Sarianna & The Swell live video "Self-Serving Sympathy"

Yeah, I've been ganking videos off band's myspace pages out of pure laziness. You've heard my reasons for sporadic updates, they're completely valid, so pipe down.

Here's someone introduced to me several years ago. Last time I met Sarianna in person, we were all drunk and I was vomiting all over the place. Truth be told, I don't remember much of that night other than strobe lights doing terrible things to my eyes and forcing a run to the men's room. It was a wild ride. And her band wasn't even performing that night!

Anyway, here's a recording of Sarianna & The Swell performing "Self-Serving Sympathy" at Cousin Larry's in Danbury, CT.



For more inflammation, please visit Sarianna's myspace page, find out where she and her band are playing next, and maybe even buy a CD (something I have yet to do myself; sorry, I gots no monies).

I'm Not Dead Yet...

... I feel happy! I feel-*thunk*

Yes, I know that updates have been few and far between over here. What can I say? The economy is rotten, and my budget has been in the toilet since long before this blog was ever created.

In the spirit of the holiday, I trust you are all picking out your favorite creepy-gothic-whatsits off the shelf and playing them loud and proud.

Here's to hoping for an improvement in my finances in the near future, because there is tons of stuff that I want to review but just haven't had the scratch for.

In the meantime, here's a little something from NYC's post-punk cult favorites, The Hunt. They put on a hell of a show, so definitely check them out.



Okay, that video is a little cheesy, but shut up, they're an awesome band. See how many independent NYC band members you can count that made guest appearances in that video.



[The Hunt at myspace]

Special Announcement: Help Out The Prids After Their Accident

For those of you not familiar with the ridiculously growing number of independent music scenes, you probably haven't heard of The Prids. Hell, I've never heard of The Prids. But they are friends of several bands that I like, so naturally I would eventually hear about them.

I wish I could have heard of them a different way. Maybe by catching them on tour, or a friend saying, "Check out this band; they are pretty cool."

No, no such luck. They were in a car accident in Fresno on Sunday. Tire blew out and they rolled. Everyone is alive, thank the maker, but they are tight for cash and need some financial assistance. Two people in the accident aren't insured, some of the injuries are what we ordinary people call "nasty" and the medical industry calls "expensive" (hell, hospitals charge you out the @$$ for everything), plus there's the difficulty of getting from Fresno back home to Portland.

This is where the fans come in. There is a PayPal donation site set up to help The Prids out. If you can spare some change to get these people patched up and on their way, please do so. Awesome independent rock can't happen if the artists are tied down with hospital bills.

Here's the donation link for those of you so inclined. If it's not working, you can send money by using "donate@theprids.com" in PayPal, or just go to the band website or myspace for a working link.

An Apocalyptic Night on the Town: HUMANWINE, Fighting Naked

"for $19.95 you can get 20% more freedumb brand"

-from "Wake Up!" (Brewer/McNiss)

Late post because I'm a tad down today, but this blog isn't about me and my mopey depressed whatsit; it's about the music! So away with that bullsh#t, and let's get to reviewing.

I can't remember exactly when I encountered HUMANWINE's music. Probably stumbled on them from someone else's posting about a band they were playing with or something of that nature. I heard a couple songs, downloaded a few off their myspace page (I think), and eventually ordered the full length album when it was officially released. For lack of cash at the moment and a lack of anything new that caught my eye this week, we're going to backtrack to last year and rant about their debut album Fighting Naked for awhile.

As a quick disclaimer, my copy of Fighting Naked is touted as a limited 1 of 1,000 edition; I don't know if they are planning on a different edition being released (or currently being sold on their website) or if that later edition will feature different music. Or if they only plan on doing 1,000 copies of this album period.

Fighting Naked features some fascinating combination of styles. The first thing that leaps out at me is how much metal influence is in their music. This is pretty heavy stuff. Cabaret has a spot here, but not as much as other think. There's also a sort of demented carnival aspect to their sound that has a niche in the contemporary independent scene; unfortunately, not a big enough niche. More people need to be listening to this sort of stuff. However, HUMANWINE's greatest strength is when they whip out the battered tea kettles and drumsticks and start clanging like unchained children in the kitchen bashing pots and pans with wooden spoons. It's good to know their inner child is still alive and kicking... and making a lot of noise. There's some damn good guitar work on this album, as exemplified about four minutes into "Worthless Ode."

