Ministry

Ministry was as much a part of industrial metal's mainstreaming as Nine Inch Nails, which is no surprise given the Leatherface grooves ("Stigmata," "The Missing"), New Order synth tones ("Every Day Is Halloween," "All Day"), and deep, punchy drum beats ("The Land of Rape and Honey," "Breathe") that permeate their dirty, rotten, and resonant take on pop tunes.

As if the myriad personnel changes in Ministry weren't difficult enough to track (founder Al Jourgensen is the group's sole constant), they also have a slew of solid side projects. We've sifted through it all for you, picking out the abstract post-punk of Pailhead (featuring Ian MacKaye of Fugazi/Minor Threat), the rhythmic sample collages of PTP, the one-off Cabaret Voltaire collaboration Acid Horse, the industrial supergroup 1000 Homo DJs (including Trent Reznor and punk icon Jello Biafra), and Jourgensen's other, more nihilistic fulltime outlet, the Revolting Cocks.

Maybe it's because "Forkboy" actually sounds like a relentless series of stab wounds, suffered via a rusty utensil set, or the chain-gun thrash that drives "T.V. 2" and "Never Believe" home like a runaway locomotive. Whatever the reason, our Ministry Deep Cuts delves into dark, malevolent territory — a strangely alluring place where even a song called "Ballad" carries a menacing sensibility.

The cowboy/biker crossbreeding and utter craziness quotient of Ministry founder Al Jourgensen built him up as one of the most incomparable characters of the industrial-metal movement. Lucky for him (and Ministry's many side projects), there's decent music to be had beyond the band's heroin problems and stylistic shifts. Truth be told, Ministry's sound wasn't as serrated as you'd imagine when it spread like germs in the early '80s. Jourgensen actually tackled steely synth-pop (a trademark of their Early Trax) before he was slaughtered for the next few decades by a firing squad of standoffish riffs, nail-gun synths, and well-stocked samplers.