Nine Inch Nails: A beginner’s guide — written by an expert

originally published July 8th, 2013

So The Guardian published an article today written by Jon Cronshaw that lacked any imagination or even accuracy about my favourite band of all time, Nine Inch Nails.

Firstly, the long awaited new album from Trent Reznor is named “Hesitation Marks” which is easily googleable. (update: The Guardian have now corrected this error) Let’s put that aside for now and just focus on what you should listen to and why.

Reznor himself put together four compilations unofficially via torrent sites under a pseudonym and with great cloak and dagger ability to counter his record label. This series is named “The Definitive NIN” and can be found here at the NINWiki. The series is made up of the singles and ‘deep cuts’ (stand out album tracks) as well as heavy and quiet songs.

To limit this unofficially official list down even further, I’ve put together a list of ten Nine Inch Nails songs that not only span all the albums (‘The Definitive NIN’ does not currently include all the albums), but give a sense of the breadth of the work. The list is not in chronological order, but in order of accessibility. I will also be putting together a list of tracks made outside of the NIN moniker but involving Reznor soon.

1. We’re In This Together (from The Fragile)

From the double disk opus ‘The Fragile’, this really defines the Nine Inch Nails sound. Combining live and electronic instruments that interweave to give an unrelenting ‘industrial’ sound that came from inspirations such as Throbbing Gristle and Ministry, matched in power by one of the best recorded vocal performances from Reznor. A rare uplifting anthem from an artist/band that is defined by its dark themes. The lyrics bounce between negativity and empowerment about a relationship that survives through all the hardship that is described. Whilst not subjecting you to too much of the dark themes that Nine Inch Nails is best at, it is a jump into the middle of what is definitely to come. Even the soft melodic ending hints at the sheer breadth of sound that comes from the catalogue.

2. Echoplex (from The Slip)

From an opus to a snapshot, The Slip is the album that was recorded in the least amount of time. Made up of ten simple songs, it was the first record Reznor released outside of a major label. Echoplex defines once again the fluidity in mixing live and electronic instruments as well as defining the sinister background that resides in most of NIN’s music. Largely panned as rushed and sparse compared to other releases from the band, the album is still so many steps ahead of most other rock albums of the time in its professional quality and defined songwriting. Starting off simply, the song descends into a strange droning and overlapping arrangement that still holds the attention of the listener before dropping out. The lyrics describe the overall theme of the album which is that of Reznor trying to stay relevant above all the new music that had been released since the band’s inception in the eighties.

3. Closer (from The Downward Spiral)

And so we arrive at the first of the more jarring performances. Still labelled as one of the best songs of the 90’s (with Michael Jackson amongst its many fans — some say the content in his later albums was heavily inspired by Nine Inch Nails) Closer samples Iggy Pop’s ‘Nightclubbing’ to create a simplistic beat that builds and builds until the instrumental ending takes a hold. Placed five tracks into the sophomore album from NIN, the song is amongst fourteen terrifying yet captivating songs based on the concept of a man falling apart. There’s all kinds of folklore surrounding the creation of the album, but it’s all background to what the album defines in its abrasive nature. Closer is Nine Inch Nails at its most provocative. Heavily electronic but with torn up guitar making up part of the instrumental, the song is a dark club hit about sex and is unashamed in its lyricism… “I wanna f**k you like an animal” goes the notorious refrain. Despite this unashamedly forward attitude, it’s notable how vulnerable and poignant the delivery and context of that line is. The song isn’t a dominant song, it’s submissive, praising its subject beyond all measure. It does what Reznor does best, remaining aggressively forward whilst bearing his soul. And under that premise…

4. Terrible Lie (from Pretty Machine) *best listened to on Beside You In Time*

Let’s face it, if you’re writing music electronically, it’s going to end up sounded slightly date over twenty years later. Pretty Hate Machine was recently remastered to perhaps sound a little better than it did originally, but the dating is still there. All of Reznor’s releases since have masterfully avoided this fate with their originality, but we have to forgive the début album for sounding a little archaic. However, what it lacks in decent drum machines, it more than makes up for in vulnerability. Written directly from the pages of Reznor’s diaries, Pretty Hate Machine is a release defined by its almost teenage quality. Terrible Lie is one of many diatribes against God that is to come from Nine Inch Nails. Starting off with the accusatory “Why are you doing this to me?” the aggression, hatred, frustration and anger are perfectly defined — especially when it comes to later performances. You wouldn’t think it, but as Reznor has grown older (and thankfully become sober) the live version of the song has become even better. Still retaining the vulnerability “don’t take it away from me/I need something to hold onto”, it is a song that on the album launches a full synth onslaught against the listener but live, it really comes into it’s own.