Holly Brewer's vocals are a massive strength to HUMANWINE. They probably wouldn't be nearly the band they are if she were not the singer she is. I can't push her voice enough; she's phenomenally impressive. Not falling into the typical growling of metal is probably the biggest plus in my department, but she leaps past that standard and goes running off into the distance with a variety of highs and lows and fantastic melodious tones that I can't get enough of.

Initially, I didn't really like Fighting Naked. On first listen, it was too much metal, too heavy, and not enough of the found-object trashbanging that I was hoping for. I have to say it's grown on me, but I still maintain that one of my primary criticisms still holds. They are too politically driven with much of this; it's a trend in the arts that I have been concerned about for some time. Yes, I know the past eight years have been a nightmare of government abuse and psychosis, but we can only be reminded of this fact so many times before we shut off the stereo. Everywhere I go, I find another writer and musician decrying The Shrub and Darth Cheney. To HUMANWINE's credit, they do perform their protestations with a distinct flair that is lacking in much of "thou doth protest too much" music that is being spewed out ad nauseum all over any area with some much a slight inclination towards the political left. As such, I am forgiving of them for this; they aren't one-note on this topic either. There's plenty of variety lyrically speaking, and as I've already said, Brewer can deliver these lyrics with potency.

The design aesthetic for Fighting Naked is really cool. The demented drawings on front cover, back cover, and liner notes follow the crazy carnival concept that in so prevalent in their music. I really find the strategic placement of the bar code on the back cover amusing in a black humor way, and the notice next to the FBI warning is a riot. Those few sentences say more than just something funny; it's also a testement to their counter-culture standing, that they rebel not only in their lyrics, but also disapprove of government interference in the will of the artists.

My favorite tracks in "Rivolta Silenziosa," "Dim Allentown Cove" (it's practically a pirate song, how could I not love it?), "Worthless Ode," "Script Language," and the quiet and touching "When In Rome." There's also a hidden track of a spoken word experiment thing in the style of a news report, which then runs into another version of "Script Language" recorded as to sound like a static-obscured film reel, complete with appropriate sound effects. Oddities like that are what really make an album for me, the little touches that really drive the atmosphere.

Fighting Naked is a strong cup of coffee, so I'm going to recommend listening to a variety of their songs online before committing, or perhaps catching them live instead. I've wanted to catch one of their shows for awhile, but our schedules never match up (when they are in the area vs. when I have to money to actually see them perform). I've heard they put on a wild show, so I figure there isn't much to lose by spending a night out to watch the madness. They're opening for the Squirrel Nut Zippers (that's a blast from the past name, isn't it?) on July 18th in Boston, so I suppose they are catching someone's attention. The Rum-Soaked Review jury is still deliberating on what to think of HUMANWINE; it's a wild ride to be sure, but there's a few things that are holding me back from screaming out praises and falling to the floor enraptured by the sound. Not perfect, but doing a fine job nonetheless. I look forward to what they will do and where they will go with their sound; their style could be applied to a variety of subject matters, and I hope they pursue different concepts with their future efforts.



HUMANWINE's website and myspace page

undRess Béton, tarentaliogy defloration

Here’s where myspace finds itself useful. You have no doubt looked at a band’s myspace page and wondered why other bands must be obnoxious when posting comments on their favorite’s pages, as though the comment feature was solely to be used as advertising for the smaller bands. More often than not, the lesser-known band is lesser-known for a reason, that reason being they stink like a moldy compost heap. But, as I was looking at the myspace page for personal favorite Einstürzende Neubauten, I couldn’t help but notice this one comment from a person or band that used a modified image of Andre Breton as its default userpic. That got my attention immediately.

My brief research (and I do mean brief) finds this to be the surrealist sound project of one Jaan Patterson. I know little else about undRess Béton (had to turn to blogger to find Jaan’s gender), but I get the feeling that this was mostly composed on a computer, using soundbites, samples, and assorted effects on a music program. Usually, that drives me up a wall, but at points, undRess Béton hits the nail on its misshapen head, thus I am forgiving. Occasionally. Babelfish tells me that “béton” is French for “concrete.”

