Ministry – The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste

The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste, released in November 1989 on Sire/Warner Bros., represents a critical turning point in Ministry’s evolution toward industrial metal. Recorded over 1988–1989 at Chicago Trax Studios, the album expands upon the abrasive textures of their prior work by injecting aggressive guitar riffs, mechanized percussion, and dystopian sampling. Al Jourgensen’s confrontational vocals and Paul Barker’s layered programming coalesce across tracks that confront corruption, violence, addiction, and psychological collapse. The result is a darker, more uncompromising sound that bridges dance-floor machinery and metal heft.

Though not their highest-selling album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste went gold in the U.S., and subsequent retrospectives often cite it as a definitive moment in Ministry’s catalog. Tracks like “Thieves,” “Burning Inside,” and “So What” still loom large in industrial canon, and its structural pacing—alternating assault with atmosphere—remains a template for later works. For collectors and new listeners alike, it’s viewed as both a bold consolidation of Ministry’s earlier impulses and a platform for their most influential phase to follow.

Reviews

"Fusing thrash guitars with excellent synth and percussion work, Ministry lay the foundation for even more followers of the band's music." – AllMusic

“While not their best-selling album … it went gold and cemented Ministry as a force to be reckoned with for twenty more years.” – Sputnikmusic

“A beacon that attracted hundreds of other industrial bands to its bright light. … It is truly incredible what Al Jourgensen, Paul Barker and their many friends have done here.” – Metal Storm