We are very honored to present you the interview that Sin Quirin, Ministry's guitarist and two times Grammy nominated, gave to Rock Overdose and to Konstantinos Sotirelis. Enjoy!
Rock Overdose: Hello Sin! I’m Konstantinos, from Rock Overdose, for the interview.
Ministry: Yes. How are you?
Rock Overdose: I’m very good! How are you?
Ministry: Good!
Rock Overdose: So, first of all, I would like to know what’s the latest news from the Ministry ‘camp’ these days.
Ministry: Well, we’ve been rehearsing since May 15th for this upcoming tour and, for the past several months, we’ve been working on our new Ministry album. And it’s pretty much… The new record is pretty much done; it just has to be mixed and mastered. The new record should be out sometime in the Fall. But, we’ve been concentrating on rehearsals for this upcoming European tour.
Rock Overdose: Can you tell us a few details about the new album?
Ministry: Um… I can’t give away too much… It’s… I think it might take some people by surprise, as far as the direction. It’s not quite as fast of an album as some of the previous records. It definitely has more of an atmospheric –kinda- vibe to it. And the few people that have heard what we have so far, have basically said that it’s a sort of a combination between “Dark Side Of The Spoon” (1999), “Filth Pig” (1996) and “ΚΕΦΑΛΗΞΘ” (a.k.a. “Psalm 69”, 1992).
Rock Overdose: Can’t wait to hear it!
Ministry: Yeah!
Rock Overdose: Since we’re going to see you for the first time in Greece, we would like you to describe to the people who haven’t seen you yet what a typical Ministry show includes.
Ministry: Well, kinda difficult to answer, because there is no typical Ministry show… [Laughs] Every one is completely different from the other. It usually consists of a complete assault on all of your senses. We usually do… You know, we have video, visuals going. We have extremely loud sounds coming from the stage. The band is very energetic and visual these days. So, it’s just a complete assault on all of your senses. People usually leave our show with a look on their face, like they just got hit over their head with a bat or something…
Rock Overdose: How does it feel every time that you visit a new place? Is it an extra motive for you to play better, or do you just go out without thinking it?
Ministry: Yeah, I mean, we approach every show the same way. We’re just excited just to be there, because I don’t think any of us have ever played there. So, we’re very much looking forward to being in Greece. But, as far as approaching the show, - I mean - we approach every show the same way.
Rock Overdose: How do you feel about playing in Greece and meeting the Greek fans for the first time?
Ministry: Very excited, man! I can’t wait! I really can’t wait to get to Greece – looking forward to it, ‘cause our first two shows are gonna be there in Greece. And, if I’m not mistaken, I think that we will get there the day before our first show. So, I’m hoping we can do a little sightseeing when we get there.
Rock Overdose: Yeah, that would be great.
Ministry: Yeah…
Rock Overdose: Ministry faced a devastating loss in the face of the mighty Mike Scaccia. Fans would like to know how he was as a person and a friend to you all.
Ministry: Sure… Mikey was an amazing individual. Not only was he – you know – an amazing guitar player and musician, he was just one of the nicest guys and a very dear friend of mine. You know, he welcomed me into this camp early on. When I first joined, it was 2006, I joined as a guitar player for the Revolting Cocks and we were doing a tour – the Revolting Cocks and Ministry… And he was – you know – just very, very welcoming on that tour and just treated me as if I’d been in the band – and part of the organization – for many, many years. So, he was very thoughtful and… You know, the thing with Mikey was that he was the real deal; there was nothing fake about him. He was just all about the music; didn’t really care about any of the other BS that we have to deal with sometimes. To him, it was strictly about the music. He was an amazing guitar player and a really good friend.
Rock Overdose: I see… So, let’s talk about non-Ministry stuff a bit. You have contributed to bands like American Head Charge, Lords Of Acid and Tactics in the past. Could we say that music lives inside you and you never stop craving for more?
Ministry: Absolutely! You know, I knew when I was 6 years old that this is what I wanted to do. The very first time I heard the Kiss “Alive!” (1975) record, I was 6 and I decided right then that this is what I was gonna do, and… Yeah, I mean, I think it’s pretty safe to say that music is in my blood. My dad was a singer in Mexico in the ‘60s; he had a band. So, I think I was just born with it, you know? Nobody ever pushed it on me…
Rock Overdose: Yeah, it was in your blood…
Ministry: Yeah, it was definitely in my blood. You know, it’s just something that felt very natural to me and still does. It’s just… To me, music is like breathing, like I need it. I need it every day. If I’m not playing it, at least I need to be listening to it. I always have to have music around me, with everything that I do. So, it’s definitely something that’s just in my blood.
Rock Overdose: How did you feel when you saw your first show and when you decided that this is the thing that you would like to do in all your life?
Ministry: Ah, an amazing rush, the biggest high I could ever feel. Just seeing the first show, that first concert, just solidified what I already felt. Because, you know, like I said earlier, from the time I was 6, I knew that that’s what I wanted to do. But, seeing a band perform live for the first time just completely solidified that.
