I always have to stop myself when I say I like “all kinds of music”. Because, honestly, that just isn’t true, there is really only one kind of music I like. No, not [just] Black Metal, I’m talking about music in a minor key. I mean, I’m a pretty happy guy, but there is something about sad, sad songs that just does it for me. I don’t dislike Vivaldi’s “Spring” and “Fall”, but I far prefer “Summer” and “Winter” (guess which seasons he writes in a minor key). “Satisfaction” is a fine song, but I’d rather listen to “Paint it Black” any day…you get the idea. Basically, it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that sting [of soul crushing sorrow and sadness].
This month on Minor Key Monday I discuss the world’s most famous industrial metal band’s “early stuff”:
Many familiar with Ministry may be surprised when they hear today’s song. That’s right, before Ministry rose to industrial fame, they were a cheesy new wave synthpop band who toured with The Police. Now, I’m not really all that big a fan of their synthpop album “With Sympathy” (an album about which their frontman has been trying to pretend he was never into that shit in the first place for years even though it seems he so totally was), but today’s track, “Revenge,” is pretty goddamn killer.
The first thing you notice, and the thing that makes the song teeter between awesome and ridiculous is the synthwork. They really shouldn’t work as well as they do, everytime they pop up they threaten to make the song go careening out of control down some kind of really cheesy cliff, and then, at the last minute, your mind is like “nah, that was awesome.”
I do pretty unabashedly love synthpop, especially when the melodies are dark and epic like this song, so it was really no surprise I like this track as much as I do. It’s just too bad that most of the rest of the album is full of non-dark melodies and smooth jazz sax solos.
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