Paul Barker
| Paul Barker | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | Hermes Pan, Ion Barker |
| Born |
February 8, 1959 Palo Alto, California |
| Genres | Industrial metal, alternative metal, post-punk, alternative rock |
| Instruments | Vocals, bass, keyboards, synthesizer, guitar, piano, drum machine |
| Years active | 1980–present |
| Labels | Sire, Warner Bros., Sanctuary, Alternative Tentacles, Wax Trax! |
| Associated acts | The Blackouts, Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Lard, 1000 Homo DJs, PTP, Acid Horse, Lead into Gold, Pink Anvil, Stayte, U.S.S.A., Flowering Blight |
Paul Barker (born February 8, 1959 in Palo Alto, California), also referred to as Hermes Pan, is the former bass guitarist, producer and engineer of the industrial metal band Ministry from 1986 to 2004. Prior to Ministry, Barker provided bass for the Seattle No Wave ensemble The Blackouts alongside future Ministry drummer Bill Rieflin and his brother, one-time Ministry touring keyboardist/saxophonist Roland Barker, from 1979 until 1985.
Beginning as touring bassist for Ministry's 1986 Twitch tour, Barker collaborated with frontman Al Jourgensen and collectively released The Land of Rape and Honey in 1988. Although many musicians briefly contributed to Ministry in the nearly two decade period after Barker joined the band, he and Jourgensen were the only continuous members. The dynamics between these two different personalities came to shape Ministry's sound, along with a number of side-projects which they were involved in together.
In 2003, Barker left the band a year after the release of their eighth album Animositisomina. The decision was cemented after the death of his father. Despite being in Ministry for almost 18 years, Jourgensen did not do anything to spur his departure. “Over the years we’ve had strained relations as well as good times, and the last tour was no different than any other tour. That means it was extremely difficult and very intense and lots of fun,” Barker had said.
It is often believed that Jourgensen and Barker were close bandmates and the latter played a huge creative role in the band. Jourgensen rebuffed these claims saying that their relationship was more like an arranged marriage and "acrimonious." He said that they were never friends but as business partners. In addition, he describes Barker as a poor bassist and called him the "Book Club" and "pseudo-intellectual" who would always cover Jourgensen's drug habits in the press. Since leaving Ministry, Barker has distanced himself from Jourgensen and the two almost have nothing good to say about their relationship in the band.
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