Lead into Gold is a side project of American industrial musician Paul Barker, best known as the former bassist for Ministry and the Hermes Pan half of the Luxa/Pan production team. Primarily a solo project by Barker, Lead into Gold featured occasional guest performances by his Ministry bandmates Al Jourgensen and Bill Rieflin.
Lead into Gold only released two 12 inch singles and one full-length studio LP. Idiot was the first release in 1988, followed by the Chicks & Speed: Futurism single and Age of Reason album, both released in 1990. The CD release of Chicks & Speed included the Idiot single in its entirety.
In the video for "Faster Than Light", Nine Inch Nails' vocalist Trent Reznor can be seen playing the guitar. He was rumored to have been in the area for the "Head Like a Hole" video shoot when he made his cameo.