Mexico City is undoubtedly a place where the rock and metal concert billboard is very wide. Almost every weekend there is a show to attend with national or international talent, and in the meantime there are many concerts that go by without penalty or glory, others good to dry and others better. However, there is a select group of concerts that become legendary. Every time people talk about the group in question, people will say something like "I remember when they came in the year" x "to the forum" x "and gave an unforgettable concert. The Ministry show on March 13, 2015 certainly falls into that category.
I arrive at the Flying Circus and I find myself on a stage that alone, without any musician above it, is impressive and makes your skin stand on end. It is not the giant screen where you know visual chaos will break out when Ministry is playing. Nor are the imposing banners on the sides with the eagle over the "M" that identifies the band's logo. It is that pedestal: that imposing skull base with the crooked structure that supports the microphone and that remains alone in the middle of the stage, the one that absorbs you and tells you that the legend will be here.
Half an hour after the start time, the lights go out. The sounds of pistons and machinery starting are giving way one by one to the appearance of the members of the Ministry, who with "Hail to His Majesty" start the screams of all the audience that still and open-mouthed enjoys the song that in my way of see, it's like a long intro. But it is Ministry who is on stage, there is no room for stillness. And the next track of the night is “Punch In The Face” which literally is like a punch that takes you out of the hypnotic morass and unleashes now, yes, the madness sick in the assistants of the enclosure of the beam. "PermaWar" and "Fairly Unbalanced" are songs with a heavier, mechanical industrial beat, and make the neck-driving gears move in unison up and down to the beat of Sin Quirin's guitar.
And then, one discovers that Ministry does not bring contemplations and that what he wants is to unleash an insane war between the assistants. Put together “Rio Grande Blood” and “Señor Peligro” in the fifth song; It is merciless brutality! . Both are fast-paced and deadly aggressive songs, and the slam on the forum turns into a storm of blows and jostles where music and chaotic visuals with images of George W. Bush contribute to losing their minds insanely. Tony Campos and his rude presence with the bass complement that feeling of aggressiveness that only he knows how to inspire the same in Ministry, as in other bands like Soulfly, Asesino or the extinct Static X. “LiesLiesLies” and “Waiting” are again 2 songs very similar to each other, not as aggressive as their predecessors but with enough rhythm to keep fans dancing and jumping with everything, while in the mosh the hits and clashes are in bulk.
Al Jourgensen's presence deserves a personalized and separate description in this review. Uncle Al is a living legend. A disturbed mind influenced by the vast majority of the bands of the industrial genre. It gives the impression of a dark and insane space cowboy who has been lost on earth and seeing the man become a myth sing behind his demonic pedestal is an image that remains in the mind forever. The life full of excesses has left visible sequels, and the wear and tear on his physique and energy is remarkable (many would be surprised in fact that he can continue on tour, many would have already died with the pace of life that Jourgensen has led), but the Uncle Al is an immortal entity, and his raspy voice can turn a whole room upside down when performing songs like "Worthless", "Watch Yourself" and "Life Is Good".
And the peak moment of the concert is approaching. Ministry has returned to establish again and after their last visit that dates back 11 years ago (but as part of a poster in which many went by other bands, never alone) their new world order, and with “NWO” we all dance and we move like obedient robots to the master sentinel in a post-apocalyptic world. Later "Just One Fix" puts everyone in the air to jump with its festive and catchy sound.
And then, the supreme and tremendous moment. That choppy riff by a hacksaw effect everyone expects and makes fans howl with excitement. The most anticipated song of the night is here. If you are a regular assistant to the bars of this city with a gothic-industrial concept (Dada X, UTA, El Real Under, etc.), at least once you have danced and jumped with “Thieves”. But this time it is not a console or a DJ, this time it is Al Jourgensen himself who sings it, and what happens next is indescribable: A hypnotic chaos breaks out and you just let yourself be carried by the boring rhythm from beginning to end hitting, jumping, screaming, pushing, singing ...; really something that is never forgotten; What song!. The trip full of rare laughs with "So What" and a brief encore that gives way to "Khyber Pass" (a song that is like an outro, but tired and eternal) close the night, but in my opinion they were too much: " Thieves ”and what happened at that moment is where the concert gave everything and exploited to the maximum, and it is in fact what, as I talked at the beginning of the review, one will talk and remember for years to come each one that speaks about Ministry, and of that visit of March 13, 2015. Sin Quirin returns to throwing pens in abundance for the attendees, and everyone leaves happy and sweaty at home, knowing that they have witnessed history.