Nine Inch Nails has perhaps been classified under more labels than any other group on
earth (
alternative,
industrial,
techno,
rock, just to name a few), but the fact
is: you can’t
brand NIN’s
music.
An evolving blend of artificial, industrial
beats, harsh
guitar, and pure
human core, growing from unrelenting
thrash to delicate,
fragile and emotional
balladry, it all revolves around one man:
Trent Reznor. Band members come and
go, but he is the constant behind this conglomeration of works - many of the group’s dedicated fanbase have even come to call him a god.
Trent Reznor is Nine Inch Nails, and Nine Inch Nails is Trent Reznor.
Common Misconceptions
Someone unfamiliar with NIN’s music will find it very confusing, and
often unwelcoming, when beginning to approach it. It’s not for everyone; and
it
is an acquired taste, being quite
intimidating at first. The
misconceptions made by those unacquainted with
Reznor’s work can also disinterest people before they even give it a chance.
NIN is not
goth. It is not
satanic,
nor is it attempting to convey some absurdly profound message. Reznor simply
makes music and lets others hear it: that’s what it’s all about. Many liken
him to the great ones of the past, classical composers such as
Chopin,
Debussy,
or
Rachmaninov, a
composer of (insanely intricate) works to relate emotions, or
simply to sound good.
The Halo
Nine Inch Nails has released four “core” albums (known as
halos):
Pretty
Hate Machine (
1989),
Broken
(
1992),
The Downward Spiral (
1994),
and
The Fragile, a double CD released
in
1999. In addition to these are 10 other halos, consisting of
remixes (greatly
prized by longtime NIN fans), singles, and a few unreleased tracks.
The contrast between these albums is
extremely
drastic.
Broken is composed almost
entirely of pure thrash, whereas
The
Fragile delves into the depths of the human
soul, and even contains some
(possibly pseudo?)
love songs.
NIN albums are appreciated for their intricacy and depth. Even within one halo there is a
huge
variety from track to track, making it very
relistenable. Despite the contrasts, however, music by NIN is distinct, and is fairly recognizable.
Brief History
Reznor formed Nine Inch Nails in the late 1980’s, choosing the name
simply because it sounded good and suited his purposes. He was the sole member,
but soon realized the importance of a live band, and took in other musicians to
help him out. NIN is usually thought of as a band, but the members rotate rather
frequently.
''
Down In It'' was the first single released by NIN (off the album,
Pretty
Hate Machine), catching attention, but not achieving any grand-scale
success. It set the tone for future Nails releases, however, and was amazingly
drastic for its time, emphasizing synthesizers when it was the trend to subdue
them.
The subsequent albums were huge hits in the alternative/industrial/any
other what-have-you
genre scene. A dedicated following of the band developed in
the early 90’s (that still buys NIN Halos religiously today), but huge pop
success wasn’t really achieved --not that it was something Reznor was striving
for-- until the release of
The Downward
Spiral, especially with the single ''
Closer.''
In September of
1999, Halo 14 was released:
The
Fragile, a double CD set. It debuted at number 1 on the Billboard charts,
and was the most anticipated NIN album ever released; with great support from
the NIN internet community (dubbed the Ninternet) prospering on the web.
A remix CD of
The Fragile, entitled "
Things Falling Apart" will be released in late November of
2000; a
DVD of live performances, and more, is expected in the following months.