Regular exercise, a vegetarian diet, no more smoking or drinking — the Al Jourgensen of today is not the same as the one from three years ago, which is when he pulled the plug on Ministry.

Saying he feels “the healthiest I’ve been in over 20 years,” Jourgensen has revived his old industrial rock band, which will release a new album by the end of the year and hit the road in 2012.

Jourgensen’s road to personal recovery was very bumpy. In March 2010, following a seizure, Jourgensen was taken to an intensive care unit, where he flatlined.

“I couldn’t hold down food, and I just didn’t know what was wrong,” he adds. “I spent a week in ICU, where they gave me a 100 percent blood transfusion.” He’s not sure who donated the blood, but he has a feeling it was “some old lady from Kansas because I have a really strong desire to knit.”

While working on his Buck Satan album (due in November), Jourgensen realized he had about five to seven songs that were more suitable for Ministry. That planted the seed for the forthcoming Ministry album, titled ‘Relapse,’ which Jourgensen expects to finish in the next few months.

“I think this is actually gonna wind up being the fastest and heaviest record I’ve ever done,” he says.

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