Thieves (Ministry song)
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| "Thieves" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Ministry | ||||
| from the album The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste | ||||
| Released | 1990 | |||
| Recorded | 1989 at Chicago Trax Studios | |||
| Genre | Industrial metal | |||
| Length | 5:02 | |||
| Label | Sire/Warner Bros. | |||
| Writer(s) | Al Jourgensen, Paul Barker, Chris Connelly, Kevin Ogilvie | |||
| Producer(s) | Hypo Luxa, Hermes Pan, Ministry | |||
| Ministry singles chronology | ||||
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"Thieves" is a song by American industrial metal band Ministry. It is the opening track from the band's fourth studio album, The Mind Is a Terrible Thing to Taste (1989),[1] and was released as the album's second single. The song's lyrics deal mainly with political corruption. The song includes dialogue samples from R. Lee Ermey's drill instructor character in Full Metal Jacket. Ministry's version was featured in the 1992 science fiction film Freejack.
Contents
Music and critical reception
The song is based on a harmonic stasis. It features the extensive use of E minor chord. 118 out of 138 measures of the song are based on the same E minor chord, while the rest are F minor chords. Al Jourgensen sings only the G note, while the song "shifts gears rhythmically" through its sections and quadruples its tempo.[2]
Tom Moon, the author of 1,000 Recordings to Hear Before You Die, wrote, "At the two minute mark of "Thieves" and several times later in the song, Ministry's pulse is bolstered by what sounds like a whirring pneumatic drill. It's not a gimmick—it almost functions as a solo guitar, adding punctuation."[3]
Personnel
Ministry
- Al Jourgensen – vocals, guitar, programming, production
- Paul Barker – bass, programming, production
Additional personnel
- William Rieflin – drums, programming
- Joe Kelly – backing vocals
Limp Bizkit cover
| "Thieves" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
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| Single by Limp Bizkit | ||||
| from the album Stampede of the Disco Elephants | ||||
| Released | November 1, 2013 | |||
| Format | Digital download | |||
| Recorded | 2012–2013 | |||
| Genre | Nu metal, industrial metal | |||
| Length | 5:31 | |||
| Label | Cash Money | |||
| Limp Bizkit singles chronology | ||||
|
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American nu metal band Limp Bizkit covered parts of this song during Woodstock 99 [4] as well as releasing their cover version of "Thieves" as a single via Twitter on November 1, 2013 for free download.[5][6] Limp Bizkit's version is taken from the band's seventh studio album Stampede of the Disco Elephants. Limp Bizkit performed it throughout many of the band's live sets since 1997, but the band did not release a studio version until 2013.[7] Limp Bizkit's version does not include the samples that are on Ministry's version.
Axl Rosenberg of MetalSucks criticized the cover, stating that the band "butchered the song."[8]
Personnel
Limp Bizkit
- Wes Borland – guitars
- Fred Durst – vocals
- John Otto – drums
- Sam Rivers – bass
References
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