And POLL That Could Have Been: ILM Artist Poll #119 - Nine Inch Nails - RESULTS

i received 20 track ballots, 17 album ballots, and 12 remix ballots

thermo thinwall very kindly offered to do images (it was apparently a very longstanding offer for the nine inch nails poll) for the tracks rollout, saving me a ton of work, so i'm immensely grateful for that

i'm going to start with the top 15 remixes soon

thanks to everyone who participated!

I didn’t have my stuff together enough to put together a ballot for this in time. Looking forward to the rollout, though!

15. Eraser (Denial; Realization)
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
"Eraser" remixed by John Balance, Peter Christophersen and Drew McDowell of Coil with Danny Hyde
28 points, 3 voters
Recording

15. David Bowie - The Hearts Filthy Lesson (Trent Reznor Alternative Mix)
Released on "The Hearts Filthy Lesson" single, 1995
David Bowie's "The Hearts Filthy Lesson" remixed by Trent Reznor
28 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 vote
Recording

15. David Bowie - I Can't Give Everything Away (Farewell Mix)
Released 2017
David Bowie's "I Can't Give Everything Away" remixed by Trent Reznor
28 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 Vote
Recording

15. Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now)
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
"Piggy" remixed by Rick Rubin with Dave Navarro and Kim Bullard
28 points, 2 voters
Recording

So exciting! I didn’t have time to rank remixes but I am super curious to see what wins

13. Self Destruction, Final
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
"Mr. Self Destruct" remixed by J. G. Thirwell
30 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 votes
Recording

13. All The Pigs, All Lined Up
Released on "March Of The Pigs" single, 1994
"March Of The Pigs" remixed by Nine Inch Nails
32 points, 2 voters
Recording

11. Only (Richard X Mix)
Released on "Only" single, 2005
"Only" remixed by Richard X
32 points, 3 voters
Recording

11. Heresy (Version)
Released on Further Down The Spiral international edition, 1995
"Heresy" remixed by Charlie Clouser
32 points, 2 voters
Recording

10. The Downward Spiral (The Bottom)
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
"The Downward Spiral" remixed by John Balance, Peter Christophersen and Drew McDowell of Coil with Danny Hyde
36 points, 3 voters
Recording

9. Find My Way (Oneohtrix Point Never Remix)
Released on Hesitation Marks deluxe edition, 2013
"Find My Way" remixed by Oneohtrix Point Never
38 points, 4 voters
Recording

I’m guessing the “Closer” remixes are further up, but this is a great start!

I was vaguely hoping the title of this thread would be “I wanna rank you like an ILM poll”.

8. Gave Up (Remix)
Released on Fixed, 1992
"Gave Up" remixed by Coil with Danny Hyde
40 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
Recording

lol that's too clever for me to come up with first thing in the morning

7. The Art of Self Destruction, Part One
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
"Mr. Self Destruct" remixed by Nine Inch Nails (Chris Vrenna, Robin Finck, Danny Lohner, Charlie Clouser, Trent Reznor) with Sean Beavan & Brian Pollack
42 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
Recording

6. Ruiner (Version)
Released on Further Down The Spiral international edition, 1995
"Ruiner" remixed by Charlie Clouser
46 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
Recording

bangerrrrrr

5. David Bowie - I'm Afraid of Americans (Nine Inch Nails V1 Mix)
Released on "I'm Afraid of Americans" single, 1997
David Bowie's "I'm Afraid of Americans" remixed by Nine Inch Nails
48 points, 3 voters
Recording

I love the versions of "Heresy" and "Ruiner" from the international edition of FDTS (which, being in Australia, was the version I bought aged 13 or 14).

In their combination of layering and populism they feel beamed in from an alternate world where industrial dance-pop became a big thing, Ruby's "Tiny Meat" was number one on the charts for five weeks, etc.

4. At the Heart of It All
Released on Further Down The Spiral, 1995
Created by Aphex Twin
54 points, 4 voters
Recording

3. The Hand That Feeds (DFA Mix)
Released on "The Hand That Feeds" single, 2005
"The Hand That Feeds" remixed by The DFA
64 points, 5 voters
Recording

"At The Heart of it All" was my first time hearing Aphex Twin, and I remember thinking "I've never heard anything like this".

I went out and bought "I Care Because You Do" pretty much straightaway afterwards, and I remember liking it a lot but also being vaguely disappointed that it lacked the elegiac seriousness of "At The Heart of it All" - that combination of clanking mid-90s sound design with the solemnity of the first two Aphex Twin albums feels like a vibe RDJ rarely grappled with.

2. Closer to God
Released on "Closer to God" single, 1994
"Closer" remixed by Trent Reznor, Sean Beavan and Brian Pollack
68 points, 4 voters, 1 #1 vote
Recording

I enjoy both "All The Pigs Lined Up" and "Closer To God" a lot but, they also really underline the wisdom of Trent's decision-making re the versions of those songs that made it into the album - especially the decision to record "March of the Pigs" in 7/8 rather than 4/4.

it's crazy when you listen to all those versions of Closer, how much is actually packed into that song. it's true of the whole album, which at the time was a marvel of layers and sound engineering; but Closer is especially loaded with what i can only describe as really cool sounding shit.

"At The Heart of it All" was my first time hearing Aphex Twin, and I remember thinking "I've never heard anything like this".
I went out and bought "I Care Because You Do" pretty much straightaway afterwards

i literally did the exact same thing!!! except in my case i really dug a lot of what i heard on ICBYD and was an instant fan.

"At The Heart of it All" is what got me into Aphex Twin too. I didn't vote for it, would have felt weird as I don't consider it a nine inch nails track. I'd probably vote for it in an Aphex Twin poll though.

Has there never been one?

i got distracted by work, sorry

1. In This Twilight (fennesz)
Released on Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D, 2007
"In This Twilight" remixed by Fennesz
92 points, 6 voters, 2 #1 votes
Recording

1. In This Twilight (fennesz) - 92 points, 6 voters, 2 #1 votes
2. Closer to God - 68 points, 4 voters, 1 #1 vote
3. The Hand That Feeds (DFA Mix) - 64 points, 5 voters
4. At the Heart of It All - 54 points, 4 voters
5. David Bowie - I'm Afraid of Americans (Nine Inch Nails V1 Mix) - 48 points, 3 voters
6. Ruiner (Version) - 46 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
7. The Art of Self Destruction, Part One - 42 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
8. Gave Up (Remix) - 40 points, 3 voters, 1 #1 vote
9. Find My Way (Oneohtrix Point Never Remix) - 38 points, 4 voters
10. The Downward Spiral (The Bottom) - 36 points, 3 voters
11. Heresy (Version) - 32 points, 2 voters
11. Only (Richard X Mix) - 32 points, 3 voters
13. Self Destruction, Final - 30 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 vote
13. All The Pigs, All Lined Up - 30 points, 2 voters
15. Eraser (Denial; Realization) - 28 points, 3 voters
15. David Bowie - The Hearts Filthy Lesson (Trent Reznor Alternative Mix) - 28 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 vote
15. Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now) - 28 points, 2 voters
15. David Bowie - I Can't Give Everything Away (Farewell Mix) - 28 points, 2 voters, 1 #1 vote
19. The Beauty of Being Numb - 24 points, 3 voters
20. Closer (Further Away) - 20 points, 1 voter, 1 #1 vote
20. Capital G (Paul Epworth Phones 666 Revolutions Mix) - 20 points, 1 voter, 1 #1 vote
20. Me, I'm Not (Olof Dreijer) - 20 points, 1 voter, 1 #1 vote
20. Closer (Precursor) - 20 points, 4 voters
20. Slipping Away - 20 points, 3 voters
25. The Hand That Feeds (Photek Straight Mix) - 18 points, 1 voter
25. Hurt (Quiet) - 18 points, 1 voter
25. The Perfect Drug (Spacetime Continuum) - 16 points, 1 voter
25. Happiness In Slavery (Fixed) - 16 points, 2 voters
25. The Great Destroyer (modwheelmood) - 16 points, 1 voter
25. The Beginning of the End (Ladytron) - 16 points, 2 voters
31. Another Version of the Truth (Kronos and Enrique Gonzales Muller) - 14 points, 1 voter
31. Erased, Over, Out - 14 points, 2 voters
31. Self Destruction, Part Two - 14 points, 1 voter
34. Every Day Is Exactly The Same (Sam Fog vs. Carlos D Mix) - 12 points, 1 voter
34. The Perfect Drug (Nine Inch Nails) - 12 points, 1 voter
36. Eraser (Polite) - 10 points, 1 voter
37. The Day the World Went Away (Porter Ricks Mix) - 8 points, 1 voter
38. Gunshots by Computer (Saul Williams) - 6 points, 1 voter
38. Sin (Dub) - 6 points, 1 voter
40. Underneath The Skin - 4 points, 1 voter
40. Heresy (Blind) - 4 points, 1 voter
40. Where is Everybody? (Remix) - 4 points, 1 voter
40. Neil Ciceriega - Rollercloser - 4 points, 1 voter
40. Copy of A (Simian Mobile Disco Remix) - 4 points, 1 voter
45. Curve - Missing Link (Nine Inch Nails Screaming Bird Mix) - 2 points, 1 voter
45. While I'm Still Here (Breyer P-Orridge 'Howler' Remix) - 2 points, 1 voter

i literally did the exact same thing!!! except in my case i really dug a lot of what i heard on ICBYD and was an instant fan.

― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, April 24, 2024 1:34 AM (fifty-two minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

Oh yeah, me too - it's more that I had to adjust my expectations a bit.

Is this only going to roll out at nighttime BST hours? Would be nice to participate a bit in real time but no worries if work/life prevents that.

8. Gave Up (Remix)

My #1, maybe my first encounter with vocals cut up like that, still something I deeply love.

