Thanks to everyone who has rated/commented on my reviews - I will try and return the favour as soon ...
Thanks to everyone who has rated/commented on my reviews - I will try and return the favour as soon as I can.
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Nine Inch Nails are possibly the most popular industrial group there is, though the term group is a little inaccurate. In truth NIN is the brain child of Trent Reznor and he has remained the only consistent band member. There are many reasons for the popularity including more melodic and traditional structures than their industrial contemporaries and striking lyrics.
This album was released in 1989 and was the result of a demo Reznor had been working on after hours while working as a janitor at a recording studio. Working with top producers such as Flood, Keith LeBlanc, Adrian Sherwood and John Fryer, Reznor takes credit for all of the vocals, a great deal of the arrangement, programming, producing, engineering, digital editing and mixing and the majority of instrumentation including keyboards, drum machines and guitars. In fact the only other musician given credit on the album was Richard Patrick who plays guitar on 'Sanctified'.
The album is industrial in genre, however there are definite links to 80s Goth (check out the band photos), with melodic piano pieces and mournful guitar solos and the album is loved by 90s grungers like myself who want something a little deeper form their lyrics while also being able to rock out to aggressive sounds and a punchy beat.
'Head Like a Hole'
'Head like a hole Black as your soul I'd rather die than give you control'
Possibly the most famous Nine Inch Nails song it has a light percussion intro backed by heavier drums and synthesised bass notes. On the whole it is heavier then many of the other tracks on the album, but still lacks the depth that you feel when heard live. The composition is simple and yet more complicated than the majority of the album lead by the deeper, synthesised repeated bars. The guitar composition is simple and chord based, but uses this simplicity to create a confrontational and furious mood. The vocals sound sulky using elongated
syllables for emphasis and form the central melody along with the bass. The bridge is a slightly mangled version of the instrumentation for the verses and the vocals from the chorus. While the outro layers the vocals so that the audio imaging sounds like a chant.
'Terrible Lie'
'I'm all alone in this world you must despise. Hey God, I believed your promises, your promises and lies'
An angst ridden rant against God featuring delicate 80s synthed notes and heavy guitar chords elongated for ominous effect. The chorus features an electronic melody backed by angry vocals and ominous synthed chords. The bridge is vocally lead using layered voices that rise in intensity until they bring the listener back into the main piece. The melody changes for the outro, mixing the melodies for the verse and chorus to make a whole new sound as the vocals become cleaner, progressively more intense and more repetitive for emphasis.
'Down In It'
'Kinda Like a Cloud I was up way up in the sky And I was feeling some feelings you wouldn't believe Sometimes I don't believe them myself But I decided I was never coming down'
Also known as Halo 1 this was the first song Reznor ever wrote and was inspired by Skinny Puppy's "Dig It". It opens with distinctly 80s synthesised percussion and keyboards. The vocals are highly produced with a slightly electronic edge, making it seem more artificial. They also change tone for contextual changes; passionate, cold and distant to hushed and threatening. The mood in relatively upbeat thanks to the percussion.
'Sanctified'
'Heaven's just a rumour she'll dispel As she walks me through the nicest parts of hell.'
Opening on haunting synthesised strings, 'Sanctified' is a simple composition brought alive by layers of instrumentation. It is lead by the bass with a basic riff that remain relentless throughout the track and provides the main rhythm. For the verses the vocals are hushed and reverberated with elongated 's' sounds that work with bass to create tension, broken by a guitar lead chorus with clearer vocals punctuated by striking guitar chords. They then become clearer for the chorus as the tension is broken and are punctuated by basic stuttering guitar chords. The bridge features haunting sound effects, intelligible spoken word and is the only point where the bass falls silent. The outro is a heavily produced affair which uses spits and starts to wind down and merge into the next track.
'Something I can never have'
'You always were the one to show me how Back then I couldn't do the things that I can do now This thing is slowly taking me apart Grey would be the colour, if I had a heart'
A fantastically dark and brooding track that crosses Goth and industrial genres. Reznor demonstrates here an early aptitude for creating a mood that he would develop in later tracks. It has an ominous opening with a blur of background strings behind a simple piano melody that continues throughout the verses. The composition is simple with just vocals, piano and percussion. The chorus features heavy and oppressive percussion that ebbs and flows as the vocals become more and less intense. Vocals are desperate and longing against an ominous background making the sad and gentle lyrics seem threatening together with occasional white noise in the background.
'Kinda I Want to'
'I know it's not the right thing And I know it's not the good think But kinda I want to'
Sparse instrumentation and skilful production techniques change the audio positioning of the guitars and make the track seem hollow. The bridge is compromised of many layers of vocals audio positioned so the listener is surrounded. The outro features reverberated vocals backed by a melody rising in speed and mood, before reaching a climax and each instrument dropping out one by one.
'Sin'
'You give me the reason You give me control I gave you my purity My purity you stole'
Also known as Halo 4, this is, in my opinion, one of the better tracks on the album; it has a darker and heavier start than the rest and catches more depth. The fast pace is set by the vocals and synthesised bass notes, while the lower pitched notes give the track the more heart. The vocals work up throughout the track in sincerity and emotion. The bridge features a distorted guitar together with desperate vocals and a relentless bass. The mood is quiet and brooding for the verses, winding itself up for the furious chorus.
'That's what I get'
'Just when everything was making sense You took away all my self-confidence.'
A lengthy intro with synthesised tinny percussion and single electro notes giving an eerie feel. Together with the haunting vocals, the lack of real instruments leaves the song sounding empty. Eighties pop style keyboards with dark synthesised strings performing mini off key scales in the breaks between verse and chorus and single synthesised notes against feint high chords during the chorus further develop the eerie feel. The verses brood, while the chorus is more upbeat, mainly influenced by the percussion.
'The Only Time'
'I'm drunk And right now I'm so in love with you. And I don't want to think too much about what I should and shouldn't do.'
When I first bought this album this song really stood out for me. The sound is much more mainstream with a catchy riff. A disjointed vocal staccato rhythm together with strange key changes give the track a disorganised and haphazard feel. Percussion mainly takes the form of simple rolls in-between verses and chorus and simple straight beats throughout the rest of the track. The lengthy outro sees a change in the melody as the pitch raises and the vocals become more disorganised. Then there's a break where the vocals become clearer lead by a synthed melody. Vocals swap between strong and ranting to gentle and joyful. During the outro there are pauses from the synthesiser to allow the vocals to come through clear and reiterate a point.
'Ringfinger'
'If I was twice the man I should be I'd still be half of what you need'
Going out with a bang, 'Ringfinger' is one of the more guitar based tracks on the album. Opens on a light cycled synthesised riff and hushed imposing vocals. The main body becomes warmer with clearer vocals, snappy percussion and a dirty guitar riff interrupted by a light synthisised melody. The chorus sees layers of voices behind the lead vocals giving it an eerie feel. The bridge in introduced by heavy guitar riff set against equally heavy percussion. The outro begins with a rock guitar riff and heavy synthesiser as the pace increases to a crescendo, but soon loses its tight composition and becomes more erratic with a synthesised lead and progressively discordant guitar.
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Sep 8th, 2008
(May 4th, 2007)
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