As the other collaboration with one of punk's pinnacle figures, Lard's Last Temptation of Reid is a devastating powerhouse of music featuring the talents of Ministry's Paul Barker and Al Jourgensen and the infamous Jello Biafra providing vocals. Having already released a three song, forty minute "EP" called The Power of Lard, the stage had already been set for the project's full length. The resulting album is simply one of the best releases associated with all the many Ministry side projects.

The music on Last Temptation of Reid is a hybrid of metal and industrial that can really be seen as both and neither all at once. The high tempo, machine-like drumming of Jeff Ward propels the songs through intensity and precise, sharp guitar rhythms from Al Jourgensen. There are very few of the samples that mark Ministry's sound, but much of the excellent sound quality Jourgensen and Barker are infamous for creating. Jello Biafra's vocals, meanwhile, are precisely what you expect from this legendary figure. The lyrics cover a wide range of topical subjects, from drug raids to paranoia of "Big Brother". Lard also covers the Dr. Demento staple, "They're Coming To Take Me Away", and giving it a bizarre and lengthy treatment. The CD finishes out with a very lengthy song called "I Am Your Clock" that is insightful but entirely difficult to wade through.

Fans of Ministry's faster, thrashier moments as well as anyone with interest in Biafra's unique worldview should already have this in their collection. Last Temptation of Reid is ultimately a very satisfying album that often surpasses the main projects of both parties involved.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 07/2001

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Thank goodness for Jello Biafra. Without him, the world would be a less aware place. His rapier wit and stunning knowledge of politics and the state of things paired with his original voice make any project he does worthy of attention. Lard happens to be his collaberation with Paul Barker and Al Jourgensen of Ministry. Their previous two releases, The Last Tempation of Reid and The Power of Lard, are classic examples of hardcore meeting industrial.

Seven years later, the basic Lard sound is still intact, though not as breakneck as it was on Reid. Instead, the music falls more into the Pailhead (the Barker/Jourgensen project with Ian MacKaye) category of rhythmic metallized riffs. Jello, of course, is Jello. His voice stands alone in the underground. Naturally his lyrics are scathing and biting, calling attention to all sorts of wrongs, such as the war on drugs ("I wanna be a drug sniffing dog"). The last track, "Sidewinder", has the classic Lard epic feel, also being the strongest song on the album.

Though not quite the steamroller of the previous album, Pure Chewing Satisfaction is an okay release that deserves the attention of both metalheads and punkers alike. If nothing else, read the collage of clippings on the inside. The bizarre, but true, stories are worthy of an education unto itself.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 06/1997

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Lard projects are often years apart and as it seems, less prolific in terms of songwriting. The project, containing Jello Biafra matched with Al Jourgensen and Paul Barker, took three years between this and their last release, Pure Chewing Satisfaction. Pure Chewing Satisfaction turned out to be an album that was interesting initially but failed to keep a listener's attention over time, so perhaps a brief three song EP turned out to be a wise move. As obvious as it may be from the album artwork and title, 70's Rock Must Die proves that none of these men share any of the nostalgia for that decade that seems to be permeating current culture. The title track assumes every single cliche element of 70s rock and incorporates it into a hilarious and scathing parody of cock rock. Biafra even inflates his falsetto more than ever to assume the role. The other two tracks are a bit more standard Lard pieces of heavy, semi-industrialized rock similar to the slower tracks of The Last Temptation of Reid. The EP isn't particularly the most necessary CD you'll purchase this year, but the title track's brilliance makes it something you do need to hear sometime in your life.

Review by John Chedsey

Review date: 02/2002

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