Ministry's Jourgensen is a Man

When I interviewed Paul Barker of Ministry last year, he described band mate Al Jourgensen as a different type of individual with a unique perspective and the constitution of a bull. The singer’s strength and demeanor has definitely led to him being viewed as a misunderstood mad man in many quarters, but what’s undeniable is that he is one of the few artists in rock who has managed to maintain a certain mysterious aura about him that the years have done little to deteriorate. Rumors have consistently circulated about his alleged drug use and supposed erratic behavior, yet this band has been able to consistently tour without cancellations throughout their careers in the pulsating maelstrom of this group.

With a live DVD which came out last spring and the recent release of their newest effort entitled Animositisomina, Al and his crew have yet again been taking their powerful multimedia live show on the road. It’s clear from the first few moments of the performance when George Bush’s visage is shown flying around on the video screen above the band with his mouth in continuous motion spewing inaudible chaos, that Al doesn’t mind mixing a certain degree of political awareness with his stage show. At one point during his performance in Albuquerque, Jourgensen was heard to mutter, “no blood for oil,” and with that statement, his position was clear—the war is wrong, the President is wrong—think for yourselves.

Anyone with even a rudimentary knowledge of civics should realize that expressing one’s own beliefs is what this country was founded on, and when given the opportunity to do so, Jourgensen doesn’t shy away from exercising this right. One of the most disturbing aspects of this entire war is the belief by many in our society that speaking out against a specific national stance or a specific member of the government is somehow unpatriotic when in fact expressing ones views in any non violent form should only be taken as an opportunity for discussion and a forum for understanding. It is for this reason that Al should be considered the epitome of a true American for not being reticent to admit that he has his own ideas and not being afraid to express himself accordingly.

KNAC.COM: I know that you’re a huge Chicago Blackhawk fan, and given that, I’ve got to know whether or not you consider yourself the Chris Chelios of rock?
JOURGENSEN: Hmm, not Chelios…probably more like Jeremy Roenick.

KNAC.COM: Roenick!?
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, I don’t like him as a person too much, but I like the way he plays. Man, Chicago folded like a cheap tent this year.

KNAC.COM: Are you still going to get the Blackhawk logo inked on your chest?
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, but I’m getting it done in Philadelphia of all places by a Flyers fan, so I hope he doesn’t fuck it up.

KNAC.COM: I hope you can see what he’s doing or you may end up with an entirely different tattoo from what you were expecting.
JOURGENSEN: That’ll never happen.

KNAC.COM: I know that when you were recording Animositisomina that Ministry was holed up forty miles outside of El Paso. I’ve got to ask you though, does it make any difference at all whether you’re located forty miles outside El Paso or actually in El Paso?
JOURGENSEN: Good question—not much, I don’t think, but where we were at, there was nothing. We didn’t have access to an ATM machine or even cell phone service. I guess that would be the biggest difference. There was more cactus than people…

KNAC.COM: Did you find it inspirational or spiritual in any way, or was it just a place to go where you wouldn’t get distracted?
JOURGENSEN: Pretty much that, man. After recording in Chicago all these years, it just became party central there, and it was nice to be able to go and get your work done without getting hounded.

”[Bush has an IQ of] of 91, which is just right above retarded. That’s not just sad, it’s insane.”

KNAC.COM: Does the juxtaposition of Bush in your stage show where he appears to be flying around the screen and speaking without saying anything encapsulate your feelings toward him and his administration?
JOURGENSEN: That guy is the worst, man. You know, they did an I.Q. test of Presidents since 1950, and I think it started with Eisenhower. Anyway, Bush ranked lower than any of them. He had a score of 91, which is just right above retarded. That’s not just sad, it’s insane.

KNAC.COM: Do you think that when history looks back on Bush that there is the potential for him to look worse than Nixon?
JOURGENSEN: I think he’s gonna go down as bad or worse than Saddam Hussien.

KNAC.COM: When you said, “no blood for oil” during the Albuquerque performance and the response was mixed, did it bother you that so many people appear to have bought into this whole “liberation of Iraq” spin control strategy implemented by the Bush administration?
JOURGENSEN: Oh, you mean the Coalition of Killing? Yeah, this guy is a dope. I will do everything in my power to raise the awareness level to get him out of office. Individually, we need him to step down. He is disgusting and doubtlessly the worst President we’ve ever had in the fucking history of the United States.