I threw aphex a point or two, yeah maybe it's not really a nin track but it does sound quite a bit like the steam engine in 'something i can never have', and it is great.

i'm going to do some of the rollout at night my time which should suit europeans better

i'll probably start albums soon

https://i.imgur.com/H1aYQ4o.jpeg
13. Year Zero
Halo 24, released 2007
52 points, 6 voters

https://i.imgur.com/y2GhI8P.jpeg
12. Not the Actual Events
Halo 29, released 2016
56 points, 7 voters

https://i.imgur.com/saCDXPd.jpeg
11. Fixed
Halo 6, released 1992
58 points, 5 voters, 2 #1 votes

https://i.imgur.com/uXUhUh4.jpeg
10. Add Violence
Halo 31, released 2017
72 points, 7 voters

https://i.imgur.com/i2n2Vdi.jpeg
9. Bad Witch
Halo 32, released 2018
6 points, 8 voters

bad witch is pretty great the whole way through, my main issue with it is i want more of it

https://i.imgur.com/tzERRnT.jpeg
8. Still
Halo 17 CD2, released 2002
92 points, 8 voters

not that i have anything against it, but genuinely surprised someone had fixed at #1!

it was me, and one other person who outed themselves in the voting thread

I didn't know "still" existed. Listening right now for the first time.

https://i.imgur.com/o2S61vF.jpeg
7. With Teeth
Halo 19, released 2005
96 points, 12 voters

oh whoops bad witch had 76 points

https://i.imgur.com/si2pYZB.jpeg
6. Further Down the Spiral
Halo 10, released 1995
98 points, 9 voters, 2 #1 votes

i remember being let down by with teeth at the time. but in doing the poll i realize what a great album it really is. not sure why i was so dismissive of it at the time - probably more about where i was personally then and TDS and Fragile putting the bar so high. i also hated and still don't care for the title track. but i owe you an apology, with teeth, you're a good album.

Despite my best efforts at cramming over the last few weeks I don't really have a handle on year zero or with teeth and they kind of lump together in my mind. probably heresy to fans or detractors of one or the other.

I had both versions of ftds, I was never crazy about all those endless different coil remixes so much preferred the UK version with the charlie clouser remixes.

not having Clouser remix Closer was a missed opportunity.

https://i.imgur.com/GkCgj34.jpeg
5. Hesitation Marks
Halo 28, released 2013
148 points, 13 voters

Pleased to see Hesitation Marks land so high

ivy street teaming paid off.

https://i.imgur.com/9zD30BC.jpeg
4. Broken
Halo 5, released 1992
196 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote

my main takeaway from this has been that people didn't listen to the 2016-18 ep trilogy enough

His Song Exploder episode was really fucking good, my favourite one, and I was never that much of a fan.

i dunno. admittedly, nostalgia is a tough thing to overcome; but i gave them every chance - and while i loved Add Violence, i did not dig Bad Which at all. also they're EPs, which - obviously - means there's just less music to them. then there's context - those first 3-4 releases were p unique to what existed at the time and wildly influential.
xpost

https://i.imgur.com/e70QNTR.jpeg
3. Pretty Hate Machine
Halo 2, released 1989
222 points, 17 voters, 1 #1 vote

https://i.imgur.com/jP9LpD0.jpeg
2. The Fragile
Halo 14, released 1999
230 points, 15 voters, 4 #1 votes

https://i.imgur.com/U6t1JZI.jpeg
1. The Downward Spiral
Halo 8, released 1994
306 points, 17 voters, 7 #1 votes

not really a surprise to have the downward spiral so far ahead of everything else

I’m really happy Further Down The Spiral is getting so much love in this poll

(I wouldn’t have imagine Fragile at #2 - wow!)

i didn't expect it either, but the total points was close. the #1 vote difference is what put Fragile ahead.

I guess I can understand being the only #1 for Pretty Hate Machine. It's not without its flaws, but I do think it's the most charming NIN album with the most memorable highs.

Every time I play PHM I’m somehow surprised anew at how gripping it is.

I wasn't sure which I was going to put first - I hadn't listened to either in a decade or more. phm may (arguably) have the 'best' (catchiest, most melodic. whatever) songs but the arrangement/production/sound palette on tds is in an absolute league of its own.

It was hard to work out where to rank PHM, it's probably the NIN release I've played the most in my life because I bought it (on tape) at a point when I only owned a handful of albums but I think it's been surpassed many times over (I had it at #8 in the end I think). Hesitation Marks kept creeping up my ballot, glad to see it so high.

I prefer the international Further Down the Spiral although I realised my favourite tracks are mostly the ones that appear on both versions.

MAYBE I'M ALL MESSED UP

Really happy to see the Fennesz remix of In This Twilight top the remix poll. It's truly a marvel and one of the best things musically that Trent's been involved with imho.

Surprised The Fragile: Deviations 1 and Ghosts didn't place on the releases poll! Excited for the tracks now.

do people want top 60 tracks or top 50? i can do either but only have images for top 50

i'll try to get through these quickly

60. In This Twilight
Released on Year Zero, 2007
88 points, 5 voters
Studio version
Live 2008

59. The Only Time
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
96 points, 3 voters
Studio version

58. Kinda I Want To
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
98 points, 2 voters
Studio version

this one was a surprise to see, it always seemed like a lesser track on phm to me

57. Dead Souls
Released on The Crow soundtrack, 1994
102 points, 3 voters
Studio version

i love Dead Souls so much

56. Running
Released on Hesitation Marks, 2013
106 points, 3 voters
Studio version

53. This Isn't the Place
Released on Add Violence, 2017
110 points, 5 voters
Studio version

53. Suck
Released on Broken, 1992
110 points, 6 voters
Studio version

53. Less Than
Released on Add Violence, 2017
110 points, 6 voters
Studio version/music video

51. Even Deeper
Released on The Fragile, 1999
112 points, 3 voters
Studio version
Live 2013

51. Leaving Hope
Released on Still, 2002
112 points, 4 voters
Studio version

i really recommend the live version of "even deeper" there

https://i.imgur.com/mRHVhiA.jpeg
49. The Great Destroyer
Released on Year Zero, 2007
116 points, 6 voters
Studio version
Live 2007
Live 2014

https://i.imgur.com/qi3irH7.jpeg
49. Shit Mirror
Released on Bad Witch, 2018
116 points, 3 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/7KL0Xt6.jpeg
48. Sanctified
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
124 points, 4 voters
Studio version
Live 2013

even deeper wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy too low

https://i.imgur.com/lyRY0lC.jpeg
47. The Hand That Feeds
Released on With Teeth, 2005
134 points, 6 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 2006
Live 2008
Live 2013

i really regret not managing to fit "even deeper" on my ballot after hearing that live version

i'm surprised "the hand that feeds" was this low, it's quite good at what it does really

Me too! Figured it for top 25 at least

same. expect WAAYYYYY higher

last one for now:

https://i.imgur.com/yDumcC4.jpeg
46. I Do Not Want This
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
136 points, 5 voters
Studio version

58. Kinda I Want To
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
98 points, 2 voters
Studio version

― ufo, Wednesday, April 24, 2024 6:32 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

this one was a surprise to see, it always seemed like a lesser track on phm to me

― ufo, Wednesday, April 24, 2024 6:32 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

I had it at #3, which pushed it over the edge. During voting, I got kinda obsessed with a minor similarity to Genesis's Tonight Tonight Tonight. In retrospect, I might have had it a little high. :)

it didn't make my ballot, but this was one of my favs off PHM in my peak NIN fandom.

I’m going to go ahead and predict “Only” in the top 20

I have a notion about that song that I’ll share as soon as we get to it

summary so far:

46. I Do Not Want This - 136 points, 5 voters
47. The Hand That Feeds - 134 points, 6 voters
48. Sanctified - 124 points, 4 voters
49. The Great Destroyer - 116 points, 6 voters
49. Shit Mirror - 116 points, 3 voters
51. Even Deeper - 112 points, 3 voters
51. Leaving Hope - 112 points, 4 voters
53. This Isn't the Place - 110 points, 5 voters
53. Suck - 110 points, 6 voters
53. Less Than - 110 points, 6 voters
56. Running - 106 points, 3 voters
57. Dead Souls - 102 points, 3 voters
58. Kinda I Want To - 98 points, 2 voters
59. The Only Time - 96 points, 3 voters
60. In This Twilight - 88 points, 5 voters

and full albums results:

1. The Downward Spiral - 306 points, 17 voters, 7 #1 votes
2. The Fragile - 230 points, 15 voters, 4 #1 votes
3. Pretty Hate Machine - 222 points, 17 voters, 1 #1 vote
4. Broken - 196 points, 15 voters, 1 #1 vote
5. Hesitation Marks - 148 points, 13 voters
6. Further Down the Spiral - 98 points, 9 voters, 2 #1 votes
7. With Teeth - 96 points, 12 voters
8. Still - 92 points, 8 voters
9. Bad Witch - 76 points, 8 voters
10. Add Violence - 72 points, 7 voters
11. Fixed - 58 points, 5 voters, 2 #1 votes
12. Not the Actual Events - 56 points, 7 voters
13. Year Zero - 52 points, 6 voters
14. Closer to God - 22 points, 2 voters
15. March Of The Pigs - 16 points, 1 voter
15. The Fragile: Deviations 1 - 16 points, 1 voter
17. Ghosts V: Together - 14 points, 3 voters
18. The Slip - 12 points, 2 voters
19. Y34RZ3r0r3mix3d - 10 points, 2 voters
19. Ghosts I-IV - 10 points, 2 voters
21. Watchmen: Volume 1 (Music from the HBO Series) - 6 points, 1 voter
21. Quake - 6 points, 1 voter
23. Ghosts VI: Locusts - 4 points, 2 voters
23. The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo (Original Soundtrack) - 4 points, 1 voter
23. "The Perfect Drug" Versions - 4 points, 1 voter
23. Broken (film) - 4 points, 1 voter
27. Watchmen: Volume 3 (Music from the HBO Series) - 2 points, 1 voter
27. Closure - 2 points, 1 voter, #1 votes
27. The Vietnam War (Original Score) - 2 points, 1 voter, #1 votes

I voted for both “kinda I want to” and “the only time” - love how the back end of PHM basically gives up on the angst and just becomes about illicit sex.

going to do 5 more now

https://i.imgur.com/P1iFwa2.jpeg
45. Ringfinger
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
138 points, 4 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/Ev7nqP4.jpeg
43. Burn
Released on Natural Born Killers soundtrack, 1994
140 points, 5 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 2009

https://i.imgur.com/ZMABIEK.jpeg
43. Every Day Is Exactly The Same
Released on With Teeth, 2005
140 points, 4 voters
Studio version

actually need to leave it there

aaaaaaaaaaaaHHHHHHHHHHHHHH MOTHERFUCKER!

