kind of scandal sheet on me. My life before five years ago is pretty much an open book. I was pretty much an open book maniac, but those days are over. So they can do whatever they want.

Well yeah, I’m no longer working on Dealer Standard Time [laughs].

Well, you know, the fuckers take forever. I could never get any work done. [Laughs]

Well we’ve got lots of dancing girls, lots of dancing girls! [Laughs] It’s pretty much a fucking jukebox hootenanny. Since it’s the last one, all the knuckleheads are gonna wanna here all the old stuff, some kids will wanna hear the new stuff, it’s basically put a quarter in my mouth, turn my ear, and I spit out the hits, right? But no, it’s gonna be fun. We’re going to be playing for a long time, it’s about two and a half hours of material. It’s gonna be like the Grateful Dead of Industrial or something [laughs].

Well let’s see, I’ve got so much going on it’s crazy. The covers album is coming out, which is kick ass. It’s a total party on wheels. We’re half way through the last Revolting cocks record. We’re being prolific little boys here. We’re like Jack at the fucking Overlook Hotel, “All Work, No Play,” Right? The Cocks record is very cockish and it’s the last one, I’m putting it to bed as well. It’s called Got Cock? I’m having a lot of fun with it. We’re doing a Cocks covers record right after that, bowing out in the same way as Ministry. Do a regular album then do whatever covers you want to do with a bunch of friends that happen to be hanging around at the time. Then we’ll take it from there. There’s some really great stuff coming out on the label. The new Prong record, Power of the Damager, is coming out. It’s just fucking amazing. I think it’s Tommy’s best ever, at least since his first two.

Buy our T-Shirts! Buy our swag! [Laughs] Make us Republicans! Make us rich! [Laughs]

[Laughs] Alright! Thanks, man!

Ministry begins its final world tour March 25th in Vancouver, B.C. Photographs by Steffan Chirazi