Halloween is every day!

Since yesterday's post referred to Sharon Needles' version of "Every Day is Halloween," today's song is a long-overdue inclusion of the original by Ministry. It was first released in 1984, back when Ministry sounded more new wave than industrial, but clearly the band already had dark leanings. The lyrics give a little insight into those of us who live Halloween all year round, and make a strong case for why that is just as acceptable as any other lifestyle. We're all the same underneath, you know? Plus, Halloween is really fun, and Halloween all year round is even funner.

Al Jourgensen, Ministry's lead singer, started out in a band called Special Affect, with guys who would later be in My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult and Concrete Blonde (does that make them a proto-supergroup?). Ministry formed in 1981 and stayed together until 2008, morphing from synthpop to industrial metal along the way. I first heard them as a wee metalhead in the early 90s, when their most commercially successful album came out, Psalm 69. It was their first with guitarist Mike Scaccia, whose untimely death of a heart attack in 2012 sadly marked the end of a reunion period for the band.

Al Jourgensen says Ministry won't regroup in the future, so it seems we'll have to satisfy ourselves with the legacy they've left us, not least of which is "Every Day is Halloween." It's been covered and remixed countless times in its 30-year existence, but the original is still the most classic. Let's all raise our black-nailed fists in salute!