Rock Overdose: What are your memories from all these things you did so far with the bands you’ve been into?
Ministry: Man, I have… Many! Anytime… The very first time I got a record deal was a big thing. The very first time I went on tour was a big thing. The first time I was on, like, say, MTV’s Headbangers Ball, when that was still around… You know, back in the day, that was huge. And then, just the first time you experience those things always stick in your mind. I remember the first time I played the Download Festival with one of my old bands, Society 1. That was huge deal! We were on the main stage – you know – with, like, Slayer, Slipknot, System Of A Down, and we were just a new and up-and-coming band up on the main stage in front of, like, 40000 people. So, things like that are always really big… And, then obviously, - you know - getting the call to play guitar for the Revolting Cocks and, then, being asked to join Ministry… And, then, - you know – being a main songwriter for Ministry and the Grammy nominations – two Grammy nominations with Ministry… Just, all those things… So many things that happen in someone’s – you know? – career and sometimes you forget, because you’re just always looking to the future and you’re always looking for the next thing that you’re gonna do. And sometimes you even start to forget the things that you’ve done… [Laughs]
Rock Overdose: Have you ever thought that you would be a musician in Ministry and have some Grammy nominations and all this career… ?
Ministry: No. I mean, I always knew I was gonna be doing music. And you always hope, and you always dream that you’re gonna – you know – “make it”. But you never really know – you know –where you’re gonna end up and what you’re gonna end up doing. Ministry was a huge influence on me growing up. I used to listen to Ministry when I was in high school and when I was in my first bands, and stuff like that… And I always wanted to be in a band like Ministry. So, for me, - you know – to end up in the band as a songwriter…
Rock Overdose: A dream come true…
Ministry: Yeah, it’s a total dream come true! Never in a million years would I have ever imagined that I would have a Grammy nomination, let alone two Grammy nominations. That’s just not anything that I’d ever thought of… So, it’s very surreal, at times.
Rock Overdose: Ministry once called it quits after “The Last Sucker” (2007) and once more after “From Beer To Eternity” (2013). I guess that it was due to Mike’s passing… What gave you a motive to continue?
Ministry: Well, the first time, during the 2008 Last Sucker tour, it was mainly a health issue with Al [Jourgensen]; he just wasn’t healthy… You know, he had bleeding ulcers… Just a lot of health issues going on, and he was just tired of it. So, that’s why he wanted to call it quits. After Mikey passed, - I mean - we did, sort of, stop and call it quits. You know, ‘cause the plan was for us to do “From Beer To Eternity”, and then… Mikey was there in studio with us, and he literally died two days after he left the studio. So, the plan was for us to go on tour immediately after the release of that record. But, we didn’t… We took, like, – I think – maybe a year or over a year off and we didn’t do anything, you know. Just because we weren’t sure if we wanted to continue or not… But, I think that once we sort of – you know – took the time off, we all just kind of realized that Mikey was really proud of that record and Mikey loved playing and… We just kinda knew that Mikey would have wanted us to continue. I don’t think that he would have been – you know – like happy with us just stopping after that. So, I think that had a lot to do with it.
Rock Overdose: Is it like honoring his memory with this second…
Ministry: Absolutely! We think about Mike all the time, and we talk about him all the time, and joke about him all the time – you know… I just have a feeling that he’s up there looking down and – you know – laughing with us. It is definitely more of something like honoring Mikey’s name when we play.
Rock Overdose: A lot of bands, these years, say that this is their last show and, after that, they do a reunion. Many people believe that this is for money. What do you say to the fans who think that Ministry do this for the money?
Ministry: Definitely not for money, I can tell you that. A hundred per cent guaranteed; it is not for money. The times the band has called it quits is for the reasons that I just talked about. And, for us coming back, - you know – it’s precisely for reasons that I just mentioned. It’s never been about money, because… As big as Ministry is, I mean, we’re not Aerosmith. You know… We’re not one of these bands that is making millions and millions of dollars and doing it for the money. We’re… When we come back and do it, it’s because it’s something that we wanna do.
Rock Overdose: Well, you know that a lot of people believe that all the bands can live from music.
Ministry: Exactly! Well, see? That’s the big misconception that… I think people still think about that and they don’t realize that we don’t make any money selling records, because nobody is buying our records anymore. People steal our records even before they come out. So, it’s very tough for musicians to live off of doing music, and… especially new bands. I kinda feel bad for bands that are just starting out, because I don’t know how they’re gonna do it. It’s very difficult…
Rock Overdose: How do you feel about people and fans that are stealing music? Even me… I don’t want to do this, but there is… so… a lot of new music that you want to hear and buy that you can’t afford to do this…
Ministry: It’s a very difficult thing for me to understand, simply because… I mean, the way I look at it is, if I wanted to go to somebody’s… If I were to hire someone to do some type of work, and I hire them and they do their work and I say, ‘OK! Well, thank you! I don’t think you should be paid for it’… And you spend time and do all this work… You know, taking the time and the effort and, for somebody else to determine that you shouldn’t be paid, - to me – it’s just not right. I just can’t wrap my head around that, you know? There’s tons of music that I listen to and I decide sometimes if I’m gonna buy it or not. If I’m not, if I don’t like it, I just don’t buy it. If I like it, I buy it. I just can’t understand, can’t wrap my head around someone else determining if they’re gonna steal something that I created or not.