Undress concrete… I like it.

The whole of tarentaliogy defloration is made up of sound collage, or audio salad; for example, “steve’s handsome bite” features speed metal guitar, bells, a piano sample that repeats ad nauseam, and eventually just throws them all together into a nonsensical cacophony. I don’t know if the artist’s lack of musical coherence is intentional, but unfortunately noise music is a niche market, so I wish undRess Béton best of luck.

undRess Béton calls to mind industrial acts like SPK and Throbbing Gristle; experimental, wild, and disturbing on a certain level. We must consider also that the early industrial musicians were indeed inspired by the Surrealists and Dadaists, so this artist isn’t really doing anything that hasn’t already been done.

The trouble with reviewing such music is that, since the artists do so much to defy categorization, it’s difficult to describe. Some would probably refer to this as nonsensical dross coming from someone suffering the worst degree of attention deficit disorder, while others will hail it as pure genius descended from Heaven. I have difficulty making out much of the words, but even when I do hear them, I hear what we would refer to as “automatic writing.” Automatic writing is the oldest and purest surrealist technique, so I am not surprised to see it here. Actually, I’m rather glad that it’s not a dead technique; keep it alive, Jaan.

Do I think this is good music? To be honest, I really haven’t a bloody clue. I do, however, know that this sort of thing has been done before. As such, I’m not exactly mindblown or swept into the chaos as other people may be (one review I read seemed so blown away as to write the review in some bizarre, near-gibberish automatic-style). Stepping aside from what I have reviewed (or just yammered about) to what is on the undRess Béton myspace page, I feel the stronger tracks by undRess Béton are the ones streaming online and not available for download. Tracks such as “inside a couch” are outright unsettling and get me really excited and fascinated since I love this sort of music more than is mentally healthy.

This artist can be going places if she polishes up her game and looks at what other artists have done in this particular vein. If you are already interested in experimental music, then this will most likely at least warrant a spin, but if constant deviation from any coherence makes you ill, then steer clear of this; it will only make you sick. I personally, enjoy this, in a way. I’m not entirely sure; “ambivalent” will henceforth be known as my middle name. tarentaliogy defloration is available online for free download (thus why I’m reviewing it), so there’s no risk other than taking up some hard drive space… or damaging your mind.



undRess Béton at myspace

skeletonbreath, Louise (2005, self-released)

Late posting due to a certain laziness this week. Foul weather, family coming over, negative cash flow for music, blah, blah, blah.

Anyway, I was first introduced to the music of skeletonbreath by a friend some several years ago as she was babbling about how great their music was. I casually ignored her for awhile, mostly because money was an issue then (not much has changed) and new music was only acquired by gifts or when I had enough saved up from performances to go and pick up something. Had to make sure the music was good before spending hard earned pennies on it.

So, on an impulse one night last year, I ventured to New Paltz to see skeletonbreath play at this sh#tty bar that I rarely go to. After a cavalcade of mediocrity in the form of other bands wasting time until 1am, skeletonbreath got up, rattled the house to its foundations, and converted me on the spot. There's a special feeling that comes from buying a CD directly from an artist, and I was glad to be able to pick up Louise directly from the hands of the people that made it.

For those completely unfamiliar with skeletonbreath, they are a three piece band consisting of Robert Pycior (also of O'Death) on electric violin, Andrew Platt on bass guitar, and currently Tris Palazzolo on drums, although on Louise drums are performed by their previous drummer Crockett Doob. I file skeletonbreath with other bands that are currently unsigned but phenomenally good and probably should be receiving more attention than they are at the moment (other names on that list include the previously-reviewed Sarah Perrotta, Autodrone, and The Funeral Crashers).

Louise is the self-released 2005 debut from this experimental crew. If I had to describe it as anything with easy pigeonhole terminology, it's somewhere between post-rock and demented violin punk. This band always has something up their sleeves, with sudden changes in tempo and sound, dropping from something high-speed and loud to quiet and minimal. Completely wild and untamed, skeletonbreath can bring out the inner madman in just about anyone. I am not known for being a dancer (almost violently opposed to dancing, as my friends will attest), and skeletonbreath can get me moving on the floor. The album cover art, by Eliza Zeitlin, is awesome as well.

