Album Review: Ministry - AmeriKKKant

"It's not an anti-Trump album, it's like a - 'did you pay attention in school? Does anybody have any intellectual curiosity anymore?' - album," Al Jourgensen is quoted as saying in this album's accompanying press release.

Ministry have previously hit creative peaks when main-man Jourgensen felt America's socioeconomic and political landscape was at its bleakest. Case in point; the metal behemoth's underrated anti-Bush trilogy, a volley of blistering, industrialised thrash dripping with vitriol. After about as many swansongs as John Farnham, and a half-decade removed from guitarist Mike Scaccia's death, 'Uncle Al' was sufficiently motivated to reconvene the industrial titans with new personnel in tow.

The manipulated sample of the man in the White House that kicks off opener I Know Words sets the tone. The album often doesn't trade in unadulterated speed - We're Tired Of It is among the exceptions - which may disappoint those who embraced the aforementioned Dubya-inspired fare. But while it can eschew blinding tempos, it doesn't forgo the anger - which rarely relents throughout the album's 50-minute running time - or pounding heaviness. Guest DJ Swamp injects scratches and additional textures, while Fear Factory vocalist Burton C Bell brings a uniquely eerie edge to Wargasm.

Perhaps by record's end you've heard all the tricks up their proverbial sleeves and there are lumbering, even meandering, moments. Overall it's a solid affair, if not a career standout. And that ain't no fake news.