Nine Inch Nails are the brainchild of Trent Reznor. That was the sum total of my knowledge of the band before buying this at a charity shop the other day. I'd been frustrated in an attempt to spend money wisely in a bookshop earlier, so I decided to take it out on the CD racks in Oxfam, Market Harborough.
This has been a very difficult one to decide about. After a couple of listens to CD1, I'm thinking , like Nirvana, but angrier, more complex, less compromising, and I like it for that. Opener Somewhat Damaged starts slowly, but not gently, building to an angry frenzy, taking us into The Day The World Went Away, less effective, more repetitive, while the gentle piano interlude The Frail brings the mood back down and segues straight into the sinister sounding The Wretched, which broods (can I say 'angrily' again) through five minutes. And by this point, I'm reminded of elements of Matt Johnson's The The, but with a more 'metal' edge. We're In This Together feels like more of the same, although the chorus has a persuasive hook. The Fragile is slower, more intense, but less immediate as a song, as is Just Like You Imagined, although the instrumental run off is powerful. Even Deeper works better, slow verses with strong guitar overlain. Pilgrimage is a plodding, yet strangely compelling instrumental march, followed by No, You Don't, a more orthodox slower, loud rock song and La Mer, a discordant instrumental, which starts quietly and builds to a climax. The first CD ends with The Great Below, a low key yet powerful end to the first half.
CD2, has a very similar feel, if anything a little more subdued, but it has its moments. Opening with an almost trademark quiet start, loud climax, quiet run off, in The Way Out Is Through, then the more funky Into The Void, before more angsty, slow rockers in Where Is Everybody? , The Mark Has Been Made, Please and Starfuckers Inc.
Complication is an lively guitar driven instrumental romp leading into the much darker, slower I'm Looking Forward To Joining You Finally. The Big Come Down livens proceedings up, taking us towards the end with the electronic Underneath It All, and finally Ripe, a very downbeat, almost (but not really) ambient instrumental finish.
I've enjoyed this album, without being blown away by it. I certainly feel I'd have enjoyed it more if it had just been a single CD, the intensity of NIN's music being quite tiring for 90 + minutes. nevertheless, I'll return to this and recommend it.
3* - the sheer intensity of this album makes it an uneasy listen, but there's plenty to reward the persistent listener
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