Music reviews. CD reviews. Critically hip!

Ministry is basically Al Jourgensen and Paul Barker. The duo, to their credit, have covered all sorts of musical genres over the course of eight releases, putting their mark on everything from Dance to alternative to metal to industrial and back again. Their dance work pushed the envelope, sometimes enthralling, sometimes mundane, sometimes room-clearing. Their latest release, ANIMOSITISOMINA, is clearly in the metal category and is, alas, better forgotten.

ANIMOSITISOMINA is a CD that will make, or at least should make, a lot of parents uneasy and wondering what happened to that nice lad Ice-T. They'll hear little Johnny or Susie, who keep themselves locked in their bedroom for hours, playing what sounds like Linda Blair's possession soundtrack from The Exorcist: lots of ham-handed, aggressive power chords and razor-gargled unintelligible vocals full of hate and anger. And then if Mom or dad would happen to pick the lock and venture into their child's sanctum sanctorum when the offspring is down at the local mall buying new black lipstick, they might find the CD booklet to ANIMOSITISOMINA, which, in lieu of photos of the band, features roadkill shots with the Christian Cross, the Jewish Star of David, and the Moslem Crescent superimposed over them. I'm sure there's a lot of symbolism going on here about religion and destruction and all that good stuff but as a lot of musicians, actors, and actresses are coming to find out the fact that your job description is a step or two above court jester doesn't make you any more qualified a commentator on current events than some fat slob with a camera and bad hygiene who could be named Michael Moore.

So we're left with the music. Too bad for Ministry, and too bad for us. All things considered, ANIMOSITISOMINA doesn't start off all that badly. "Animosity," in fact, starts things off quite nicely, with a three-chords and a cloud of dust mentality that gets the blood racing while at the same time making you hope that the entire CD isn't gonna be like it. It isn't.

"Unsung" and "Piss (Ministry)" bear traces of a Perry Farrell /Jane's Addiction stamp. "Unsung," in particular, almost sounds like it could have been an outtake from NOTHING'S SHOCKING, written, perhaps, while Farrell's connection was on vacation. Things go downhill rather quickly however, as if Ministry ran out of ideas while they still had plenty of CD left. "Broken," however, tends to meander on a bit, sounding like a motor trip driven at 80 miles an hour but going about three exits past its destination. "Shove," similarly, limps loudly past the point where it wears out whatever welcome it may have had, while "Impossible" loops in on itself; the title to this track answers the question of whether it can be listened to all the way through more than once. The guys save the worst for last, however, with "Leper," a nine-minute instrumental that goes on for about three days too long, repeating the same riff over the droning of an intergalactic refrigerator.

ANIMOSITISOMINA isn't going to win Ministry any new fans, and will undoubtedly erode the fan base they do have, at least to some extent. This CD may have been consider a good career move in light of the reported "death" of the superstar DJ Scene, but if the guys are looking to jump genres they might try a different one next time. Parents, this one, ultimately, is more boring than dangerous.