If there are any complaints, they lie in a feeling of repetitiveness. It feels like the same tunes are played over and over with but a few variations here and there. There are a purely instrumental band, so there are no vocals to use as a sort of mark to know which song you are on. Even given that, Louise is still a good release and worth picking up. Their music is so unique that even this criticism is reduced to a mere quibble.

More importantly, skeletonbreath is a band you should see live. Nothing compares to the experience of seeing Pycior sawing away madly on his violin and Platt slamming his bass as the crowd bounces and thrashes in ecstatic motion. Check their calendar for dates when they will be in your area, and then mark your calendar. I guarantee you will not be disappointed that you went.



skeletonbreath's myspace

Returning to the Sun: Sarah Perrotta, The Well

This review marks another first. It’s the first time I’ve been approached by a musician to review a work instead of me searching the artist out in whatever way, be it buying the album as an unknown phantom or approaching the band myself. The local artists are the ones making all the firsts here, bless their hearts.

Is it my imagination, or are there a growing number of female piano pop artists? I swear, there’s a new one popping out of the woodwork every time I turn around. Don’t take this the wrong way, though: I’m a big sucker for piano pop and the feminine voice. That’s why I was rather pleased when Sarah Perrotta emailed me to ask if I would review her recently-released full-length album The Well.

Upon first opening the envelope and giving the album the look-over, I was astounded at the quality of the overall package. The photography on the outside and inside of the digipak and on the liner notes is quite nice. Liner notes with lyrics are a definite plus. While I usually rip on albums that lack features like outstanding artwork and printed lyrics, I typically go easy on independent and self-released albums as far as these things are concerned. However, I feel that it’s important to note that this is a self-released album that looks like it came from a big label in terms of overall quality. Better than the big labels, actually, since the bigwigs are ditching niceties like lyrics and decent art and photography. It’s obvious to me that much effort was spent to make The Well visually appealing.

After listening, I find the sound quality matches the look. I’m going to place Ms. Perrotta on the list of artists that make really good music, assemble a fantastic album, and do so completely independently. I still can’t believe that this is a self-release. Gone are the days when “self-release” meant a twice recorded-over cassette tape with a photocopied liner, or a hand-burned CD scribbled on with Sharpie.

What sets The Well apart from others in this style of music is Perrotta’s mature voice. It seems like so much of piano pop is populated by whimsical and high-pitched, barely-out-of-their-teens voices. Music of this genre tends towards being overly sweet and all butterflies and flowers. Sarah truly shines in that she does the whole piano pop thing without being so saccharine as to make you want to go to the dentist afterwards. As such, The Well is an entirely pleasant experience from start to finish. At about 48 minutes long, it doesn’t overstay its welcome; it actually feels much shorter than it is. Her lyrics are strong enough to set her apart as an exquisite lyricist, but they are not straining for profundity at the expense of overall sound. The result is an excellent balance of complexity and accessibility, sweeping away the listener with her touching works.

Some notes on songs that I feel warrant mention include: the lyrics to opening track “Out of Grace”: “your cynical thoughts are holding you back” … get out of my head, woman! I like being cynical! I really enjoy “Rooftops.” The intense “Steel” rocks hardest, but some might level the criticism that she’s trying to be Tori Amos with this one; I don’t subscribe to that view personally. Point in fact (*WARNING: INCOMING DETOUR*), I find that many piano pop/rock musicians these days suffer the comparison to Tori Amos, and in many cases unfairly. Take A Fine Frenzy for example: being a girl, having red hair, and sitting behind a piano got her labeled an Amos clone before anyone actually heard her music. I despise a reviewer that can’t accept the fact there are more pianists in popular music than that loon. There’s not much comparison here other than a piano and a powerful voice, so get over it (*END DETOUR*). Don’t mistake “Country” for a political song; it strikes me as a tongue-in-cheek lament at how no one will take responsibility for what’s happening in this country. “The Storm” also appeals to me; I’ve always loved songs about going away, taking a journey; this one is plain beautiful. “Midnight Lullaby” is another favorite; very soulful. “Carry You Home” touches all the rights spots; the accordion on this track makes it work so well.