Rock Overdose: Imagine someone, a fan of Ministry, that comes to your show and knows all the lyrics and the history of the band, but he hasn’t bought any album of Ministry. Is it a true fan or not?
Ministry: Absolutely! To me, being a fan doesn’t mean that they have to buy my, our, record. But that doesn’t also give them the right to steal. It’s like… If I want something and I can’t afford it, do I go into a store and just steal? If I can’t afford it, I can’t afford it. That doesn’t give me the right to steal someone else’s “property”. So… I meet tons of fans like that haven’t bought our CDs, but they’ve heard us, they know who we are… And, of course, they’re still fans! To me, they’re still fans. But, to me, stealing is stealing. You know, it’s a tough thing for me to wrap my head around… And it makes it very difficult for musicians to make a living. I mean, we are by no means rich at all. We all have bills to pay. You know, we don’t all live in mansions and drive – you know - brand new cars, or anything like that… It’s – you know – the complete opposite. We do this because we love it, and we need to pay our bills. You know… We’re not getting rich out of this at all, but all the stealing is making it more and more difficult for us to do this.
Rock Overdose: Not all bands are like Aerosmith, unfortunately…
Ministry: Exactly! Listen, and there’s bands out there – you know – that, truly, don’t need the money, as far as legacy bands or bands that are just huge… [Bands that] make millions and millions of dollars and they just give their stuff away, and that’s fine. You know, if the artist determines that they want to give away their work, more power to them. But I don’t think it’s fair for another person to determine whether they’re gonna steal something from me or not.
Rock Overdose: I see… Greece is included in this tour for the first time. What are the plans for more gigs to follow, and how long is it going to last – this tour?
Ministry: This tour’s is about to go for about three and a half weeks. So, it’s gonna start in Greece and, then, I think we’re gonna be headed – let me see if I remember correctly… We’re doing Serbia, Italy, Croatia, Sweden… We’re doing the Download Festival in the UK… Holland… Um… France, Belgium, Norway, Denmark, Germany… And I think we’re ending it at Download in Spain.
Rock Overdose: How fully prepared do you feel for this upcoming tour, especially after the absence of the last years?
Ministry: Oh, completely prepared! I mean, we toured last year; we did a European tour last year. Two years ago, we did a world tour. 2015, we did Australia, South America, South Africa, Mexico, the States… And, then, last year we did Europe. We also did one-off festivals in Chicago, Denver… We did Mexico… Knotfest in Mexico last October. So, we’ve really just been off, like, about six months or so. Then, we’ve been working on this record for the past three or four months and, you know, we’ve been rehearsing now, going in our second week. Yeah, we’re gonna be very prepared!
Rock Overdose: I’d like to know how you work as a group with Cesar Soto. I think the combination of your styles can make something really special for the next record.
Ministry: Yeah, now, definitely! You know, Cesar is a great guitar player. He’s contributed to this album and the combination of our styles, I think, is gonna show on this record. We’re definitely doing some stuff that’s a little out of the box, out of the ordinary for us… But, I think people are gonna be pleasantly surprised by, you know, the combination of both of our styles.
Rock Overdose: Our last question is about the new album… I think you said that it’s gonna be released in the Fall.
Ministry: Yes. That’s the plan.
Rock Overdose: Can you give us a few details about, maybe, the title or the… ?
Ministry: I… To be honest with you, I don’t have the title yet; we don’t even have the title yet…
Rock Overdose: Oh, really?
Ministry: Yeah, we haven’t decided… There’s a couple of ideas, but I can’t say the ideas. [Laughs] But, that’s why I don’t have the titles, because we haven’t decided. There’s two or three that we’ve been kicking around, but we haven’t decided on the final one yet.
Rock Overdose: Well, we have to wait then a few months…
Ministry: Exactly!
Rock Overdose: Well, thank you very much for your time and for answering these questions! It was a great honor for me!
Ministry: Thank you very much, too!
Rock Overdose: I would like you to close the interview with a message to the Ministry fans in Greece and abroad.
Ministry: To all the fans in Greece, we are very excited to be there! We can’t wait to be there! Me especially, once I found out we were going to Greece… [I’m] very much looking forward to it. I really hope to meet every single one of you. I really hope we pack these places in Greece. I wanna see our Greece fans going crazy. So, yeah, we can’t wait to be there and we will see you all in a few weeks!
For the Rock Overdose Webzine,
Interview: Konstantinos Sotirelis
Questions: Dimitris Aloras, Konstantinos Sotirelis
Tapescript: Stergios Gkoutsidis
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