Ringfinger was my #1! Unlike yesterday's entry from my list, Ringfinger is a decades-long, deeply held #1 NIN song for me. Verse one feels almost like a 60s or 70s soul song, like some Al Green or something. Verse two is, I admit, pretty stupid. Crap about Jesus on a cross that is not unlike the lyrics I tried to write in 7th grade. In revisiting Pretty Hate Machine, I found that to be the case with most of the songs on the album - moments of sublime beauty and transcendent emotion juxtaposed against "I can't believe I wrote that when I was 13" juvenalia. It doesn't matter to me - I'm fine with it and accept it

The intro does a lot to lure me in: the sparse 4/4 kick drum underneath the alternating synth and bass lines is so hypnotic, made doubly so by letting you sit through 8 repetitions of the riff lasting 30 seconds. I think a lot of artists would have probably just left it at 4. And then, pulling the same trick, the awesome, cathartic outro bassline lasts for almost 2 minutes!

Anyway, glad enough other people voted for it that it made it to the rollout.

I thought I voted for it but apparently not! It was very hard and somewhat arbitary to decide which to pick and which to leave, especially from phm. The intro is good and the outro is great but musically the verse isn't so strong. At least be thankful he rewrote the chorus lyrics from the demo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ROYVYVPqj34

(Literally the first time I've listened to that in 30 years, after hearing it coming out of someone's tent at a music festival in 1994)

I’m convinced that if “Less Than” had come out during the imperial period it would have been a huge hit.

xp: yeah, I listened to the demo for the first time during this poll. Definitely glad he worked on it a little longer.

in the chorus of Ringfinger does anyone hear the sounds of someone tapping an incandescent light bulbs 3x repeatedly?

Ringfinger remains one of my favorite tracks from PHM. Its production is singular. I have long been a bit of a lyrical apologist for that album, most of the songs on it exhibit some form of "juvenalia".

(it also made my ballot too)

"If I was twice the man I could be I'd still be half of what you need" is a great Reznorian equation. If Ringfinger had sounded more like the live versions from the period heard on live bootlegs it'd have made my ballot and been pretty high up.

link to a good example?? very curious

Even Deeper was my #3... for some reason I thought it was certainly going to make the top 30 :(

love the outro, hate the "naa naa, na-na-na naaaaghghgh"

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FNaZKus4NN4

Ringfinger live in 91. I love the songs on PHM but the live versions do it much more for me. A large part of this being the audio quality of the bootlegs: I've got a major weak spot for drum machines swathed in tape hiss.

https://i.imgur.com/euHH1Tz.jpeg
42. Reptile
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
144 points, 5 voters
Studio version
Radio performance with Peter Murphy, 2006

unpopular opinion maybe but i still really love this song, one of my favorites on DS because of the way it fits into the narrative etc

and that Peter Murphy version is so good

https://i.imgur.com/bCrK1MA.jpeg
41. All Time Low
Released on Hesitation Marks, 2013
150 points, 5 voters
Studio version
Live 2013

“Reptile” was a very late cut from my ballot - the arrangement is top-tier but that are a few TDS tunes which I feel match it but where I like the song more.

https://i.imgur.com/UW7MyAW.jpeg
40. That's What I Get
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
158 points, 4 voters
Studio version

this is another on pretty hate machine that i was surprised that it was as high as it was

This is second tier PHM for me only because I find it a bit whiny

“All Time Low” is monumental

https://i.imgur.com/23CGtTy.jpeg
39. The Big Come Down
Released on The Fragile, 1999
162 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Live 2008
Live 2013

https://i.imgur.com/oknaqQM.jpeg
38. Hurt
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
168 points, 7 voters
Studio version
Live 1995
Live 2006
Live 2008
Live 2013

https://i.imgur.com/y6xTg6r.jpeg
37. Various Methods of Escape
Released on Hesitation Marks, 2013
190 points, 5 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/TDEr4q0.jpeg
36. God Break Down the Door
Released on Bad Witch, 2018
192 points, 6 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/vZZ4a3e.jpeg
33. Copy of A
Released on Hesitation Marks, 2013
194 points, 9 voters
Studio version
Live 2013

https://i.imgur.com/dF8PR7I.jpeg
33. She's Gone Away
Released on Not The Actual Events, 2016
194 points, 6 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/fokLep3.jpeg
33. The Background World
Released on Add Violence, 2017
194 points, 6 voters
Studio version

i thought Hurt might be higher but i guess maybe everyone thought that collectively & didn’t place it higher lol

oh "she's gone away" is from and not the actual events, i should have caught that

no 'and' in the title either

i'm not really surprised by hurt being this low it's just ultimately not that interesting

https://i.imgur.com/JhQde0O.jpeg
32. Everything
Released on Hesitation Marks, 2013
198 points, 5 voters
Studio version

now this is one i was not expecting

https://i.imgur.com/J7Tfjp3.jpeg
31. Only
Released on With Teeth, 2005
218 points, 7 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 2006
Live 2008

31. Only - 218 points, 7 voters
32. Everything - 198 points, 5 voters
33. Copy of A - 194 points, 9 voters
33. She's Gone Away - 194 points, 6 voters
33. The Background World - 194 points, 6 voters
36. God Break Down the Door - 192 points, 6 voters
37. Various Methods of Escape - 190 points, 5 voters
38. Hurt - 168 points, 7 voters
39. The Big Come Down - 162 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
40. That's What I Get - 158 points, 4 voters
41. All Time Low - 150 points, 5 voters
42. Reptile - 144 points, 5 voters
43. Burn - 140 points, 5 voters
43. Every Day Is Exactly The Same - 140 points, 4 voters
45. Ringfinger - 138 points, 4 voters, 1 #1 vote
46. I Do Not Want This - 136 points, 5 voters
47. The Hand That Feeds - 134 points, 6 voters
48. Sanctified - 124 points, 4 voters
49. The Great Destroyer - 116 points, 6 voters
49. Shit Mirror - 116 points, 3 voters
51. Even Deeper - 112 points, 3 voters
51. Leaving Hope - 112 points, 4 voters
53. This Isn't the Place - 110 points, 5 voters
53. Suck - 110 points, 6 voters
53. Less Than - 110 points, 6 voters
56. Running - 106 points, 3 voters
57. Dead Souls - 102 points, 3 voters
58. Kinda I Want To - 98 points, 2 voters
59. The Only Time - 96 points, 3 voters
60. In This Twilight - 88 points, 5 voters

I’m a high “That’s What I Get” voter, mostly because it’s a clear precursor to “We Share Our Mother’s Health”. Totally agree that it’s whiny, which doesn’t bother me since Trent as producer >>>>>>>>>>>>> Trent as vocalist >> Trent as lyricist and I pay attention accordingly.

Hmmm that lineage does make sense to me - Dreijer really has built a career out of flying the flag for post-PFM dance pop.

Has Reznor ever messed with Caribbean drums?

I don't dislike "Everything", exactly, but it's definitely one of the few tracks on Hesitation Marks that I didn't consider voting for at any stage.

*post-PHM

ooh yeah i definitely hear how it could have inspired "we share our mother's health" but those synths are really the only bit i care about

i appreciate that "everything" sounds a bit like new order in places but it's just uncanny and doesn't really have enough going on

all uncanny, no valley

i do really like "all time low", that's my favourite off hesitation marks. it really goes on a journey in the same way as a lot of tracks from the fragile do.

Definitely thought "Only" would be top 20. I'm guessing the top 20 will be mostly 80s/90s cuts then

i love everything. i didn’t vote for it and it’s a little obviously “the track we recorded for the greatest hits we ended up not putting out” but it’s like… the most free nin track, completely untethered from most of the things that keep reznor’s work anchored to the ground, let’s just do a fuckin emo synth rock track who cares

“all time low” is one of the best things he’s ever done. the “stretch across the sky coda” is just one factor… there’s also:

HEY

EVERYTHING IS NOT OK

Yeah I like that take on "Everything" - I certainly appreciate its existence

I think it’s great! I love how different the vibe is v the rest of his stuff. The still I used was from a video they made for it that they shelved after finishing. Trent said it was because they weren’t happy with how it turned out, but apparently at the time the song was not as popular with fans as they’d expected - which also might have had something to do with it.

fans HATED it. they still do

i think it's a bit out of place on hesitation marks and one of the weaker tracks but i don't hate it, it just doesn't really feel like it's as good as it could be

Does “Only” remind anyone else (even a little) if Sheryl Crow’s biggest hit? Not note for note or anything, but both melodically and rhythmically. Sort of a weird echo, like how you can close your eyes listening to certain Weeknd tracks and make pretend that Tracy Chapman’s voice never changed and then she took some interesting lyrical detours

…. has anyone made this mashup

“Only” is one of those songs that I just can’t help but sing along with, even if I didn’t intend to (I know the words to a whole lot of NIN songs but it’s not like I sing along to “Closer” or “Sin”)

"all i wanna do (dfa mix)"

Props to whomever put The Big Come Down as their number 1. That's such an underrated track and one of the best on The Fragile.

