From Beer to Eternity

From Beer to Eternity is the thirteenth studio album by American industrial metal band Ministry, released on September 6, 2013 by 13th Planet Records.[7] Although frontman Al Jourgensen had previously stated that this was going to be Ministry's final album (following the death of guitarist Mike Scaccia, who appears posthumously),[8] a follow-up album, AmeriKKKant, was released in 2018.[9] From Beer to Eternity was also the first Ministry album since Houses of the Molé (2004) not to feature Tommy Victor on guitars or bass.

From Beer to Eternity
a muscular Al Jourgensen holds a net containing seven nude women leering menacingly.
Studio album by
Ministry
ReleasedSeptember 6, 2013 (2013-09-06)
RecordedDecember 2012 – March 2013
Studio13th Planet compound, El Paso, Texas
GenreIndustrial metal, thrash metal[1]
Length54:43
Label13th Planet
ProducerAl Jourgensen, Sammy D'Ambruoso
Ministry chronology
Relapse
(2012)		 From Beer to Eternity
(2013)		 AmeriKKKant
(2018)
Singles from From Beer to Eternity
  1. "PermaWar"
    Released: August 9, 2013
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
The HippoA[3]
Loudwire[4]
Metal Hammer[5]
Sputnikmusic3.0/5[6]

The sole single from the album, "PermaWar", was released by the iTunes Store on August 9, 2013.[10]

Background and recording

In December 2012, Ministry frontman Al Jourgensen, guitarists Mike Scaccia and Sin Quirin, bassist Tony Campos, and drummer Aaron Rossi entered studio sessions and worked on the rough tracks for 18 songs at Jourgensen's 13th Planet Records compound in El Paso, Texas. The sessions turned out to be fruitful, with Jourgensen noting, "We have never, in the history of Ministry, ever had a tracking session like that before. Everything went so smoothly, it was surreal."[11][12]

Three days after the band had completed the sessions, Scaccia, whom Jourgensen described as the driving force behind the record, died onstage playing with his band Rigor Mortis, due to a sudden heart attack brought on by previously undiagnosed heart disease. Following a funeral in Dallas, Jourgensen and co-producer Sammy D'Ambruoso spent three months in studio to put the final touches on the album.[12]

Artwork

The cover art and accompanying artwork was created by photographer Allan Amato. The artwork features seven female models, who act as sexualized and "monster-ified" personifications of seven deadly sins. On the artwork, Al Jourgensen stated:

The Seven Deadly Sins is the intention and the women are not really women. If you look at them, they're not some hot models—I mean, they started out that way, but we completely mutated them just to parody the entire sexuality thing...I guess I'll be taking some heat for being a misogynist by carrying seven women in a bag like they're groupies or something. If I ever saw a groupie look like that on my bus, I guarantee my road manager would have them off the bus within a minute, so it's not a sexual thing. And it's certainly not misogynistic.[13]

The album artwork and the title were mocked by Josh Modell of the A.V. Club, comparing it conceptually to the fictional album Smell the Glove by Spinal Tap.[14] In response and as a joke, Ministry posted new cover artwork, titled Whole Lotta Glove.[15]

A behind-the-scenes video, depicting the creation of the artwork, was released on June 28, 2013.[13]

Track listing

All lyrics are written by Al Jourgensen[16]

From Beer to Eternity standard edition track listing
No.TitleMusicLength
1."Hail to His Majesty (Peasants)"Al Jourgensen, Sin Quirin5:17
2."Punch in the Face"Jourgensen, Quirin5:00
3."PermaWar"Jourgensen, Quirin, Mike Scaccia4:56
4."Perfect Storm"Jourgensen, Quirin4:56
5."Fairly Unbalanced"Jourgensen, Quirin4:15
6."The Horror"Jourgensen, Sammy D'Ambruoso3:33
7."Side F/X Include Mikey's Middle Finger (TV4)"Jourgensen, Scaccia5:14
8."Lesson Unlearned"Jourgensen, Quirin, Scaccia3:16
9."Thanx but No Thanx"Jourgensen8:21
10."Change of Luck"Jourgensen, Quirin, Scaccia7:16
11."Enjoy the Quiet"Jourgensen, Quirin2:39
Total length:54:43
From Beer to Eternity Best Buy Deluxe edition additional tracks
No.TitleMusicLength
12."PermaWar Remix"Jourgensen, Quirin, Scaccia7:23
13."Thanks for the Dub Remix"Jourgensen4:53
Total length:66:19
From Beer to Eternity LP edition additional track
No.TitleMusicLength
12."Punch in the Face Remix"Jourgensen, Quirin7:58
Total length:62:01

