Phoenix, AZ—Ministry came to the Van Buren on April 29, 2025, to launch “The Squirrely Years Tour,” now known to be its last tour. With openers Die Krupps and Nitzer Ebb, it was a well-done show, with no perceptible first-show jitters that you might expect from a first night on the road. From the moment Die Krupps exploded onto the stage, I knew this show would not disappoint.
Overall, it was a great and thoroughly enjoyable show. All three bands were polished; the sets were well-calculated for both mood and timing. I think this is one of the few shows I’ve attended in which every band was on time from setup to off-stage transition. Each band had its own distinct musical personality but contributed well to the entire artistic composition of the night. Much of this may be attributed to these bands all having a long history with each other; that they are closing out Ministry’s long musical journey together seems appropriate. My Life With the Thrill Kill Kult will join the tour at a later date, and I can only imagine how fantastic that show is going to be based on last night’s performance.
Opener: Die Krupps
If I can touch back on my rudimentary German, Die Krupps’ industrial metal/dystopian EBM performance on the first night of the tour was “echt kool.” Drummer Paul Keller was on stage first, ready to get the crowd going. Vocalist Jürgen Engler strode out on stage, taking full command of the venue, and the band launched immediately into ‘Nazis auf Speed,’ a hard, fast song that portrays World War II soldiers’ use of drugs such as Pervitin to enhance their combat performance and endurance. The song highlights the impact of the soldiers’ drug use to cope with war and the dangerous consequences therein.
Engler’s stage presence is strong, balanced by the quieter but unmistakable presence of lead guitarist Dylan Smith. Engler loves interacting with the crowd, and the energy was reciprocated. Throughout the show, Engler would squat down at the very front of the stage to get as close to the audience as possible without jumping into the pit, and then bounce back up and roam the stage from side to the other, all the while belting out his throaty lyrics.
Die Krupps’ music is stylistically very industrial; so much so that one of the instruments on stage is a five-piece set of metal pipes, varying in circumference and length, not unlike a xylophone, but offering a very industrial metallic embellishments to several songs in the set. Engler beats percussion on the pipes with an enthusiasm that is rather indescribable and very entertaining to watch.
There is no way you can be bored watching this band; between the furious pace of the music, the energy, and Engler’s vocals, Die Krupps will get your attention, regardless of anyone else they may be sharing the stage with.
At the end of the set, Engler asked the crowd if they’d like Die Krupps to come back; the crowd responded enthusiastically with applause and cheers. Engler said, “Not tonight, but we will be back!” I look forward to that return.
Setlist:
Second Billing: Nitzer Ebb
Nitzer Ebb was an equally energetic follow-up to Die Krupps, with vocalist Vaughn “Bon” Harris and David Gooday on synthesizers and programming (both original members) comprising the current band configuration. An Electronic Body Music (EBM) band with a long history and many creative and concert ties to Die Krupps, Ministry, and other notables such as Depeche Mode, Nitzer Ebb was a different but equally fun act following Die Krupps.
Nitzer Ebb traces its beginnings back to 1983, and credits bands like Siouxie and the Banshees and Bauhaus as major stylistic influencers at the time. Originally called La Comédie De La Mort, school friends Harris, Gooday, and Douglas McCarthy soon changed the name to Nitzer Ebb by playing around and coming up with a Germanic-sounding name that isn’t anything at all. Currently, McCarthy has had to take a step back from being actively on tour due to health issues. Another current band member, Simon Granger, was not present for this kick-off show.
True to its genre, the Nitzer Ebb set was full of extremely rhythmic beats, with aggressive vocals that were often repeated call-and-response style lyrics. Harris, in between his episodic stage dancing, quite often got the crowd chanting lyrics with him, whether it was the militaristic “Left-Right-Left” of ‘Once You Say,’ or “Lift up your hearts” of the set closer ‘Murderous.’
What made the show entertaining was Harris’s love for the music, quite often dancing and very much lost in his own reverie for the music. He had enough love and fun performing on stage that he easily carried the audience with him.
Setlist:
• Control I’m here
• Hearts and Minds
• Blood Money
• Lightning Man
• Captivate
• Once You Say
• Join in the Chant
• Murderous
Ministry
As the 2025 “Squirrely Years Tour” prepared to kick off, the announcement that this is the final Ministry tour for Al Jourgensen broke out, making this even more of a bucket list show for industrial rock fans. The tour is based on the current Squirrely Years release, a compilation of remakes of older Ministry songs that Jourgensen thought should be done in a way that he believed is truer to who he is as a musician.
The first stop on the tour, the show at the Van Buren met all my expectations. I’d not seen Ministry before, though they have been a part of my musical journey for a long time. Jourgensen came out on stage, and his mood seemed to be one of humor and a readiness to kick ass from minute one.
What surprised me was as I listened to the show, I realized that I like Ministry live on stage far more than I do the studio productions. I mean that as the sincerest compliment. The sound quality was vastly different than studio production, giving a different type of clarity that allows you to appreciate each band member’s contribution to the music. Jourgensen’s vocals are better live on stage to me as well; I like hearing him in person, instead of hearing him run through studio-created enhancements. All this to say the tour is definitely worth seeing.
On this tour, the band is a mix of long-time members and some very talented notable musicians who worked with other well-known acts. The band members on this tour are:
Ministry, particularly Jourgensen, takes a slightly different approach to their performance style than the opening acts. Jourgensen paces the stage and pauses typically on either side of the rose-encrusted cross on the stage, but he is at the point in his career he doesn’t need to be highly animated. It’s his vocals people come for, and he delivers a solid performance. The other band members partner with Jourgensen as he moves around the stage, but they let the front man do his work. In particular, I have to say I’m a huge fan of Magaña’s drumming. He delivered top-notch percussion throughout the show and laid a really solid foundation for the music throughout.
Just like the release, the Squirrely Years tour brings back a number of songs from Ministry’s earliest catalog, with songs which haven’t been played since the 1980s. It was a great trip through Ministry’s best known catalog, a mix of songs from different releases and stylistic eras. The encore was a cover of “Ricky’s Hand” by Fad Gadget, with Jourgensen giving tribute to “the late great Frank Tovey,” who was a an early influence on Jourgensen and Ministry.
Jourgensen may be calling this his final Ministry tour, but he isn’t leaving the music industry. According to an April 21, 2025 Loudwire interview, he is working on one last Ministry album, and is switching gears to cinematic musical scoring. Jourgensen said he is currently working on a documentary of how the Koch brothers ripped off the Osage people in Oklahoma. That project will result in a couple of songs being released from the record, titled Long Knife, due out in 2026.
The setlist:
To learn more about the tour, go to Al Jourgensen | Ministry | The Official Website or Instagram.