I had Hurt at #4. As I was playing tds again for the first time in years a thought flashed into my head, one of those random notions that you immediately know is nonsense - that it was a novelty song, a bonus track, even a cover of a johnny cash song?! Anyway when it came on I realised it's just a fucking great song.

I still haven't really delved into the EPs and I didn't vote for The Background World but that slowly disintegrating 7 minute outro is *chef's kiss*

great images btw thermo.

That 'The Big Come Down' number one was me.

Ranked it first to help boost it's chances of placing highly, but arguably my favourite nonetheless. A great example of the amazing sound design going on throughout The Fragile, which might be my personal favourite production wise - although from that point on it's all quite consistent on that front. The guitar solo/break in 'The Big Come Down' easily one of my top NIN moments.

a very weird and cool song indeed, like taking the good parts of Primus

I’d always assumed that guitar break on The Big Come Down was one of Adrian Belew’s contributions to The Fragile, but seemingly it’s not.

'Everything' was pretty high on my ballot, ivy's take is OTM, I just really enjoy hearing Trent do a full-on pop song, also it basically reignited my interest in the band after tuning out for over a decade.

“all time low” is one of the best things he’s ever done. the “stretch across the sky coda” is just one factor… there’s also:

HEY

EVERYTHING IS NOT OK

― ivy., Thursday, April 25, 2024 9:03 PM (yesterday) bookmarkflaglink

I had both Everything and All Time Low pretty high on my list. Just now realized that I accidentally deleted Copy of A from my ballot before submitting, although I can't remember where it was ranked. All Time Low was a song that I hadn't paid much attention to when I first listened to Hesitation Marks. Re-listening for this poll, the thing that jumped out at me was that the vocal cadence reminded me of the Beastie Boys song Girls. A lot better though, for many reasons, including those stated by Ivy.

Jockin' Adrian B. to my dismay.

That's What I Get didn't make my ballot but I really like it and am pleased it got a placement here. With NIN, narrowing it down to 30 was surprisingly easy in that after a certain point it's much of a muchness. There are very few NIN songs I don't like so i tried to rep for ones you don't hear a lot. If I'm Looking Forward To Joining You, Finally doesn't pop up, it was very high on my ballot because I've got a strong attachment to it.

Various Methods of Escape and The Background World are two others I've got that with. In the thread before this there was a bit of discussion of Trent's substance issues and VMEO in particular was a big touchstone for me when I was getting sober. The "I think I could lose myself in here" feels like the weirdly comforting sinking feeling of relapsing, before the shit hits the fan but after you're lucid enough to feel the guilt and the gnawing knowledge that this was an incredibly stupid idea. There's not a lot of other music that captures that for me.

https://i.imgur.com/jZ9eWZ6.jpeg
30. The Fragile
Released on The Fragile, 1999
232 points, 8 voters
Studio version
Still version
Live 2009

https://i.imgur.com/xvyUV66.jpeg
29. The Great Below
Released on The Fragile, 1999
238 points, 7 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/ivPkP8h.jpeg
28. Somewhat Damaged
Released on The Fragile, 1999
252 points, 7 voters
Studio version
Live 2009

https://i.imgur.com/HNdrDs8.jpeg
27. Gave Up
Released on Broken, 1992
254 points, 9 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 2000
Live 2008

https://i.imgur.com/a9sAq4C.jpeg
26. And All That Could Have Been
Released on Still, 2002
264 points, 6 voters
Studio version

this one's a favourite of mine, something like their version of a disintegration track

https://i.imgur.com/bQLpjDc.jpeg
25. Happiness In Slavery
Released on Broken, 1992
276 points, 7 voters
Studio version

24. All The Love In The World
Released on With Teeth, 2005
280 points, 8 voters
Studio version

sorry that should be:

https://i.imgur.com/rEZP8NK.jpeg
24. All The Love In The World
Released on With Teeth, 2005
280 points, 8 voters
Studio version

another favourite, the piano house coda with those overlapping vocals is fantastic

https://i.imgur.com/Qy3J1yv.jpeg
23. Last
Released on Broken, 1992
282 points, 8 voters
Studio version
Live 2009

last one for today

oh wait no there's one more

https://i.imgur.com/VSYhd6A.jpeg
22. The Day The World Went Away
Released on The Fragile, 1999
310 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Still version

my #1

love it so much

It's his highest charting single to this day, right? Such a wild bit of trivia you would not expect. A truly unique single too - in hindsight it's quite a risky pick for the first from The Fragile

Both Happiness In Slavery and The Great Below were in my top 5. Both really capture Trent's extremes in terms of sound palette.

“Last” seems less talked about than other Broken songs but I love it so much, maybe the closest he came to a straight rock song but somehow incredibly sexy - the combination reminds me of Jane’s Addiction.

i really love the wall of guitars on "the day the world went away"

i also forgot about the "quiet" version which was a b-side

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qmzzu3HqL4c

It's his highest charting single to this day, right? Such a wild bit of trivia you would not expect. A truly unique single too - in hindsight it's quite a risky pick for the first from The Fragile

― octobeard, Friday, April 26, 2024 10:42 PM (one hour ago) bookmarkflaglink

probably isn’t the case, but I’d be completely unsurprised if Reznor tried to push “Starfuckers, Inc.” as the first single

the fragile just doesn't really have obvious singles which is surely one of the reasons it underperformed

I will never forget Johnny Depp’s introduction of NIN at the 99 MTV music video awards.

xxp it is! Went up to 17. I mean shit, I bought the 12". Fans were hungry lol.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nine_Inch_Nails_discography#Singles

And I recall where I learned this tidbit from too: Rob Harvila's 60 Songs That Explain the 90's.

His next highest charting single was The Hand That Feeds at 31. Closer peaked at 41.

Somewhat Damaged never made my ballot but it could've easily. I once had a huge argument with my then boyfriend because I kept absent mindedly playing the opening riff and staring into space for about half an hour. It's a fantastic opening track. Trying to find out what the "angrily sawing wood with a blunt utensil" sound that punctuates the intro was one of the things that made me interested in music production. The sound design on The Fragile is impeccable.

top 20 will be in two days or so

sounds good! thanks for the rollout so far!

https://i.imgur.com/o8KVsM8.png

Gonna tuck in my tank top and cuff my jorts to get ready for this industrial music!

Al Jourgensen having a Blue Öyster Cult tattoo surprises me, somehow.

let's kick off the top 20

https://i.imgur.com/dTQzFdF.jpeg
20. Something I Can Never Have
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
312 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Still version

https://i.imgur.com/sShZxCm.jpeg
20. La Mer
Released on The Fragile, 1999
312 points, 10 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/Tj1Oh2A.jpeg
19. Beside You In Time
Released on With Teeth, 2005
314 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Live 2006

damn i was starting to think my no. 1 wouldn’t make it

Three amazing tracks.

My one time seeing NIN live was this show, the most memorable part of which was certainly this speech before "La Mer".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIsAazPVnFQ

kinda wish the rest of With Teeth was more shoegazer/wall of sound style production that Beside You In Time exhibits. Like a whole album building on The Day The World Went Away

https://i.imgur.com/65IISFx.jpeg
18. Into The Void
Released on The Fragile, 1999
364 points, 11 voters
Studio version
Music video

jmm damn, thanks for sharing that vid

la mer and into the void were nos. 2 and 3 on my ballot

https://i.imgur.com/bswllm7.jpeg
17. Eraser
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
368 points, 9 voters
Studio version
Live 2014

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pLFUKBWyves

they did do "la mer" into "into the void" live in 2006

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TtLHcgDJvzA

and like every funk-adjacent track, the 2013 live version of "into the void" is great, though there isn't any pro-shot footage of it (whatever happened to that promised tension concert film release anyway)

https://i.imgur.com/YSGrnoP.jpeg
16. The Wretched
Released on The Fragile, 1999
372 points, 10 voters
Studio version
Live 2000
Live 2008

https://i.imgur.com/Ctlkyeg.jpeg
15. Heresy
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
378 points, 9 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/bvksuax.jpeg
14. Terrible Lie
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
384 points, 13 voters
Studio version
Live 2008

https://i.imgur.com/79wbiF1.jpeg
12. Ruiner
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
386 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/MGjGRfZ.jpeg
12. A Warm Place
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
386 points, 11 voters
Studio version

https://i.imgur.com/fFv1nJ4.jpeg
11. Just Like You Imagined
Released on The Fragile, 1999
402 points, 12 voters
Studio version
Live 2000
Live 2009 with Mike Garson

top 10 tomorrow!

It comes down to this…

GREAT GRAPHICS TY THERMO

Just Like You Imagined is my favorite NIN instrumental. Surprised it placed so high!

Mine too - it was no. 3 on my ballot.

Lots of my other ballot choices in this run: "Beside You In Time" and "And All That Could Have Been" were top 10 picks for me and "The Wretched" and "Eraser" were top 20.

I’m wondering what people expect the top 10 to look like.

And thanks, candles!

I’m pretty positive on 9 out of 10 but the order is a mystery.

Obviously a lot of singles - I'm more interested to see where any album tracks place. I was disappointed to see "I Do Not Want This" place relatively low but that's nothing compared to my crossness if "The Becoming" misses out entirely.

I'm a bit resigned to "Running" not making it now, sadly.

Starfuckers Inc. better not be anywhere near the top ten. I'd almost prefer Deep.

Regarding the rundown:

Shout out to Terrible Lie's vestigial twin, Now I'm Nothing.

SICNH was my number one. I'm particularly fond of the Natural Born Killers version - first verse and chorus with a new long piano outro.

I didn't vote because I only really know 2 albums and 1 EP well enough, but I've made playlists for this:

Remixes

Songs

Loads of really great stuff here that I'd never heard before

Tim: Running was #56

:-(

Thanks for that Nate ! I'm in the exact same position.

there's so many obvious "top 10" contenders that have already placed and the fact "just like you imagined" placed #11 has me excited for the final rollout.