KNAC.COM: Why does the rest of the world seem to share that view, yet his approval rating in the U.S. appears—at least by media accounts—to be higher than ever?
JOURGENSEN: The rest of the world doesn’t have to watch CNN and Fox News working all their jingoism and spins. If you watch the BBC or something, you get more of an all-encompassing picture of what is actually going on.

KNAC.COM: So basically, you question the information that the citizens of the US are getting about what has gone on in Iraq?
JOURGENSEN: I don’t question it. It’s just so blatantly biased that it’s appalling. The only question I have is how people can buy into this.

KNAC.COM: Do you have any ideas?
JOURGENSEN: The whole American society has gotten to the point where mediocrity is rewarded, and the whole country seems to have A.D.D. One second they pay attention and then that’s it--that attitude is rewarded. Don’t turn over any stones because you might not like what you find, but I did see people coming out in San Francisco the other day making their feelings known in the streets, and we had a gig that night. I have to say I was proud to be an American that day.

"I don’t care if I never work in this town or that town again or if they want to Dixie Chick my ass, I’ll Dixie Chick them right back."

KNAC.COM: How scary is it to have the government of the United States of America tell its citizens that any expressions of dissention by the American people somehow puts our troops in jeopardy?
JOURGENSEN: Oh, c’mon. This is really getting to be a fascist state of unequal proportions. I don’t care if I never work in this town or that town again or if they want to Dixie Chick my ass, I’ll Dixie Chick them right back.

KNAC.COM: I’ve talked to many within the rock community who share similar views of the present administration, but they weren’t held up to the scrutiny that the Dixie Chicks have been. Is it because their fan base represents more of what the media and the country view as “typical Americans”?
JOURGENSEN: Well, of course. We just played a show that Clear Channel was promoting, yet, you know--we’re still anti-Bush. That’s not going to change.

KNAC.COM: Do you think the video screen behind the band has as much of an impact on the audience as the lyrics to the songs?
JOURGENSEN: I can’t speak for others. You would have to tell me that.

KNAC.COM: It definitely made a strong statement—especially the part where William S. Burroughs is shooting at various signs labeled “history”, “society” and “image.”
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, well that was footage taken from our “Just One Fix” video that was filmed out in Kansas.

KNAC.COM: What do you see in William S. Burroughs as far as maybe him being a kindred spirit in some way? How do you see him as possibly being similar to you or the ideas the band holds to be important?
JOURGENSEN: Intelligence for starters. “How to Operate Your Brain” was Timothy Leary’s last video. That’s pretty much the blue print.

KNAC.COM: They, in turn, must see something in you.
JOURGENSEN: I think they just know that we preach “think for yourselves”. Don’t be apathetic—be active, be aware.

KNAC.COM: I would imagine that’s why you have so much of a problem with the Bush administration, since their primary message seems to be “don’t express yourself, don’t think—we’ll take care of everything.”
JOURGENSEN: There’s another link to this chain too. Jello Biafra, who is also very outspoken, ran for mayor of San Fransisco and came in second with thirty percent of the vote. That’s what the world needs, more free thinkers.

KNAC.COM: When you guys were recording this album, it’s been said that you kicked your drug addiction, yet I understood that during at least one of the interviews promoting the Sphinctour DVD, you got upset a reporter who posed that question to you. Were you primarily upset because you were sick from withdrawals or were you more upset at having to answer the question in the first place?
JOURGENSEN: I just don’t think it’s anyone’s business. I don’t care what someone does for their recreation as long as it isn’t hurting anyone.

KNAC.COM: So obviously you are completely against drug testing in general? Say for a prospective employee of Wal-Mart or something.
JOURGENSEN: God yeah. That’s a complete intrusion of privacy. The first amendment besides covering free speech also covers individual freedom.

KNAC.COM: Do you think that intruding into peoples’ private lives is a societal problem though? The preoccupation during the Clinton administration centered primarily around Monica Lewinsky rather than anything he was actually doing or not doing while he was in office carrying out his responsibilities as President.
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, I mean if he ended up with a venereal wart or two, that’s really nobody’s business.