The Well features some potent names in the music industry. Tony Levin (Peter Gabriel, King Crimson, Liquid Tension Experiment, and the list goes on) plays bass, plus providing Chapman Stick on the one song he’s not playing bass on. Garth Hudson, who has worked with just about everyone under the sun, including Bob Dylan, The Band, Neko Case, Eric Clapton, Roger Waters, Wilco… forget it; I’ll be typing this all night if I listed everyone. Garth plays accordion on two tracks. Grammy winning producer Malcolm Burn mixed The Well; he’s best known for working with Emmylou Harris (her album Red Dirt Girl is what he won the Grammy for) and Daniel Lanois. A not-yet famous name to appear on The Well is my friend Erica Quitzow. If you’re a regular reader of this blog, you already know all about her (speaking of Quitzow, her album, and Setting Sun’s album, official release today). Erica provides violin on three tracks. Of course, her band members Chris Lane` and John Watson, as well as other guests Jay Perrotta, Jimmy Goodman, Lisa Donald, and Barry Medenbach, all work to make the music on this record quite amazing.

I haven’t much bad to say about The Well. I feel that Garth Hudson was an excellent addition to the personnel; however, his accordion playing could have been used to color some more of the tracks other than just the two that he appears on (first and last songs “Out of Grace” and “Carry You Home”). Maybe they tried this and it didn’t sound good, maybe it got trimmed during mixing; who knows. I’m not going to ding her too much for that, not when what I'm hearing is so good. While I find this album totally palatable as it stands, it feels like it could use just a little extra kick to really make it really knock the socks off. If anything, its pleasantness is too uniform.

I’m not going to mislead anyone; this is not a blanket statement that everyone will like this album. If female singer-songwriters armed with pianos are your thing, then I heartily recommend this to you. However, if you are not big on either pianos or female vocalists, then this is most likely not going to be the converting album. While she can be intense at moments, Sarah’s mentality strikes me more as “gentle breeze” than “gale-force winds.” If you demand wild, rip-you-out-of-your-seat music, chances are The Well isn’t going to impress you.

However, I’m impressed even though I typically reach for the wild stuff. As it stands, The Well is a beautiful example of determined effort. Every aspect of this album shows a distinct care towards the total package that lands in the hands of the listener. The work put in on all fronts definitely shows, and I am glad to have been given the opportunity to review such a fine artist. My cynical thoughts usually are holding me back, but Ms. Perrotta has done a fine job of holding back my cynical thoughts.



Sarah Perrotta's website, myspace, and CD for sale at CDbaby.com

No, I don't really need your discipline: Nine Inch Nails, The Slip

Due to the lack of anything else on hand to work with, and the fact that I’m not of the inclination to do another opinion piece, I’m going to run the risk of being filleted alive by my usual readers and throw some good-natured darts at a dartboard named The Slip. Since you are reading this, it is safe to assume you have internet access, and therefore safe to assume that you have heard about the latest excretion from the Nine Inch Nails womb.

I wonder if the title is a reference to the fact that Mr. Reznor has given Interscope the slip, sort of a 43 minute “f#ck you” to his former overseers. “Hey guys! Look at me giving away music! Count your money now, you chimps!” In that respect, I have to give Mr. Reznor credit for simply throwing all ideas about profit to the wind. He probably could have made himself a million for the second time in a year had be dropped it with a similar pay scale as this year’s prior release, Ghosts I-IV; instead, he decided to surprise us with a gift. Unfortunately, I find this gift to be rather bland. There’s nothing to really hate about it, it’s entirely listenable, but I don’t find anything so grabbing as to make me soil my pants in excitement. I usually don’t do a track-by-track review, but here’s some notes jotted down about each song as I was listening.

