Review: NIN, our friend as the world ends

Nine Inch Nails: Year Zero

I normally tend to the sunny side of the musical street, but I’ve just been escorted on a trip through the apocalypse – and I loved it.

Diana, you were absolutely right:

Nine Inch Nails‘ Year Zero is wonderful.

I didn’t care for the brief sampling I had of Trent Reznor’s earlier work which to my admittedly innocent and ignorant ears sounded like a self-indulgent brat wailing about self-inflicted misery. To put it mildly, I haven’t been a fan.

But the new album (well, new to me ;-) is like a soundtrack to the end of the world. Like the best science fiction, most of it reflects current reality. It’s frightening the way current reality is frightening, and the feeling is heightened by superb artistry.

Now that I find the content interesting, I’m free to dive into the beauty of the sound. Can “lush” and “industrial” describe the same piece of music? In this case, yes.

As heedless greed and violence destroy us and our planet, it’s good to have a friend to sing it like it is, beautifully.

…

I’m not going to post a video here because I think you have to listen to the whole darn dark thing all together. And now I’m heading over to the NIN web site to check out all their teasers.

I know, I know, I’m so slow to get a clue. But I have to get to know and appreciate things in my own time.