KNAC.COM: Besides what is going on in the world at large, you were recently married as well. How has that affected your music?
JOURGENSEN: It’s basically made me focus on the music as an outlet as opposed to scattering my energy in other directions. I’m mostly able to concentrate now on things I’ve been wanting to do for a long time.

KNAC.COM: Does it give you more of a sense of peace to have that focus?
JOURGENSEN: Well, peace has to come from within. This has definitely been a grounding factor, but you have to get your inner peace and move on from there. You can’t change the world before you change yourself.

KNAC.COM: The music you play before hitting the stage is really old country. Could you give me a link between some of the older Buck Owens, Johnny Cash and Hank Williams and the music that you make?
JOURGENSEN: Right off the top of my head…I’d say that country bands used to medley all their hits together. When you start off live, you don’t spend a lot of time dicking around with the crowd. You bring them together and get your business done.

KNAC.COM: And attitude wise?
JOURGENSEN: Attitude wise, you gotta think those were the punk rockers of the ‘50s. They did what was relevant to society at the time and were a mirror image of their environment. It’s no different being an artist today in that respect.

"I’m talking about a movement that will utilize the Internet, and instead of garage bands, you will have Internet bands."

KNAC.COM: Do you think rock and roll is even dangerous anymore? Can it be?
JOURGENSEN: I see people getting sick of it. Like I said, I was proud to be an American that day in San Fransisco. In Chicago and places like that where people stick up for themselves, I see a relevant punk rock movement coming on.

KNAC.COM: A real one?
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, I’m talking about a movement that will utilize the Internet, and instead of garage bands, you will have Internet bands. When people realize that the Internet is not just a home shopping club, I think there will be a lot more people doing things for themselves.

KNAC.COM: Do you think the motivation for attempting to regulate the exchange of ideas on the Internet comes from the government’s inability to control it?
JOURGENSEN: They will eventually find a way to surpress it, and then the people will eventually find a way around it. It’s been that way throughout history.

KNAC.COM: For example, I don’t know exactly what Pete Townsend was guilty of, if anything, but isn’t going through peoples’ hard drives and monitoring their web extremely dangerous to personal freedom as well.
JOURGENSEN: Yeah, well they might as well be going through your garbage.

KNAC.COM: In sense, your cyber garbage is exactly what it is. Is the main message of Animositisomina still “think for yourself’?
JOURGENSEN: Yep, it’s been the same thing we’ve been pounding away at for years.

KNAC.COM: Albeit in a very loud, aggressive way.
JOURGENSEN: Yeah well, you gotta break a few eggs to make an omelet.

fallen23 - 8/15/2005 10:28:02 AM
Jourgensen's sobriety carries a hundred times the weight of some nancy Reagan Just say no campaign and helps me stay clean and for that I am ever grateful. Ministry has never sounded better and I can't wait for RIO GRANDE BLOOD. FUCK BUSH

samaelle - 7/25/2003 3:01:53 AM
hi dudes.. im from switzerland;) my english sucks but wanna tell you somehting;) well, the question is not "is saddam an asshole or not"*reffering to soiledsoul's articel*.. the real question is: what happens after the war. The governemten of the USA wants to install a pseudoDemocratic governement in the iraq, with no respect of people's history and religion. They pump the hell out of the oil fields because the UNO has no eye on america. anyway. "the weapons of massdestruction" are now in kuwait. or... dont remember in iran... well they didnt find it in iraq;).. hm.. so i hope bush has no dream of weapons of mass destruction in switzerland;) well, soiledsoul.. you're fighting in bagdad.. your a soldier... you dont question what your doing, else you wouldnt be a soldier and I agree with you people there needed someone who help them but if you further, the people in cuba needs you too, well fidel castro isnt dangerous and they have no money and oil in cuba. the people in africa needs you.. and that leeds us the question.. should america reign *hope i have chosen the right word.. i dont mean the water that fall down to earth;)* the world?? and then, all become fine? well, al, I agree with you.. mr bush is the worst president ever*i watch news.. and.. yes.. he's stupid* and as an entertainer you should do anything to change this shit"white"house, but remember: the clinton administration wan't better, they were diffrent. and please all of yu: watch michael moore's bowling for columbine, roger and me and the big one. I think this guy tells the truth. so, from my dead cold hands;) and god bless my free, brave, wonderful little country switzerland..*joking*/ george

jason - 6/1/2003 4:18:33 PM
Wow. Exactly Ash. Gee. We're just really on the same page here. :):)

ASH_2_ASH - 5/31/2003 9:46:51 AM
I can't get into this band since their clothes aren't cool :)

jason - 5/31/2003 9:24:35 AM
This interview should be on Tokemaster's Joke page. Perhaps they could just put up a picture of Alanis. I mean Alain J.