20. Something I Can Never Have

My second highest off PHM, my poll was quite heavy with the sappier tracks. That steam engine is still incredible.

17. Eraser

A stunning instrumental first half, the vocals in the second half are powerful but also the worst example of trent's worst lyrical technique - trying to make you sympathise or even identify with an abuser because they feel bad about themselves.

Very interesting 20-11, I've never had any awareness of what the consensus Fragile picks are beyond a couple of songs (in general I mean, not just on ILM...).

Heresy was my number 2, and really could have easily been my number 1. I really love the way his voice sounds in the verses, wish he did that kind of thing more often.

https://i.imgur.com/w6xll3r.jpeg
10. Piggy
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
426 points, 12 voters
Studio version
Live 2008, Ghosts version
Live 2013

the outro on "piggy" is one of their very best moments

https://i.imgur.com/Mh6s68F.jpeg
9. Head Like A Hole
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
452 points, 13 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Music video
Live 2008
Live 2013

the outro on "piggy" is one of their very best moments

agreed!

no one has ever made drums sound cooler than trent reznor

Heresy has my fav sounding drums

https://i.imgur.com/vUxwqMW.jpeg
8. The Perfect Drug
Released on Lost Highway soundtrack, 1997
454 points, 11 voters, 3 #1 votes
Studio version
Music video
Live 2022

i was surprised this wasn't higher, it's so great

it's also quite odd structurally, very poppy first half but then spends the second half on that jungle-inspired breakdown and atmospheric outro

speaking of drums sounding cool

hearing the extremely glitchfucked amen break/drum solo in the middle of this is probably the thing that made me want to be a drummer, which is hilarious because it's practically unplayable (ilan rubin has somehow done it)

I love this poll thank you ufo

I wish there’d been a sidebar for “fave lyric”, I always get “shove it up inside / surprise! / lies!” in my head

fave lyric: the clouds will part and the sky cracks open and god himself will reach his fucking arm through!!! just to push you down, j-j-just to hold you down

other fave, obv: stale incense, old sweat, and lies! lies! lies!

The “inside!” / “surprise!” / “lies!” section of “March of The Pigs” is so great - a performative bow on the top of the time signature decision (which I was mentioning somewhere upthread), but also at that point Trent declaiming vaguely about “lies” was already self-parody, so it feels like one of the best examples of Trent winking at the listener and saying “yes, I really am completely ridiculous”.

https://i.imgur.com/LeYpGc3.jpeg
7. We're In This Together
Released on The Fragile, 1999
500 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
Studio version
Music video

i didn't expect this to be so high, it's decent but kinda just chugs along, unusually uninteresting for a fragile track

I’m generally indifferent to the Fragile, but I like the chorus

https://i.imgur.com/1d0viVd.jpeg
6. Wish
Released on Broken, 1992
516 points, 14 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 1995
Live 2006
Live 2008
Live 2022

Video is Sleazy at the top of his powers as a director

iirc they pretty much never play "we're in this together" live because reznor can't sing it

"the perfect drug" was also never played until 2018, though not because the drum solo was impossible but apparently because reznor didn't like how the outro felt when they rehearsed it? something about it killing the momentum

HEY PIG

other fave, obv: stale incense, old sweat, and lies! lies! lies!

― ivy., Tuesday, April 30, 2024 4:41 PM (thirty-five minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

IT COMES DOWN TO

THIS

I wouldn’t have imagined those songs placing at 7/8, will have to revisit them.

Very, very glad to see “Wish” here even as I wish (heh) it was higher

https://i.imgur.com/Hkd9duY.jpeg
5. The Becoming
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
518 points, 11 voters, 4 #1 votes
Studio version
Still version
Live 2009

My number one - just a really precise and concentrated encapsulation of basically everything I love about NIN

Was very surprised how high this was.

i think my favorite thing about “we’re in this together” is the…. drums

https://i.imgur.com/JDbmDGm.jpeg
4. March Of The Pigs
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
562 points, 13 voters, 3 #1 votes
Studio version
Music video
Live 2006
Live 2008
Live 2013
Live 2014

https://i.imgur.com/pTJKWlA.jpeg
3. Sin
Released on Pretty Hate Machine, 1989
616 points, 17 voters
Studio version

Correct

your fist

Kind of shocked Mr. Self Destruct isn’t going to place at all

i am dying to know what #1 is! i have been casually following along (did not vote) and i am so curious

You can have it all
My empire of derp
I will let you down
I will give you herp

https://i.imgur.com/Z3Q3jOd.jpeg
2. Mr. Self Destruct
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
626 points, 13 voters, 2 #1 votes
Studio version

Uh I meant Down In It

https://i.imgur.com/UKC8Xhd.jpeg
1. Starfuckers, Inc.
Released on The Fragile, 1999
840 points, 42 voters
Music video

lol

Glad 42 of us could get past the taste

more seriously:

https://i.imgur.com/Dx69Kq1.jpeg
1. Closer
Released on The Downward Spiral, 1994
760 points, 18 voters
Studio version
Music video
Live 2006
Live 2008

phew - good one

but it was nobody's #1?

yeah, no #1 votes

great result revelation & artwork, well done!

Great job, ufo and Thermal!

thanks for running this!

Thank you, ufo!

Mr. Self Destruct was my #1. Used to be The Becoming. However, over the years it's grown on me much much more. I feel it's the most intense and quintessential song that captures the best lyrical and sonic elements of the band. The guitars that sound like razor blades slicing skin. The equally sharp and incisive lyrics. The ambient breakdown in the middle. Belew's insane outro. It's a punch in the gut in the best way possible.

Super stoked it hit #2. I was hoping it might top this poll, but Closer is a perfect, if predictable winner.

yes thanks to thermo for their great work with the images, that saved me a ton of work

also thanks to everyone who voted or participated in the rollout

full countdown:

1. Closer - 760 points, 18 voters
2. Mr. Self Destruct - 626 points, 13 voters, 2 #1 votes
3. Sin - 616 points, 17 voters
4. March Of The Pigs - 562 points, 13 voters, 3 #1 votes
5. The Becoming - 518 points, 11 voters, 4 #1 votes
6. Wish - 516 points, 14 voters
7. We're In This Together - 500 points, 12 voters, 1 #1 vote
8. The Perfect Drug - 454 points, 11 voters, 3 #1 votes
9. Head Like A Hole - 452 points, 13 voters, 1 #1 vote
10. Piggy - 426 points, 12 voters
11. Just Like You Imagined - 402 points, 12 voters
12. Ruiner - 386 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
12. A Warm Place - 386 points, 11 voters
14. Terrible Lie - 384 points, 13 voters
15. Heresy - 378 points, 9 voters
16. The Wretched - 372 points, 10 voters
17. Eraser - 368 points, 9 voters
18. Into The Void - 364 points, 11 voters
19. Beside You In Time - 314 points, 7 voters, 1 #1 vote
20. Something I Can Never Have - 312 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
20. La Mer - 312 points, 10 voters
22. The Day The World Went Away - 310 points, 9 voters, 1 #1 vote
23. Last - 282 points, 8 voters
24. All The Love In The World - 280 points, 8 voters
25. Happiness In Slavery - 276 points, 7 voters
26. And All That Could Have Been - 264 points, 6 voters
27. Gave Up - 254 points, 9 voters
28. Somewhat Damaged - 252 points, 7 voters
29. The Great Below - 238 points, 7 voters
30. The Fragile - 232 points, 8 voters
31. Only - 218 points, 7 voters
32. Everything - 198 points, 5 voters
33. Copy of A - 194 points, 9 voters
33. She's Gone Away - 194 points, 6 voters
33. The Background World - 194 points, 6 voters
36. God Break Down the Door - 192 points, 6 voters
37. Various Methods of Escape - 190 points, 5 voters
38. Hurt - 168 points, 7 voters
39. The Big Come Down - 162 points, 5 voters, 1 #1 vote
40. That's What I Get - 158 points, 4 voters
41. All Time Low - 150 points, 5 voters
42. Reptile - 144 points, 5 voters
43. Burn - 140 points, 5 voters
43. Every Day Is Exactly The Same - 140 points, 4 voters
45. Ringfinger - 138 points, 4 voters, 1 #1 vote
46. I Do Not Want This - 136 points, 5 voters
47. The Hand That Feeds - 134 points, 6 voters
48. Sanctified - 124 points, 4 voters
49. The Great Destroyer - 116 points, 6 voters
49. Shit Mirror - 116 points, 3 voters
51. Even Deeper - 112 points, 3 voters
51. Leaving Hope - 112 points, 4 voters
53. This Isn't the Place - 110 points, 5 voters
53. Suck - 110 points, 6 voters
53. Less Than - 110 points, 6 voters
56. Running - 106 points, 3 voters
57. Dead Souls - 102 points, 3 voters
58. Kinda I Want To - 98 points, 2 voters
59. The Only Time - 96 points, 3 voters
60. In This Twilight - 88 points, 5 voters

Interesting that no one had Closer at #1. Has there been an artist poll where the #1 song had zero #1 votes?

