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Review: Ministry were a very different band in 1982, when Al Jourgensen started out as a synth pop provocateur straining at the leash to take things darker. He has repeatedly sworn off their debut album With Sympathy as a sanitised version of the sound he was pursuing, and this collection of live recordings from the year before it was released show a sharper edge to tracks like 'Revenge' and 'Effegy'. It's still absolutely synth-pop of the era, when the music was only one step removed from post-punk anyway, but most importantly the sound is clear and bright, showing the first iteration of the band at their best and playing close to home.

Review: It's fascinating diving into the earliest realms of Ministry, before they were even signed to record their debut synth pop album With Sympathy. Al Jorgensen swore off that first release as a misstep before they become chief architects of industrial metal, and this compilation supports his case when you hear the sound of the band at their first gigs in 1981-1983. It's a lot more confrontational than the polished, arguably brilliant, sound they were encouraged to release as they emerged from the underground. From the electro-punk thrust of 'Falling' to the raw version of 'Cold Life', they feel entirely edgier as a proposition compared to most synth-pop bands of the era. With additional gems like rare mixes of 'Everyday (Is Halloween)', this is an essential compilation for anyone interested in the roots of Ministry.