Metal band nominated for Grammy to disband due to lead singer’s fatigue – masslive.com
American industrial rock band Ministry, known for their Grammy-nominated music, is preparing to bid farewell one last time. Lead singer Al Jourgensen recently shared the reason behind the band’s impending end, citing his exhaustion with music as the driving force.
During an interview on Full Metal Jackie’s radio show, Jourgensen expressed, “My ears are tired from music. The reason I say that, and that’s the reason I’m ending Ministry, it’s not so much for any health reasons or any kind of band conflicts or anything like that. It’s just that my ears are tired.” The 66-year-old musician revealed that the challenge of avoiding repetition and continually pushing creative boundaries has become increasingly difficult as the band has evolved over the years.
Ministry was founded in 1981 by Jourgensen, initially as a synth-pop group before transitioning to industrial rock and metal in the late 1980s. Their shift in sound propelled them to the forefront of the genre, with several of their albums in the late ’80s and early ’90s achieving commercial success. “The Land of Rape and Honey” (1988) and “The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste” each attained gold certification, while “Psalm 69” reached platinum status according to the RIAA. The band’s highest-charting album, “Filth Pig,” peaked at No. 19 on the Billboard 200 chart in 1996, solidifying their place in music history.
However, Ministry’s trajectory took a downturn after the release of “Dark Side of the Spoon” in 1999, leading to their departure from Warner Bros. and an extended hiatus in the early 2000s. Despite these challenges, the band made a comeback with “Animositisomina” in 2003, releasing several more albums before disbanding in 2008. A reunion in 2011 saw the release of “Relapse” in 2012, followed by four additional studio albums, with their most recent offering, “Hopiumforthemasses,” dropping in 2024.
Looking ahead, Jourgensen affirmed that Ministry will deliver one final album before officially calling it quits. As he shared during the interview, “We’re halfway done, and it sounds amazing. But just saying that it’s a different kind of vibe. It’s more like a job now as opposed to youthful enthusiasm.” While the exact timeline for the band’s conclusion remains uncertain, fans can catch Ministry on “The Squirrely Years Tour” starting on April 29, including a performance at Roadrunner in Boston on May 14.
In light of Ministry’s imminent farewell, music enthusiasts are invited to relish the band’s legacy and savor their final creations before they bow out of the spotlight for good.