Samples

Personnel

Ministry
  • Al Jourgensen – vocals (1–5, 7–10, 12–14), guitars (1, 3, 8–10, 12, 13), keyboards (1, 3, 10, 12), harmonica (3, 12), programming (6), bass (9, 13), production, mixing
  • Mike Scaccia – guitars (3, 7–10, 12), bass (3, 12, 13)
  • Sin Quirin – guitars (1–5, 8, 10, 12, 14), keyboards (1, 2, 14), synthesizer programming (2, 10, 14), bass (2, 14), drum programming (10)
  • Tony Campos – bass (1, 4, 5, 7, 8, 10)
  • Aaron Rossi – drums (2, 8, 14), drum programming (8)

Additional personnel
  • Sammy D'Ambruoso – keyboards (1), drum programming (1–5, 7, 8, 10, 12–14), synthesizer programming (2, 3, 12, 14), programming (6), backing vocals (10), noises (11), remix (12–14), engineering, production
  • Aaron Havill – theremin (4), synthesizer programming (4, 8, 10), programming (6), sampling, synthesizer, backing vocals, engineering, second engineering
  • Patty Fox – backing vocals (8, 10)
  • Sgt. Major – spoken word (9, 11, 13)
  • Hector Muñoz – backing vocals
  • Matt Bridges – backing vocals
  • Allan Amato – artwork
  • Angelina Jourgensen – executive production
  • Dave Donnelly – mastering

Chart positions
Chart (2013) Peak
position
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[17] 79
US Billboard 200[18] 140
US Hard Rock Albums (Billboard)[19] 7
US Independent Albums (Billboard)[20] 27
US Top Rock Albums (Billboard)[21] 42

References
  1. "Ministry From Beer to Eternity". exclaim.ca. 2013-09-09. Retrieved 2020-11-06.
  2. David Jeffries. "From Beer to Eternity – Ministry". AllMusic. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  3. Saeger, Eric W. (September 11, 2013). "Ministry, From Beer to Eternity (13th Planet Records)". Pop Culture. The Hippo. Vol. 13, no. 36. Hippo Press. p. 59. Retrieved November 5, 2018 – via the Internet Archive.
  4. Divita, Joe (September 11, 2013). "Ministry, 'From Beer to Eternity'". Loudwire. Townsquare Media. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  5. Myers, Ben (August 20, 2013). "Ministry: From Beer to Eternity". Metal Hammer. Future plc. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  6. insomniac15 (September 6, 2013). "Review: Ministry - From Beer to Eternity". Sputnikmusic. Retrieved November 5, 2018.
  7. "Ministry: More 'From Beer To Eternity' Album Details Revealed". Blabbermouth.net. June 18, 2013. Retrieved August 17, 2013.
  8. "Al Jourgensen Announces the End of Ministry". Ultimate-Guitar.com. March 29, 2013. Retrieved August 17, 2013.
  9. "MINISTRY Signs With NUCLEAR BLAST; 'AmeriKKKant' Album Due In Early 2018". Blabbermouth.net. 26 September 2017. Retrieved 26 September 2017.
  10. Hartmann, Graham (August 9, 2013). "Ministry unleash new 'From Beer to Eternity' single 'PermaWar'". Loudwire. Retrieved August 26, 2013.
  11. Hartmann, Graham (June 18, 2013). "Ministry announce release plans for 13th studio album 'From Beer To Eternity'". Loudwire. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  12. Adams, Gregory (June 18, 2013). "Ministry Detail 'From Beer to Eternity,' Reveal New Live DVD and Al Jourgensen Biography". Exclaim!. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  13. Hartmann, Graham (June 28, 2013). "Ministry's 'From Beer To Eternity' photo shoot highlights seven deadly sins – exclusive video". Loudwire. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  14. Modell, Josh (June 18, 2013). "What's worse, the title of the new Ministry album or its cover art?". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  15. Modell, Josh (June 21, 2013). "The cover art for Ministry's new album will change because The A.V. Club made fun of it, report Al Jourgensen's dogs". The A.V. Club. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  16. Wiederhorn, John (March 2013). "Ministry's last stand brings Al Jourgensen 'From Beer to Eternity'". Vice. Retrieved August 25, 2013.
  17. "Offizielle Deutsche Charts" (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  18. "Ministry charts - Billboard 200". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  19. "Ministry charts - Hard Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  20. "Ministry charts - Independent Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
  21. "Ministry charts - Top Rock Albums". Billboard. Retrieved October 31, 2021.
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