1. “999,999”: Opening ambiance; nothing to really say.
2. “1,000,000”: Loud, noisy, catchy beat, tight, fun and jumpy. The lyrics are of the depressed, suicidal variety of high-school overemotional dross we’ve come to expect from Nine Inch Nails, but if you’re seriously going to complain about Reznor’s lyrical quality, I’m afraid I’m going to have to beat you upside the head with the studded aluminum baseball bat of knowledge. Trent Reznor has never been known for writing fantastic lyrics, so shut up. His strength is in being blunt about how he’s feeling. But, what does Reznor have to be depressed about? He’s got one boot firmly planted in the back of the bloated corpse of the American music industry, waving both middle fingers in the air and screaming, “I told you nothing could stop me now, but you didn’t believe me! Why didn’t you believe me?!” He may feel like he’s a million miles away, but is that such a bad place to be?
3. “Letting You”: The sort of aggressive quick beat thing that I never cared much for in NIN music. Nothing new, but not as obnoxious as, say, “Getting Smaller.”
4. “Discipline”: The criticism of ‘gay disco’ has been made since this dropped, so I don’t think I need to beat it with that stick. Might be fun to dance to, as Trent intended; might also make good sex music.
5. “Echoplex”: I gave this a rating of ‘meh’ when I first heard it. It has grown slightly on me, but I’m still not crazy about it. Feels like it drags out the end unnecessarily.
6. “Head Down”: Doesn’t do anything for me.
7. “Lights In The Sky”: The sort of slow-building track that always winds up 6-8 tracks in, a.k.a. the quiet song. Feels like the quiet song has been done better on prior albums.
8. “Corona Radiata”: Interesting title. Instrumental that isn’t bad, but not great either. Puts me to sleep, actually.
9. “The Four of Us Are Dying”: … and so am I while listening to this. Not awful, but a bit too meandering.
10: “Demon Seed”: The transition from the prior track is jarring. Really not impressed with this one. Same angry stuff we’ve been hearing since day one.

Maybe I’ve become jaded, but after Ghosts I-IV (and prior masterpieces), I’ve come to expect a bit more out of Mr. Reznor. This whole thing sounds like the same thing we’ve been hearing for the past couple years. While I’m glad he hasn’t gone completely loopy and transitioned to big band lounge music, a change in pace would be nice. I’ve been seriously trying to like this album all damn week, but every time I run through it, it bores me even more. There’s plenty of energy, but no real spark. I have to admit, I feel kind of like I’m picking on the handicapped kid considering this release was handed out to all the fans as a thank you. However, just because it was given freely doesn’t mean we have to accept it for what it is and be jubilant solely because it was free.

I’m genuinely surprised at how fast this came out. Most artists tend to wait a while for the shockwaves of their prior release to die down a bit before running out and dropping another album on the heads of the listening public. Not Trent; oh no, my dears, he lacks that particular strain of patience. A mere month after Ghosts, and he’s at it again. No one can fault the man as lacking motivation.

The speed of this release most likely has something to do with his shaking loose the shackles of label supervision. While his new-found freedom may seem exciting initially, it is not without its issues. Having no-one serving the purpose of an editor above him may actually be detrimental to the process and final result. There’s nobody to stand over his shoulder and say, “Trent, this sucks,” or, “Trent, didn’t we do this already?” Editorial review is an essential part to any artistic expression. When a novel is in the process of publication, there is a whole army of people picking over it with a fine-tooth comb searching for mistakes, errors, and things that just don’t work. Imagine if a book went to press before someone stopped the author with the news, “Pages 137-145 look like a cat snuck into your house and had a seizure on the keyboard, while the entire last chapter is punctuated solely with semi-colons; what gives?” A supervisory entity makes sure the final product is worthwhile, and, lacking any sort of overseer, Trent is pretty much running around like a child hopped up on too many glasses of cream soda. It's a whole load of fun, but is it good?

