Houses of the Molé

Houses of the Moléis the ninth studio album by Americanindustrial metalbandMinistry, released on June 21, 2004, bySanctuary Records. It is noteworthy for being the first Ministry album not to feature bassist and longtime collaboratorPaul BarkersinceTwitch(1986). It was also the first album to featureMike Scacciaon guitar since 1996'sFilth Pig.
The album is the first part of the band's anti-Bushtrilogy, followed byRio Grande Blood(2006) andThe Last Sucker(2007). It was released in the run up to the2004 American presidential elections, in the last few months of Bush's first term as president. Nearly all songs start with the letter "W" in their title, except for "No W" and thehidden track"Psalm 23". The first track on the album, "No W", features numerous satirical samples of Bush's speeches, particularly samples in which he spoke of hiswar on terror. Compared to its subsequent follow-ups, the musical style of the album is morethrash metal-oriented.
Al JourgensendescribesHouses of the Moléas a "rebirth" album as he started Ministry anew without long time collaborator Paul Barker who left after theAnimositisominatour due to a falling-out.In his autobiography, Jourgensen describes that he wrote "Walrus" as a way to "celebrate" Barker's departure. In it, it has the words"Paul is no longer with us"played backwards on repeat.
Jourgensen has stated that the nameHouses of the Moléis a tribute toLed Zeppelin's 1973 albumHouses of the Holy.Moleitself is a Mexican sauce made from chocolate that is nearly black in color, an image that Jourgensen believes represents crude oil.
Former Ministry drummerRey Washamstated in an interview that he worked onHouses of the Molé, for which he received no credit, and also stated that Ministry had problems properly compensating all of the musicians who contributed to their records. He also referred to "someone" in Ministry as being a "liar" and "full of shit", and disputed the statement and common belief that Al Jourgensen was solely responsible for writing almost all of Ministry's material. He also said "Houses of the Molé" was "the worst [album] title in the world".
This was the first Ministry studio album to not chart on the Billboard 200. Due to slow sales, the band left Sanctuary.
Houses of the Moléreceived generally positive reviews upon release, holding a 75/100 on review aggregateMetacritic.
Johnny Loftus ofAllMusiccredited the album for "fully resurrect[ing]"  Jourgenson's career.The Austin Chroniclegave the album a positive review, with reviewer Michael Chamy saying "Houses of the Moléis signed, sealed, and delivered so powerfully that one can overlook the fact that it's basicallyPsalm 69 or The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to TastePart II.Playloudercalled the album "intense and angry" and praised the use of soundbites.
Houses of the Moléalso received some mixed reviews from critics.Qgave the album a mixed review, saying "It's [an album] whose tricks... we've heard done before."In its review,Rolling Stonesaid "the album is so densely noisy that you'll need lots of patience to figure out whether Jourgensen is going on about politics, Armageddon or a hangnail."
In 2005,Houses of the Moléwas ranked No. 434 inRock Hardmagazine's book ofThe 500 Greatest Rock & Metal Albums of All Time.
The original release ofHouses of the Moléfeatured "Psalm 23", an alternate version of "No W".  Later releases feature a Redux version of "No W" (with the "O Fortuna" samples removed), dropped "Psalm 23", and added another(hidden) tracktitled "Bloodlines".  "Walrus" ishidden trackon track 69, just like their song "Everybody" on their 1999 albumDark Side of the Spoon.  Every other track on the CD editions of the album consists of fiveseconds of silence.