This past week, I traveled to Columbus, Ohio to see Front Line Assembly, Gary Numan and Ministry. It was the ideal night for fans of industrial metal and post-punk.

Front Line Assembly serves as the opener for the current tour. The performance of the long-time industrial band was solid. It was heavy, and the guitar and bass meshed well with the electric beats. Every now and then, lead vocalist Bill Leeb would add on to the drums with his own personal kit, which added extra umph to the song. 

For me, Gary Numan stole the show. I have already seen Ministry a few times before, so my anticipation was all put toward Gary Numan’s set. I have been listening to his synth-pop music for years. Musically, he traded his synth pop for industrial post-punk in the nineties. The instrumentation and the lyrics on his newer albums are more dystopian, however, the electric beats and the inclusion of electric bass and guitar make the transition in tone worth it. 

Gary Numan’s set consisted of newer, industrial songs and his old synth-pop songs from his days as a solo artist and with Tubeway Army. The pop hits “Cars” and “Metal” were given a heavy makeover, which gave the nostalgic, poppy songs an abrasive edge. He and his touring band went for the dystopian vibe with their outfits and their ominous stage presence. 

Ministry performed mostly new songs for the first half of the set from their latest album “HOPIUMFORTHEMASSES.” The creativity and musicianship behind Uncle AL and Co were heard as they translated the album version into a more full-sounding live version. 

When I saw them on their last headlining tour in 2022, Ministry celebrated its 1989 album “The Mind is a Terrible Thing.” They mostly played songs off of the album, a few new songs and some covers. Even though that show was packed with nostalgia and a lot of their older material, the set was better since it was more balanced and showed the progression of the band. 

The second half of the set included “N.W.O.,” “Stigmata” and fan-favorite “Jesus Built My Hotrod.” They ended the show with my favorite moshing song, “So What.” My ears were ringing at the end of the show due to how loud the instruments were, but the hearing loss was so worth it.

Ministry’s lead vocalist and founding member Al Jourgensen, most known as Uncle Al by the fans, stated multiple times how the audience was gonna appear on a live album due to how eager the crowd was during both the new songs and the older songs. This only hyped up the crowd even more and, in return, the sing-along became even louder. Other 

Another part of the show that was worth mentioning was that a couple of white supremacists in the crowd were being rude in the mosh pit, and in true Uncle Al fashion, he acknowledged them and told them to leave. He expressed that there is a mystery as to why they felt the need to show up at a Ministry show in the first place due to the fact the band is left-leaning. 

All in all, this ministry show takes the cake for the best of the three shows I have seen.

Gary Numan definitely won my heart at the end of the show, and I will be watching out for the next time he comes to Pittsburgh.