[Detour] However, this criticism would be more valid had the music industry not decided to take a page out of Hollywood’s playbook and create whole catalogs of sound-alike mediocrity. Frank Herbert, in the introduction to his short story collection Eye, explained the Hollywood technique: Don’t take risks. Find out what succeeds and copy it. The record industry has taken to that methodology with a fervor and now the radiowaves are populated with cookie-cutter pop-punk acts and legions of rock bands chanting, “Let’s be like Nickelback.” Derivation is one thing. We wouldn’t have much of our great contemporary music if the current crop of musicians didn’t nick at least a bite off their predecessors, but this is outright cloning! Around the end of last summer, I kept hearing on the radio a song that if you held a gun to my head and told me to correctly identify the band, you may as well have just painted the walls with my brains since I could have sworn it was Avril Lavigne. It wasn’t; it was someone that had the same insipid lyrics and annoying voice. I ask, has it always been like this and I was just unobservant? Was the music industry really better "way back when?" The point being that the record heads, instead of doing a good job of bringing new and compelling music to the masses and insisting on their signed musicians to stop being like everyone else, celebrate the blatant ripping-off of contemporaries to make a quick buck with radio-friendly repetition. It’s not unexpected to say a company wants to make money, but, Christ, they can at least pretend to care about artistic growth on the occasion. [End Detour]

One could argue that The Slip is a clone of With Teeth, but I don’t support that notion. The Slip strikes me more has being a cousin to With Teeth, dressing and talking the same way but trying to have a modicum of individuality. It’s not a bad album, but doesn’t make any distinctions in the Nine Inch Nails catalogue. Personally, I feel that this vein of music is dried up and at risk of getting infected and requiring amputation of the whole limb should Trent insist on continuing to stick it with needles. Ghosts I-IV spoiled us with a new and exciting direction, taking the high road of artsy instrumentals while The Slip is more like a slide down Been There, Done That Avenue. Some might find that comfortable, like a familiar old blanket. There’s nothing here we haven’t heard before; it’s the same pattern of anger/thrash/something danceable/more anger/instrumental/more thrash/end of album. If you liked With Teeth and Year Zero, then sign onto this one because it’s more of the same. The fact that it’s sticking to the pattern is mitigated by the fact that it’s free, so take five minutes out of your day, download it, and come to your own conclusions.



Nine Inch Nails official website

What happens when the mind is free to wander: Nine Inch Nails, Ghosts I-IV

Writing a review of Ghosts I-IV at this point seems a bit moot considering it’s been all over the place since March 2^nd, but I wanted to wait until I had the actual 2-disc set in my hand before voicing an opinion since (as you all know well by now) I like to figure packaging into my reviews. Plus, the added time allows for a more level-headed approach. Now that I have a physical copy, it’s time to review it, and if you don’t want to read what I have to say, go find out what’s new at Reader’s Digest or something.

Trent Reznor stated on his website that he wanted to do something like Ghosts for a very long time. My feeling is that its roots lie in “A Warm Place” from The Downward Spiral, but that’s just my gut instinct on the matter. Friends think that it may have started long before that. I have to give the man a lot of respect on the basis that he originally intended this release to be an EP; I like that mode of thinking since many artists seem to be discouraged from doing EPs these days to the point where it’s almost a dead art. However, things spiraled out of control and Ghosts became a massive double album instead. I won’t fault him for not following his initial intentions since the result is quite amazing.

While I really enjoy the album, I feel like it was being over-hyped when it was released. It’s good music, but some people were acting like it’s the single greatest artistic contribution to the human race since Neanderthals started pissing cave paintings. Stop that, goddammit! The raving fanboyisms are really f#cking annoying and leave me with the urge to kill things! (To be fair, the hype spiked and then died down rather rapidly; you escape unscathed this time, fanboys.)

Now that I’ve gotten that out of my system, let’s talk music. Ghosts ranges from the beautiful minimalism that pops up every now and then on Nine Inch Nails albums to the static and noise Reznor is more well known for, blending the varieties seamlessly and making for a fantastic near two-hour experience that, as Reznor stated, is meant for daydreaming. I wouldn’t recommend listening to this in the car, as you will find yourself in the middle of a field with no idea how you got there and possibly staring at a confused cow that’s chewing cud right outside your driver’s side window. Not a fate I would like to face.