Thank u ufo for pollrunning and thermo for imagicking - excellent work all around!

and the rest:

61. The Way Out Is Through - 82 points, 5 voters
62. Find My Way - 80 points, 4 voters
63. While I'm Still Here - 78 points, 5 voters
64. Satellite - 76 points, 4 voters
65. Pilgrimage - 72 points, 2 voters
66. Down In It - 66 points, 3 voters
67. Burning Bright (Field on Fire) - 64 points, 3 voters
68. Over and Out - 64 points, 3 voters
69. The Downward Spiral - 62 points, 2 voters
70. The Lovers - 60 points, 2 voters
71. Maybe Just Once - 56 points, 1 voter
72. Lights In The Sky - 50 points, 3 voters
73. I'm Looking Forward To Joining You, Finally - 50 points, 1 voter
74. The Persistence of Loss - 50 points, 1 voter
75. The Frail - 48 points, 2 voters
76. Sunspots - 44 points, 2 voters
77. Memorabilia - 44 points, 2 voters
78. The Collector - 44 points, 1 voter
79. The New Flesh - 42 points, 1 voter
80. Right Where It Belongs - 40 points, 2 voters
81. 34 Ghosts IV - 38 points, 1 voter
82. The Sound Of Forgetting - 36 points, 1 voter
83. Underneath It All - 36 points, 2 voters
84. The Idea of You - 36 points, 1 voter
85. Discipline - 34 points, 2 voters
86. Me, I'm Not - 34 points, 2 voters
87. Quake Theme - 32 points, 2 voters
88. Big Man with a Gun - 32 points, 1 voter
89. The Mark Has Been Made - 32 points, 1 voter
90. In Two - 32 points, 1 voter
91. Dear World, - 30 points, 1 voter
92. With Teeth - 30 points, 2 voters
93. Play the Goddamn Part - 30 points, 1 voter
94. Nun With a Motherfucking Gun - 30 points, 1 voter
95. Zero Sum - 28 points, 1 voter
96. Metal - 28 points, 2 voters
97. A Violet Fluid - 28 points, 1 voter
98. Starfuckers, Inc. - 28 points, 1 voter
99. Physical (You're So) - 24 points, 3 voters
100. Driver Down - 24 points, 1 voter
101. Complication - 24 points, 2 voters
102. Corona Radiata - 22 points, 1 voter
103. The Four of Us Are Dying - 20 points, 1 voter
104. 10 Miles High - 20 points, 1 voter
105. Please - 20 points, 2 voters
106. Survivalism - 20 points, 1 voter
107. Life On Mars? - 18 points, 1 voter
108. Came Back Haunted - 16 points, 2 voters
109. Where Is Everybody? - 16 points, 1 voter
110. Hand Covers Bruise - 16 points, 1 voter
111. Echoplex - 14 points, 1 voter
112. Ice Age - 12 points, 1 voter
113. (You Made It Feel Like) Home - 12 points, 1 voter
114. Love Is Not Enough - 8 points, 1 voter
115. Zoo Station - 8 points, 1 voter
116. Gone, Still - 8 points, 1 voter
117. Meet Your Master - 6 points, 1 voter
118. Pinion - 4 points, 1 voter
119. Ahead of Ourselves - 4 points, 1 voter
120. My Violent Heart - 4 points, 1 voter
121. Demon Seed - 2 points, 1 voter
122. The Warning - 2 points, 1 voter

i don’t think i even voted for Closer! lol facepalm. i def forgot but it seems like it was fine without me

oh whoops that didn't have the ties, so if anyone really cares:

61. The Way Out Is Through - 82 points, 5 voters
62. Find My Way - 80 points, 4 voters
63. While I'm Still Here - 78 points, 5 voters
64. Satellite - 76 points, 4 voters
65. Pilgrimage - 72 points, 2 voters
66. Down In It - 66 points, 3 voters
67. Burning Bright (Field on Fire) - 64 points, 3 voters
67. Over and Out - 64 points, 3 voters
69. The Downward Spiral - 62 points, 2 voters
70. The Lovers - 60 points, 2 voters
71. Maybe Just Once - 56 points, 1 voter
72. Lights In The Sky - 50 points, 3 voters
72. I'm Looking Forward To Joining You, Finally - 50 points, 1 voter
72. The Persistence of Loss - 50 points, 1 voter
75. The Frail - 48 points, 2 voters
76. Sunspots - 44 points, 2 voters
76. Memorabilia - 44 points, 2 voters
76. The Collector - 44 points, 1 voter
79. The New Flesh - 42 points, 1 voter
80. Right Where It Belongs - 40 points, 2 voters
81. 34 Ghosts IV - 38 points, 1 voter
82. The Sound Of Forgetting - 36 points, 1 voter
82. Underneath It All - 36 points, 2 voters
82. The Idea of You - 36 points, 1 voter
85. Discipline - 34 points, 2 voters
85. Me, I'm Not - 34 points, 2 voters
87. Quake Theme - 32 points, 2 voters
87. Big Man with a Gun - 32 points, 1 voter
87. The Mark Has Been Made - 32 points, 1 voter
87. In Two - 32 points, 1 voter
91. Dear World, - 30 points, 1 voter
91. With Teeth - 30 points, 2 voters
91. Play the Goddamn Part - 30 points, 1 voter
91. Nun With a Motherfucking Gun - 30 points, 1 voter
95. Zero Sum - 28 points, 1 voter
95. Metal - 28 points, 2 voters
95. A Violet Fluid - 28 points, 1 voter
95. Starfuckers, Inc. - 28 points, 1 voter
99. Physical (You're So) - 24 points, 3 voters
99. Driver Down - 24 points, 1 voter
99. Complication - 24 points, 2 voters
102. Corona Radiata - 22 points, 1 voter
103. The Four of Us Are Dying - 20 points, 1 voter
103. 10 Miles High - 20 points, 1 voter
103. Please - 20 points, 2 voters
103. Survivalism - 20 points, 1 voter
107. Life On Mars? - 18 points, 1 voter
108. Came Back Haunted - 16 points, 2 voters
108. Where Is Everybody? - 16 points, 1 voter
108. Hand Covers Bruise - 16 points, 1 voter
111. Echoplex - 14 points, 1 voter
112. Ice Age - 12 points, 1 voter
112. (You Made It Feel Like) Home - 12 points, 1 voter
114. Love Is Not Enough - 8 points, 1 voter
114. Zoo Station - 8 points, 1 voter
114. Gone, Still - 8 points, 1 voter
117. Meet Your Master - 6 points, 1 voter
118. Pinion - 4 points, 1 voter
118. Ahead of Ourselves - 4 points, 1 voter
118. My Violent Heart - 4 points, 1 voter
121. Demon Seed - 2 points, 1 voter
121. The Warning - 2 points, 1 voter

Is March of the Pigs the highest charting song to be in 7/8 for most of its running time? It hit 59.

Good for “The Becoming” - always really liked that one. (Did anyone ever remix that?)

"Closer" was no. 4 for me, and when compiling my ballot I did turn my mind to the question of whether I was if anything underrating it a bit, taking slightly for granted what is clearly a masterpiece of construction and populism and compulsiveness and repulsiveness and creativity. The outro is just this outrageous succession of "look at this! no, look at this! no, look at this!" moments whose additive approach never falls into the trap of making the song less than the sum of its parts - maybe the moment where Reznor's spiritual connection to Lindsey Buckingham is clearest.

“The Becoming” (subconsciously) always seemed like a Giger/X-Men “Lifedeath”/Cronenberg vibe - a man turning into a monster, or thinking he is. Should’ve been on the Annihilation soundtrack.

Totally. Especially when the coda whisper "I wont give up / it wants me dead / and goddamn this noise inside my head" turns into a cyborg's hiss that feels like the splattery aphex-ish snares of the prior snares (now overwhelmed by pummeling kicks). A total subjugation to the man-machine to underscore the point that the earlier guitar break and final outro are both terrible lies.

(when I first got Further Down The Spiral I vaguely assumed "At The Heart of it All" was a particularly radical remix of "The Becoming")

aphex-ish *feel of the prior snares

Right on!

Tim, I had the same thought about “Closer” but decided to leave it where I had it (maybe 6?) since I figured it wouldn’t need the help.

I feel like a lot of people must have felt it was safe to move closer down a little for their personal favs (and those favs were Mr self destruct and The Becoming). I had it 2nd after Head Like a Hole. I just could not put that bass synth groove anywhere but first.

Thermo thanks for the images btw. Awesome stuff.

Great poll thank you ufo

@ octobeard, “Solsbury Hill” is 7/4, but otherwise yes maybe

"money" is the obvious one in 7/4

"paranoid android" has a little section in 7/8 but it's hard to think of many songs that are mostly/all in 7/8

listening to the downward spiral for the first time in a really long time when preparing my ballot for this poll The Becoming was the track that really jumped out at me, I had somehow forgotten how incredible it sounded.

I did not expect literally every track from TDS to get as much love as they all did.

Tho surprised Hurt didn’t do better and Dead Souls didn’t get more love. Also expected All The Live in the world to rank higher.

Thanks ufo. This was fun.

Favorite lyrics:
I want you to take me
I want you to break me
I want you to throw me away

Also:
I wanna fuck everyone in the world
I wanna do something THAT MATTERS

And in Eraser I love the way his throat-shredding snarl KILL ME merges with the jagged distortion at the end. *chef’s kiss*
Last and Eraser really rose in my estimation listening back to everything for this poll. The Only Time and Ringfinger deserved better.

TDS is such a marvel on headphones. While I was heavily invested in the Fragile—drove to the mall on release day to get it (+ Tori To Venus and Back), listened to it obsessively—I’ve always felt it was a bit of a let down. TDS set such a high bar, everything on The Fragile feels more flat/shallow. Baffled that The Great Below placed. I even think La Mer is kinda goofy, though I liked it at the time.

Spent a lot of time trying (again) to get into With Teeth and beyond. Still think hardly any of it is as good as PHM, Broken and TDS.

I never got that lyric… how do you go from banging literally everybody to doing something that “matters”?!

he's manic

Yes I suppose that would explain things.

I never got that lyric… how do you go from banging literally everybody to doing something that “matters”?!

― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, May 1, 2024 4:02 AM (nine minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol this lyric makes perfect sense to me

I love how eraser starts by sampling someone blowing into a straw or bottle

Then beeeeeeees

TDS is such a marvel on headphones. While I was heavily invested in the Fragile—drove to the mall on release day to get it (+ Tori To Venus and Back), listened to it obsessively—I’ve always felt it was a bit of a let down. TDS set such a high bar, everything on The Fragile feels more flat/shallow. Baffled that The Great Below placed. I even think La Mer is kinda goofy, though I liked it at the time.

