Filth Pig
Filth Pig makes things difficult for both Ministry and their listeners. The band slow down, move the guitars further forward and remove much of the familiar electronic activity. A thick, dirty sound takes its place. The music still has something mechanical about it, but the movement feels heavier and less sharply defined than on their earlier industrial records.
Reload opens with a short, restless attack before the title track drops the pace considerably. Riffs have time to settle in, and even a harmonica finds a place within the distortion. Lava maintains that heavy approach. Rhythm often matters more than melody in these songs. Bass and drums carry substantial weight while Al Jourgensen's voice scrapes between the instruments.
That produces a strong atmosphere and an obvious problem. When a riff keeps repeating and the sounds have little space, the pressure can become tiring. Each repetition does not necessarily add tension. Parts of the middle stretch make the songs harder to distinguish than their individual ideas deserve.
The Fall brings another colour into the record, using piano to sustain the darkness differently. The cover of Bob Dylan's Lay Lady Lay provides an even more noticeable interruption. Its melody stays recognisable and the bass maintains the movement, although this gentler approach sits slightly apart from the surrounding material.
Filth Pig is interesting because Ministry seriously explore an uncomfortable direction. The combination of slow riffs, rough rhythms and unfriendly sounds has an attraction of its own. A tighter selection would have made a stronger album, but listeners who connect with its heavy, unsettled atmosphere receive considerably more than a repeat of an earlier success.