What I like most about Ghosts is that it isn’t the usual aggression and wild emotions that are typically associated with the Nine Inch Nails catalogue, at least not completely anyway. In that respect, it calls to mind Still, the semi-acoustic studio album featuring alternate versions of prior released work that accompanied the deluxe edition of And All That Could Have Been, and some of the more “aquatic” tracks (I can’t think of any other way to describe them other than as though I were under water) featured on The Fragile (several of which wound up on Still). Ghosts alternates between a subdued state of introspection and an occasion moment of dissonance, quite the opposite of the typical Nine Inch Nails fare. I really enjoy when an artist takes a chance and does something that is significantly different from what they usually do, and Ghosts certainly satisfies that impulse in me, even if it feels much like an extended Still with all the lyrics taken out and the electric guitars put back in.

To be honest, after Year Zero, Reznor probably could have made an audio recording of taking a dump and remixed it a dozen times, and have the result be more pleasant than some of the atrocities on Year Zero. While that album had its frequent moments of brilliance (“In This Twilight,” for example), some tracks should have been cut outright from the listing, “The Great Destroyer,” for instance. What was good was great, and what stank had me running to the nearest copy of “Banana Phone” to get the blasted things out of my short-term memory. Thankfully, Trent has kicked the laptops and 8-bit video game sound effects to the curb (mostly) with Ghosts, much to my delight.

The CD version comes in a tri-fold digipak with a booklet featuring studio photographs. Rather nice to see what the process of making the album looked like. However, I was hoping the CD liner notes and accompanying photos would look more like the pdf that came with the download. The photographs used there were absolutely beautiful (words I never thought I’d use to describe a Nine Inch Nails album). I loved the assorted artistic photos of close-up wave crashing, lampposts in the rain, desert train tracks, and so on. They really gave a character to the album, a visual expression of the sort of emotion that was being conveyed with the music, as opposed to the sort of process photos of studio equipment that, although very good, seem static, lacking life.

Overall, I really like Ghosts, despite any implied misgivings above. The music, the package, the way it was presented, it has been an enjoyable experience from the start, with the exception of cursing while fighting to get NIN.com working right on the evening of March 2^nd (hey Trent, how’re the servers doing since last month’s meltdown?). I’d rate it in the top ten of the year, assuming nothing so mind-blowing as to make me spontaneously mess my pants out of pure joy comes out between now and the year close. It shows that Reznor is willing to get out of his usual adrenaline-fueled screaming and just try something different. It echoes prior Nine Inch Nails songs of both instrumental and lyrical varieties, but presents them in an extended fashion and with a different tone. If you’re already a fan, then chances are you already have it by now, but if you’re not a fan, then I recommend giving it a chance. Considering it’s available as a full download^* with pdf and wallpapers and other such digital extras for less than the overpriced pseudo-coffee abominations at $tarbucks, and at 10 USD (plus 6.99 USD shipping^**) for the actual CDs, I don’t want to hear “I can’t afford it” coming from anyone unless you’re at the poverty level.

In other Nine Inch Nails news, I understand that part two of Year Zero is also supposed to come out this year, so I have to confess a certain fear that Reznor will again be fiddling with computers when his strength is with actual instruments, as exemplified with Ghosts. As such, Nine Inch Nails stands the distinct chance of standing on both ends of the quality spectrum for music in 2008, if “The Great Destroyaaaaaaaaaaaaa!!!” is any indication. However, I balance that fear with the news that we can look forward to more installments of Ghosts, which fills me with much glee and anticipation.

Also, just two days ago, a new single was released for free download. This track, “Discipline,” strikes me (and many people I know) as a leftover from With Teeth, but commentary from the artist himself indicates this was a one-off thing done for fun and not an indication of what he plans on releasing of album length in the near future. If anything, it’s more evidence to the power Reznor has asserted now that he’s free of label overseers and other Brooks Brothers-wearing stiff-necks. Imagine just recording something and giving it away shortly thereafter? This new method of distribution that Reznor is engaging in has much potential; I’m definitely on the edge of my seat, waiting to see what happens in the world of music now that all the rules have changed.



NIN.com, which is the only important website you need on this one.

^*There’s a free download of the first nine tracks, in case you’re still skeptical. No excuses. Seriously. None. Get to it.
^**Item of contention: shipping speed sucked for the price paid. 7 USD for shipping, and it took 5 days. It’s still not a bad total price for a double album though. This is of course irrelevant if your buy it in a store, which means you can pay anywhere between 10 and 18 USD, plus tax.