5. And All That Could Have Been (from Still)

So after those two predictable tracks let’s throw in a wildcard. Widely regarded by fans as the best song from Nine Inch Nails, this track appears on album released with NIN’s first live concert DVD. The album is made up of new songs like this, as well as reworked versions of older songs all with a quieter edge to them than the normal aggressive or harsh nature of previous songs. Recorded with bandmates in Reznor’s New Orleans studio, the album really defined a man falling apart and was the last release from the band before he became sober. This song is really defined by its incredible building arrangement, truly invasive lyricism and by a build around the 4:15 mark that wrenches at the soul. It also reflects a lot of the moody instrumentals that Reznor created for The Fragile with a great vocal performance overlayed. The lyric “in my nothing/you meant everything to me” really hits home and it’s clear to see why it’s such a strong favourite that, even to this day, has never been performed live — perhaps because it is so emotionally vulnerable?

6. All The Love In The World (from With Teeth)

Chronologically, this track follows directly, but is a good example of the move Reznor made from addiction to sobriety. Finding it difficult to write without relying on drugs, it is an album defined by its cold timbre. The chaos and the madness defined by the albums previously were stripped back to really reveal a vulnerable artist who was feeling he maybe could appeal to a new wider audience. Many fans of the chaos and anger in previous albums were at first sceptical, but were mostly satisfied by a lot of the new tracks and especially the tour that followed which focused that energy in a more visceral way. This track placement was a toss up between the opening track (which I’ve chosen) and a track called ‘Sunspots’ which is too similar to ‘Closer’ in a way, as well as not really defining the new clean sound that really was starting to come across. The vulnerability is matched again, this time with a clearly developed production style as well as a new (dare I say it) pop aesthetic that kicks in three minutes into the song. It also displays Reznor’s simple but effective dexterity on the piano.

7. The Great Destroyer (from Year Zero)

Okay, let’s go crazy now. This is a great track from NIN’s second concept album which focuses on the future of the government and the oppression that may come with it. This track blows the abrasive sampling of so called ‘Dubstep’ (aka the Skrillex nonsense) clean out of the water. Starting off with an electronic beat and jagged guitar, the song is a clear representation of the feeling at the time surrounding American politics and foreign policy (Reznor was a loud opponent of George W. Bush). The crux of the song appears halfway through with an almost operatic crescendo into the a speaker-blowing sample mayhem that finishes off the rest of the song. A genre-defining piece of production and one of the most bizarre yet revered creations amongst the NIN fan base.

8. Wish (from Broken)

Back to more familiar territory, ‘Wish’ is the best track for definition and accessibility from the Broken EP, written and recorded between Pretty Hate Machine and The Downward Spiral, this release is completely undisguised as a piece of pure aggression. With a mind-bending manipulation of sound that has gone on to make Reznor a revered musician and producer, the EP is known for its bizarre sampling of guitars, heavy drums and some of the angriest lyrics to be spat into a microphone. Bands like The Dillinger Escape Plan, Slipknot, Korn and the previously mentioned Skrillex all cite heavy influence from Nine Inch Nails. Hell, even Linkin Park did their own awful cover of this song (please don’t look it up.)

9. La Mer (from The Fragile)

This is the song you want to play to show your doubting parents/spouse/partner that Nine Inch Nails aren’t just that aggressive rock band that they’ve heard so little about. Again, from The Fragile, it could not be more different to We’re In This Together. Completely instrumental except for some Creole French spoken word, the track is a beautiful simplistic piece based on the Debussy piece of the same name. The track starts softly and slowly builds into a more rock beat with live drums and a droning synthesiser. It’s the perfect way to ease someone into the Nine Inch Nails sound. This track should technically be number one, but it doesn’t really define the band as well as the other tracks do. Reznor has since said that he wrote this song instead of killing himself during the making of The Fragile and he has since returned to the place he wrote it to marry his wife (who I’ll mention later on…) so it’s truly one of the most exposed pieces of music without meaning to be.

10. Came Back Haunted (from the upcoming Hesitation Marks)

And so the future… this is the new single from the new album. The track can be appreciated better by listening to all the tracks I have mentioned before this. It incorporates not only the pop sensibilities of With Teeth, the sampling from Year Zero and simplicity of The Slip but also hints at the new tracks starting to sound a little like the earlier releases. It is reminiscent of the darkness of The Downward Spiral and the synth layers of Pretty Hate Machine. As you might be able to tell, this is very exciting news for the NIN fan community and September 3rd is eagerly awaited!

For further listening other notable tracks include:

Something I Can Never Have (Pretty Hate Machine, although best in either Still or Beside You In Time live DVD)
Sin (Pretty Hate Machine, although best in And All That Could Have Been live DVD)
Last (Broken)
Happiness In Slavery (Broken)
Piggy (The Downward Spiral)
The Becoming (The Downward Spiral)
Just Like You Imagined (The Fragile)
Into The Void (The Fragile)
Getting Smaller (With Teeth)
Right Where It Belongs (With Teeth)
Me I’m Not (Year Zero)
In This Twilight (Year Zero)
1,000,000 (The Slip)
Head Down (The Slip)