I love The Fragile, but I think it's fair to say that nothing he has done since TDS has the level of sheer obsessive-compulsive layering that TDS has. The Fragile is still gorgeous-sounding but the complexity such as it is tends to derive from shifts in direction within songs (though The Fragile's status as dense and difficult has always struck me as overstated). Hesitation Marks feels like it splits the difference between those two approaches.

yeah i agree, the production on tds is just so intricate in a way he's never quite replicated

definitely. that kind of intensity-fuelled-by-bad-vibes is kind of a once in a lifetime deal imo

It’s a master class in mix and sequencing… how could he make such decisively new decisions all at once?

it seemed like he was so intent on not letting what he felt like the failures of PHM not happen again made him over-correct into a lane that didn’t even really exist til then? like his own self-loathing & pursuit of perfection is some kind of insane alchemy where he doesn’t even know what he doesn’t know i guess

i love what he posted on the 30th anniversary of DS back in march, it was quite tender:

“Spending too much time looking backwards feels dangerous to me, but this day on the calendar caught my attention. Has it really been that long, old friend?
I just spent an hour listening to this time capsule of what 28 year old me had to say, and it still excites me and breaks my heart.
Be kind to yourselves. Hope to see you soon.
TR 3.8.24”

I never got that lyric… how do you go from banging literally everybody to doing something that “matters”?!
― FRAUDULENT STEAKS (The Cursed Return of the Dastardly Thermo Thinwall), Wednesday, May 1, 2024 4:02 AM (nine minutes ago) bookmarkflaglink

lol this lyric makes perfect sense to me

― Tim F, Wednesday, 1 May 2024 04:13 (three hours ago) bookmarkflaglink

More seriously I always understood that final refrain of “I Do Not Want This” as getting at the way we conflate “mattering” with “mattering for others” - basically, having an impact, making an imprint on reality that is indubitably broader than our own subjective experience of it.

Which makes the way the song lurches into “Big Man With A Gun” (a song I don’t particularly care for in any other respect) really effective given that song is basically the same concept taken to its logical and most destructive extreme.

Big Man with a Gun is a lol for sure.

Just catching up with the top ten...

I didn't vote for either of the pig songs. Piggy I thought was too simple maybe? But it's both a deceptive and effective simplicity. I'm a bit surprised that March of the Pigs is so high though.

Head like a Hole could seem a bit straightforward and ripe for parody but there's loads of excellent sound design hidden in there.

The Perfect Drug - ok I'll have to listen to this again, I thought it was considered a bit of a throwaway.

We're in This Together - my top rated from The Fragile, maybe not that interesting production wise compared to some of the others but just a killer song with a great vocal performance.

The Becoming, my #1. Though as noted above TDS is an incredible outstanding nonpareil ne plus ultra of production, some of the tracks maybe tip just a little too noisy or chaotic for my tastes but this one hits the sweet spot, and I love the "how it started / how it's going" aspect of the lyrics. (I beat my machine! Sounds good :) It won't give up it wants me dead! Oh dear :(

Sin. Yes. I put this below HlaH but could've switched them around easily.

Mr Self Destruct - just an incredible opening track and statement of intent.

Closer - Maybe I did vote it lower for being the normies choice lol but I couldn't put it better than Tim upthread, "a masterpiece of construction and populism and compulsiveness and repulsiveness and creativity."

I Do Not Want This and BMWAG are so inseparable, I just put them next to each other on my ballot.

Anyone else find TDS and NIN in general to be perfect gym music? The playlist I made for this poll is really quite invigorating.

btw thanks ufo for the poll and thermo for the images! It's been good revisiting an old friend. Sadly I haven't really had any revelations about post TDS stuff but I'll carry on digging in, and put my old faves back on semi regular rotation. And Ill definitely be there if they tour again.

lol I have always heard “I beat my machine” as a masturbation metaphor (I give it pleasure; I allow its needs to consume me); it had never even occurred to me until now that he might mean “I had overcome/suppressed it”

ha! Well your reading certainly never occurred to me!

I didn't vote because I didn't have time to take a deep dive into the NIN stuff I haven't heard in years. Great poll with a lot of surprises though. And great job with the images Thermo!

Big thank you to ufo and Thermo, this has been a lot of fun to follow. 'Closer' was my #3 but it is my favourite on some days, feels right as the pollwinner either way. Have realised that The Downward Spiral is an all-time record for me at this point - just amazing songwriting and sound design that doesn't feel particularly tethered to its era or genre (whatever that might be). Agree with Tim F's point that The Fragile doesn't feel that densely layered by comparison - it can overwhelm due to its sheer length and I guess the sustained mood but the songs breathe a bit more I think?

Stray thought: I really need to re-listen to Still.

Adding my thanks to ufo and Thermo!

stoked to see three other #1 votes for 'The Becoming'! I had a lot of fun exploring their discography and partaking in this poll, so thanks for running it, ufo! :D

Anyone else find TDS and NIN in general to be perfect gym music? The playlist I made for this poll is really quite invigorating.

TDS in the gym seems like it would work if you are fueled by self hate haha. Trent as drill sergeant! "Don't give up (flabby muscles) wants you dead" "I wanna lift you like an animal" "march push (ups) crawl right up on your knees"

And of course, after you're done and sore:

"I hurt myself today"

Relistened to TDS last night, it really is a penis album, huh! Amazing production, just wow. I would put a marble bust of Flood on my piano

“I want to fuck everyone in the world / I want to do something that matters” is pretty much sexual compulsion in a nutshell, as I’ve viewed it

I think it’s sexual but also (especially for a younger person) it’s “I feel small and powerless and want to make some sort of mark,” an emotion that can be positive or negative.

“The world is so huge and I am so tiny, what can I do to be remembered or acknowledged?”

Which, heh, TDS did that.

As a side note, I love 1990s RS NIN cover stories:

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/the-fragile-world-of-trent-reznor-114999/

https://www.rollingstone.com/music/music-news/nine-inch-nails-love-it-to-death-2-96265/

“We try to name all our hard drives something easy to remember,” Reznor explains to computer consultant Charlie Clouser, “like Bum Cleaver, Cunny or Big Hairy Pussy. Sometimes it gets complicated when we don’t remember if the file we’re looking for is Assfuck 25 on the Fuckfuck 12 drive or Fuckfuck 12 on the Assfuck 25 drive. And when we’re talking to each other in the studio, wondering aloud whether running the Cunnykick file through the Fuckchop program on the Asslick disc would help us access the Turbocunt compression . . . it’s really like speaking another language altogether.”

To paraphrase the late poet Philip Larkin, hatred is to Nine Inch Nails what daffodils were to Wordsworth.

lmao

The writer had a lot of fun on that assignment.

I beat my [Bum Cleaver] machine

Quake Theme has one of the best screams ever. It's my morning alarm.

My song ballot:
Head Like a Hole
Closer
Into The Void
A Warm Place
The Background World
Heresy
All The Love In The World
Everything
La Mer
Sin
Burn
GiveUp
The Sound Of Forgetting
The Hand That Feeds
Less Than
Nun With a Motherf*&*ing Gun
Discipline
Dead Souls
The Wretched
Suck
Just Like You Imagined
Life On Mars?
Pilgrimage
Wish
Ice Age
Piggy
Zoo Station
Copy Of A
Terrible Lie
Metal

i might have been the only person to vote for songs off his soundtracks. i had "A Warm Place" pretty high and a tracks like "The Sound Of Forgetting" from Girl With The Dragon Tattoo, for example, aren't far off in terms of vibe. i knew i was likely throwing away my vote, but didn't care - the songs off his soundtracks i like, i *really* like!

also, whoever else voted for Metal: i love you.

Also I think the only fantasy nine inch nails album I want to compile is Trent Reznor’s Beginner’s Guide to Gay Sex

― Tim F, Wednesday, April 17, 2024 3:56 AM (two weeks ago) bookmarkflaglink

In other news, here's my ballot:

The Becoming
Sin
Just Like You Imagined
Closer
Happiness In Slavery
Beside You In Time
And All That Could Have Been
Running
I Do Not Want This
Kinda I Want To
All Time Low
Wish
The Wretched
Eraser
Find My Way
The Only Time
Zero Sum
The Perfect Drug
Into The Void
God Break Down The Door
Last
All The Love in The World
Suck
Satellite
March of the Pigs
While I'm Still Here
The Great Destroyer
The Background World
Somewhat Damaged
Demon Seed

my ballots:

Songs

Beside You in Time
La Mer
Into the Void
The Wretched
Sin
Ruiner
Just Like You Imagined
Various Methods of Escape
Wish
All Time Low
All the Love in the World
Copy of a
The Great Below
The Becoming
Even Deeper
This Isn't the Place
Something I Can Never Have
Find My Way
Burning Bright (Field on Fire)
The Only Time
The Great Destroyer
Over and Out
Sunspots
Closer
Reptile
Leaving Hope
March of the Pigs
Satellite
A Warm Place
While I'm Still Here

Releases

Fixed
Hesitation Marks
The Fragile
Pretty Hate Machine
Still
The Downward Spiral
Not the Actual Events
Bad Witch
Further Down the Spiral
The Vietnam War

Remixes

Me, I'm Not (Olof Dreijer)
The Hand that Feeds (Photek Straight Mix)
Ruiner (Version)
In This Twilight (Fennesz)
The Beginning of the End (Ladytron)
Eraser (Denial; Realization)
The Day the World Went Away (Porter Ricks Mix)
Closer (Precursor)
Copy of a (Simian Mobile Disco)
Find My Way (Oneohtrix Point Never Remix)

also, whoever else voted for Metal: i love you.

Big laugh on the #1 fake out, top work pollrunners. Closer was my number two, as I'm sure it was for plenty of others.

I pulled together my list last minute, so apologies for Burn and Perfect Drug not being higher. It was almost worth it to be (I think) the only person who voted for a Ghosts track.

Did anyone else vote for Closure or the Broken movie as a release?

