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

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!