Dommiel - 5/30/2003 6:34:03 PM
HEY please go to this link and sign this petition to keep heavy metal on the radio. http://www.petitiononline.com/jdp12345/petition.html

ASH_2_ASH - 5/29/2003 3:04:32 PM
I found this quote interesting: Liberals & conservatives are two gangs who have intimidated ratiional, normal thinking beings into not having a voice on television or in the culture. Liberals & conservatives are paradigms that mean nothing to anyone other than the media."

macleod_73 - 5/29/2003 9:37:57 AM
HOOAH, soiledsoul! Who are you with? I did my thing with the 3rd ID, MOS 11M. God bless all our troops! One thing though- most people over here do support the war, and support our troops especially.

soiledsoul - 5/29/2003 7:54:31 AM
I work for the US Army..I am currently in Bagdad. I am a headbanger...I love rock as much as I love my country. Let me put a few things out. Most of the people in america don't agree with this war. Its really easy to talk when your not here. To see the people day after day that have lived in the face of evil, and now to be liberated by us. People its not always about what the media says. These people needed us, I've had grown men tear up infront of me because of what we've done. The media says this is a war on terror. Well, ok if that justifies send us over here fine. I call it spreading freedom. I have liberated 2 countries. Kosovo, and now Iraq. I never once questioned it! Some people get so involed with ranting about this and that they lose the big picture. When the war was broadcast on every network, the american people where blood thirsty, just like Afgainistan. And like Afgainistan the war has calmed and now look around TV land...no more coverage on the war. Unless someone dies, just enough to fuel the fire. People, the man said think for yourself. I say question reality. Whats on the news isn't always real. I've been to enough countries to know. The american public has a cloth over its head. The War Has Meaning to many people. Just because the president and all his folks says one thing, doesn't mean thats the real thing. So when your sitting there drinking your cold beer, taking hot showers, and driving around seeing friends and family. Just remember their are alot of rockers over here doing there job, and rockin' too. And do me a favor...stop bitchin' and wave a flag for us..swollow a little pride and wait till we come home..then we can solve the worlds problems.

Karsogen - 5/29/2003 6:27:35 AM
were all in thias shit hole together. yall keep bitching about freedom and equality. What the fuck do u think that is going to solve. There isnt shit we can do about it. All the protest are a waste of time. All protesting is, is a way for yall to make yall selves feel better. If your out protesting you already know that your apart of a much bigger picture. What makes you think you can make a diffrence? You say well we have numbers. Bullshit it doesnt matter. When you protesting all your doing is feeding your subconssiance's need to feel important and apart of something bigger. I think protesters are selfish and really dont care about others. The protest that happened in chicago a while back people in ambulances couldnt get throught the streets because of protesters. Peolpe died isnt that what they were protesting about. forgien people dying in a war. People who hate americans. I think the protesters are as bad as the forigners them selves. killing innocent americans. I dont see how yall can live with yourselves

nemesis511 - 5/28/2003 6:48:55 PM
americaneyes: you use the word free like its a synonym for safe. We will lose our rights so we can be SAFE, not free, freedom doesnt have dick to do with any of this. 9/11 was not a threat to our freedom, it was a threat to our safety, freedom is just a word used to heighten the levels of patriotic bullshit. and quit whining about being branded un-american, it really is pathetic, you ARE a "leftist liberal piece of shit" so dont get all huffy when you are called one. it should come as no suprise. and your telling me to get off the short bus? fuck you, ive probably seen more shit in my 18 years than you have in your entire life, and before you lay on your arrogant little pre school slurs let me just say that i have lived in the US for 6 years, and i lived in europe for 7, so i'll go ahead and assume that i know just a tad more than you about the political feeling in europe.