Top 30 Tracks

Mr. Self Destruct
Happiness In Slavery
The Becoming
The Great Below
The Perfect Drug
Piggy
The Fragile
Eraser
Closer
Down In It
Somewhat Damaged
The Big Come Down
March Of The Pigs
Gave Up
In This Twilight
Heresy
Suck
The Day The World Went Away
A Warm Place
The Way Out Is Through
Complication
Hurt
Underneath It All
Just Like You Imagined
Into The Void
Ringfinger
Something I Can Never Have
Burn
Me, I'm Not
Sin

Top 10 NIN Releases

The Downward Spiral
Broken
The Fragile: Deviations 1
Year Zero
The Fragile
Pretty Hate Machine
Closer to God
Further Down the Spiral
The Perfect Drug
Still

Top 10 Remixes

In this Twilight (Fennesz)
I'm Afraid of Americans (Nine Inch Nails V1 Mix)
The Perfect Drug (Remixed By Spacetime Continuum)
Closer To God
The Perfect Drug (Remixed By Nine Inch Nails)
Find My Way (OPN remix)
The Hearts Filthy Lesson (Trent Reznor Alternative Mix)
Happiness In Slavery (Remixed by Trent Reznor and Chris Vrenna with PK)
The Beauty of Being Numb
Slipping Away

I Do Not Want This
Kinda I Want To

Nice back to back there

Ha!

my tracks ballot:

The Becoming
Sin
Even Deeper
Something I Can Never Have
We're In This Together
Shit Mirror
Closer
That's What I Get
And All That Could Have Been
Beside You In Time
Just Like You Imagined
The Great Destroyer
Mr. Self Destruct
She's Gone Away
The Big Come Down
Various Methods of Escape
With Teeth
March Of The Pigs
La Mer
God Break Down the Door
The Four of Us Are Dying
Heresy
Find My Way
The Wretched
The Lovers
The Great Below
Head Like A Hole
All Time Low
Physical (You're So)
Less Than

releases:

The Fragile
The Downward Spiral
Pretty Hate Machine
Still
Bad Witch
Hesitation Marks
Add Violence
Not the Actual Events
Broken
With Teeth

Tracks

The Becoming
Head Like a Hole
We're in This Together
Hurt
Something I Can Never Have
The Great Below
Closer
Sin
Just Like You Imagined
A Warm Place
Wish
Eraser
Sanctified
The Day The World Went Away
Mr Self Destruct
Right Where It Belongs
La Mer
Heresy
Happiness In Slavery
Reptile
Underneath It All
Ruiner
Hand Covers Bruise
Gave Up
(You Made It Feel Like) Home
In This Twilight
Terrible Lie
Find My Way
Down in It
The Great Destroyer

Releases

The Downward Spiral
Pretty Hate Machine
Broken
The Fragile
Further Down the Spiral
Year Zero
With Teeth
Hesitation Marks
Fixed
Y34RZ3r0r3mix3d

Remixes

Gave Up remixed by Coil with Danny Hyde (from Fixed)
Heresy (version) (remixed by Charlie Clouser) (from Further Down the Spiral)
The Great Destroyer - modwheelmood
Another Version of the Truth - Kronos and Enrique Gonzales Muller
In This Twilight - fennesz
Ruiner (version) (remixed by Charlie Clouser) (from Further Down the Spiral)
The Hand That Feeds - DFA Mix
Only - Richard X Mix
Rollercoaster - Neil Ciceriega
At the Heart of It All - Aphex Twin

Tracks:

March of the Pigs
We're in This Together
Closer
Heresy
Last
Sin
Ruiner
Everything
Mr. Self Destruct
Every Day Is Exactly the Same
Eraser
She's Gone Away
Only
Reptile
Into the Void
Shit Mirror
Head Like a Hole
Somewhat Damaged
Wish
Various Methods of Escape
This Isn't the Place
Over and Out
Terrible Lie
Copy of a
Less Than
Hurt
Love Is Not Enough
Just Like You Imagined
I Do Not Want This
Physical (You're So)

Releases:

The Downward Spiral
Broken
Bad Witch
Hesitation Marks
The Fragile
Add Violence
Not the Actual Events
Further Down the Spiral
Pretty Hate Machine
With Teeth

Remixes:

Closer to God
The Hand That Feeds (DFA Mix)
The Art of Self Destruction, Part One
In This Twilight (Fennesz Remix)
The Downward Spiral (The Bottom)
Self Destruction, Final
Find My Way (Oneohtrix Point Never Remix)
Eraser (Denial: Realization)
Gave Up (Fixed version)
The Beauty of Being Numb

my ballot

Tracks:

March Of The Pigs
Heresy
Pilgrimage
Eraser
Mr. Self Destruct
God Break Down The Door
La Mer
The Great Below
Terrible Lie
The Perfect Drug
The Becoming
The Downward Spiral
Reptile
Memorabilia
Happiness In Slavery
Quake Theme
A Violet Fluid
A Warm Place
Driver Down
Head Like A Hole
Ruiner
I Do Not Want This
We’re In This Together
The Day The World Went Away
Sin
Wish

Remixes:

Self Destruction, Final
All The Pigs, All Lined Up
The Downward Spiral (The Bottom)
Self Destruction, Part Two
Eraser (Denial: Realization)
Eraser (Polite)
Erased, Over, Out
The Art Of Self Destruction, Part One
Underneath The Skin
Closer (Precursor)

Albums:

Further Down The Spiral
The Downward Spiral
March Of The Pigs
Closer To God
Pretty Hate Machine
Bad Witch
Broken
Quake
Ghosts V: Together
Ghosts VI: Locusts

Though as noted above TDS is an incredible outstanding nonpareil ne plus ultra of production

re this and other comments above about TDS' very unique hyper-layered production density, I'm interested to hear what (if any) other records of the era people think broadly fit into this category

Failure's "Fantastic Planet" was the first thing that popped in my head.

maybe not quite the same hyper-layeredness but a couple of 90s albums that, for me, still stand out for their (idiosyncratic and or fresh/new/noticeable) production: Sparklehorse's vivadixiesubmarinetransmissionplot, Eels' Beautiful Freak, DJ Shadow's Endtroducing, and why not, U2's Achtung Baby

the guitar on "we're in this together" sounds like the edge's playing on achtung baby

Regarding hyper-layered: first thing that came to mind was the PE/Bomb Squad stuff, as an antecedent. Trent mentioned 3 Feet High and Rising in the Rick Rubin podcast, so Prince Paul, Dust Brothers and other pre-sample crackdown hip hop production would've been an influence.

Failure's "Fantastic Planet" was the first thing that popped in my head.

i tried the first two tracks and this just sounds to me like standard grungy alt rock, sorry!

It's not 90's (though close) but the album I think of when I hear "hyper layered" is Since I Left You. Especially the original cut with all samples intact.

The sonic aesthetic does seem post-Bomb Squad in its layered approach. Prince Paul and The Dust Brothers (at least Paul's Boutique - I'd need to revisit Odelay again) feel slightly different to me, though I'm struggling to put my finger on why? Maybe it's that density never seems like the point of their productions. I can certainly imagine they might have influenced Trent in terms of their strategic use of sounds (sampled or otherwise) though.

The 90s albums that occurred to me as sharing that kind of vibe were New Kingdom's 'Paradise Don't Come Cheap', Disco Inferno's 'D.I. Go Pop', Ruby's 'Salt Peter' and Garbage's 'Version 2.0', though each of them is doing something at least slightly different.

I love seeing "The Becoming" so high. I thought it might have missed the cut. That would have been my top-ranked TDS track, most likely.

The Woodstock 94 performance of "Sin" alone might have made it my #1.

I know when I first heard it, a large part of the appeal of TDS was definitely the densely layered sound of it, but also that a lot of these sounds were things I'd never heard before, like blowing into straw thing from eraser. I feel like the only kind of stuff I'd heard that did that kind of stuff before was Depeche Mode (because of Flood maybe?)

Yup, I was about to say “Violator” and that era of Flood in general, but none of it is nearly at TDS levels of complexity.

I was a fan of Failure and never really thought of them as that hyper produced. Certainly not to the level of TDS.

In my mind, the only thing that came close the noise/sound layering of TDS was some of Foetus’s work, like Gash.

TDS also benefitted from arriving right as CDs were becoming the primary form of physical media. The level of dynamic range and clarity was unprecedented not only on the album itself but also the method in which I listened to it… I remember being gifted a pair of “good headphones” at age 15 (as opposed to the standard Sony Walkman issuances) and feeling like all the CDs I owned (and dubbed on to tape for mobile listening) were suddenly shocked into focus

The Flood discussion, and his contribution to the Downward Spiral, is very interesting to explore.

I recently read “Into The Never: Nine Inch Nails And The Creation Of The Downward Spiral” by Adam Steiner, which I would heartily recommend. Atrocious front cover, but some excellent and considered writing contained within.

In that book, there are was the suggestion was that Flood became increasingly uneasy and uncomfortable with the bleakness, particularly the suicide ideation, of much of Reznor’s lyrical content - especially a song that didn’t make the cut for the album proper - and bailed out after completing the album swearing he’d never work with him again.

most stuff that comes to mind is a bit more turn-of-the-millenium, reznor was really ahead of his time, but fantasma, ok computer, a few super furry animals songs here and there come to mind

Another comparison that occurred to me was the first Laika album together with the second and third Moonshake albums (the second Laika album might not fit here, even if it’s probably my favourite of the four) - stuff like “Hard Candy” on Dirty & Divine. Those albums came out in 94 and 96 (as did Disco Inferno’s second and third albums) so very comparable timewise.

And of course (“of course”) later on El-P’s production work in the 00s (but not really Company Flow earlier on) - at its best sounding like an attempt to split the difference between “The Becoming” and “By The Time I Get to Arizona”.

Kate Van Buren's channel is a gift

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjqZ8RIiRLU

Well, that's "NIN meet David Crosby at Woodstock 94"