Colin Roberts Photos
Ministry at College Street.
The Industrial Strength Tour rolled through New Haven Friday night, boasting a trio of bands each with a career spanning approximately four decades. Ministry, Melvins and Corrosion Of Conformity are among some of the most influential and longest tenured in their respective heavy metal sub-genres, and in front of an engaged — and sometimes rowdy — audience at College Street Music Hall, they proved why.
The tour was originally planned to coincide with the 30th anniversary of Ministry’s genre-defining industrial metal album, The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste, but pandemic woes pushed the celebration back a couple years. And even though Ministry — as well as Melvins — had released new material since, all three bands stuck to the classic material, reminding fans why they loved these bands so much in the first place.
Corrosion Of Conformity kicked things off with their bluesy swamp-rock take on stoner metal. Soaring Black Sabbath-inspired riffs and psychedelic guitar solos have been the band’s theme ever since lead singer/guitarist Pepper Keenan took over as frontman in 1994. Smiling and looking to be genuinely enjoying themselves, the band played songs mainly from their mid-’90s run, including material from their major label releases Deliverance and Wiseblood. After telling the audience to come hang out and drink beer with them at the merch table, COC closed things out on an extended jam version of their rock radio breakthrough song “Clean My Wounds.”
Melvins came on second, providing more energy as singer/guitarist Buzz Osborne bounced around the stage. Sporting one of his iconic kimonos with eyeball emblem and puffed-out curly hair, the singer led the band through a set of fan favorites. Songs like the more blistering “Anaconda,” “Honey Bucket,” and “Queen” touched on the group’s heavy early-’90s output, while “Billy,” “The Kicking Machine,” and “Civilized Worm” brought in the more classic-rock inspired riffing of their early 2000s collaborations with rock duo Big Business.
Aside from the well-known material, Melvins worked in a new song, “Never Say You’re Sorry,” from their recent Amphetamine Reptile Records released EP, The Lord Of The Flies, as well as a cover of bassist Steven Shane MacDonald’s band Red Kross, with the bassist taking lead vocals himself. In typical Melvins fashion, drummer Dale Crover’s unique frenetic style of playing filled the gaps between songs in lieu of on-stage banter.
Before the headliners took the stage, the Ukranian national anthem played over the PA, accompanied by an image of the nation’s flag adorned with “Ministry Stands With Ukraine” displayed on the projection screen. The audience cheered in support of the sentiment as the band burst into its relentless set.
Confined behind a chain-link fence, Ministry ripped through anthem after anthem at ear-splitting decibel levels. The combination of volume as well as pulsing lights and cryptic visual projections sent the audience into a frenzy, prompting lead singer Al Jourgensen to comment that it was the best moshpit of the tour. While the aforementioned album, 1989’s The Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Taste, was the centerpoint of the band’s set, with songs like “Thieves” and “Breathe” getting big crowd responses, Ministry touched on two other major releases of the era as well. “Stigmata” and “Deity,” from the band’s 1988 album The Land Of Rape And Honey, and “Just One Fix” and “N.W.O.,” from the 1992 record Psalm 69: The Way To Succeed And The Way To Suck Eggs also made appearances.
But it was perhaps the three-song sequence of non-Ministry songs that was most surprising. Mid-set, the band played a cover of Black Sabbath’s “Supernaut,” a version created by Jourgensen’s side project 1000 Homo DJs in 1990. That was followed up with a pair of songs by Pailhead — the singer’s collaboration with Washington, D.C. punk legend Ian MacKaye — which Jourgensen pointed out had not been played live before this tour.
Following their set, the industrial icons removed the fence and played an encore consisting of material from their latest record, Moral Hygeine, and a fiery take on The Stooges’ “Search And Destroy,” proving why they remain one of the biggest bands in metal.
Perfect summation of the show by a clear fan. Nice article! And definitely a newsworthy event - a lot of great acts come to College Street but this one was special. All 3 bands headliners in their own right, with - as noted - historic significance to the metal genre. Love that NHV is such a music destination again since College Street MH opened!