nemesis511 - 5/28/2003 6:41:33 PM
maleitch: holy shit! is this someone with a more conservative point of view on the knac message board? thank God, i was waiting. Im tired of hearing all this liberal hippy bullshit 24/7 on these stupid boards, your the first person that has made any sense whatsoever. The thing i do find funniest is all these whinny liberals saying how they are suppressed and persecuted for voicing their anti american views, but im sorry, all i fucking hear is anti american views, the fucking liberal media is the biggest speaker box for the left, how the fuck can you liberals even say that you cant voice your opinion without being called out? it defies logic in every fucking form. What channels do you watch? the only conservative news channel in the US is fox news, the rest are completely left, i mean for God sakes they interviewed michael moore on CNN and the newscaster was practically choking on his balls! Im sorry but i have heard one celebrity actually voice any support for Bush, that was Dennis miller, the rest bash him non stop, so do me, and yourself, a favor and whine somewhere else about how your bush bashing is viewed as unamerican.

americaneyes - 5/27/2003 11:24:36 PM
Maleitch-Let me first say that I do not hate America. Its not just Bush that I have problems with, its the whole damn bunch of them. I personally never made a claim of being opressed and I havent seen any body else make the claim either. What did you learn on your 3 month sojourn to Europe? How informed did you become with that experience being one of the whopping 7% of the population that leaves American borders? Because someone has a different opinion on politics does not make them un American, in fact it is that diversity that makes America great, a mutual respect of opposing views. As for huge mistakes, well our country was for warned by several other countries of the impending attack on 9-11 and nothing was done about it. The protocols that were supposed to go into effect when a plane gets hi-jacked (scrambeling of fighter jets approx 4 min. after confirmation of a hi-jacking) didnt happen for over an hour. Now we have this war on terroism that cannot be won because these terrorist are like cockaroaches, meanwhile in order to secure our freedom we are to believe that we need to lose some of our rights in order to remain free. Meanwhile the goverment goes around the planet instigating regime changes like that will have no effect on our own national securities, while we are freely investigated and our borders remain wide open for anyone to come walking in. (terror alert orange)How about N.Korea?

maleitch - 5/27/2003 8:21:39 PM
Oh and hippiechick, didn't your single mom ever teach you that a woman's place is rightfully behind a man. It says so in the Koran. Now shut up and go fix me some dinner while us men talk about men stuff on our male only created devices...

maleitch - 5/27/2003 8:16:49 PM
Wow another leftist entertainer too stupid to realize he is being more of a conformist then any of us right wing Nazi's. You sheep spout out more party lines than any conservative I know. Let me fill you guys in on something. You are not suffering, and you are not oppressed even though you would like to think you are. You come up with this imaginary revolution hoping to get aproval from your worthless washed up former hippie parents. You want for nothing and you have it easier than ANY previous generation. Please spare me how stupid the rest of are, and how persecuted you are for your brilliantly original ideas. Next you are going to be telling us that religion is just a method of mind control for the stupid massess...blah...blah...blah. Go read me some Rage Against the Machine lyrics...yawn. Wow, you are on the same side as that fat pig from the Dixie Chicks... How can those of us on the right face such an onslaught of intellectual pontification. I mean you chickenshits are more worried about what the rest of the world thinks than the security of this country. It must suck to be an adult and still want to fit in with such a large group of winners. I thought you guys were all about NOT being part of the popular crowd? Almost smacks of conformity? Oh and I spent 3 months in Europe so I am not ignorant of such matters like some of you will want to assume. Oh, and yeah I do think you are Un-American. Hell, hating America is so en-vogue now that I should invest in American flag toilet paper stock. So remember you are not being some free-thinker. People like you are a dime a dozen, just like people on my side (although my side is usually wealthier, happier, more educated, and meat eaters). Finally this constant Bush bashing. He may not be the sharpest knife in the drawer, but his cabinet is off the chart when it comes to intelligence. So what "huge mistakes" is he making besides not being soft-bellied liberal? Feel free to back up your zealous hatred with some facts (including sources) any time you want to. Wait, aren't you guys the party of tolerance. Oh yeah I forgot, you are tolerant of accused rapists, but reformed coke-heads with a bank account should burn in some non-denominational hell. Ok, now it is your turn. So hit me with your open-minded arguments. P.S. It is a proven fact that N.A.M.B.L.A members vote democrat *kisses*

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