Essential
The Downward Spiral(1994) – The masterpiece. Trent Reznor found himself in a position of artistic freedom and major label backing. Noisy and bold, TDS was an unlikely success. In the age of grunge flannel and garage band rock, Reznor defied the odds with keyboards, static, fishnet stocking and becomes a household name. TDS was the pinnacle of Reznor’s emotional decent. Each album took his doubt and angst a little farther. TDS is extreme and deals with themes of suicide, rejecting religion, complete loss of self, and a hit single with the chorus, “I Want To F*#k You Like An Animal.” The album is so intense and sincere, that it left him nowhere to go from there. How do you follow up an act like that? Closer
Year Zero(2007) – When it seemed that NIN had run it’s course and reached a point of being an act that had offered up the best of what they had to offer early on and were costing on good material and nostalgia, Year Zero erupted. YZ is perhaps the most brilliant artistic and business move that Trent Reznor has made. Once your demons are confronted with the ferocity of TDS, facing them again felt old and tired on the follow ups. Reznor must have put a ton of thought into his approach for this album that largely veered from the rock numbers of With Teeth and built his songs around an imagined future. Each song is from the perspective of different characters in an elaborately imagined future America. Even beyond the freshly charged music vision, YZ is bigger than a group of songs. There was an entire alternate reality created online and in the packaging that immersed and engaged in the unfolding and revelation of the experience. More here and here
Great
Pretty Hate Machine(1989) – Another fantastic album. The promise of what Trent would have to offer is there even though it not fully realized yet. This was the soundtrack to my high school years. I don’t think there was a single day during that span of four years that I didn’t listen to this album. The production is naïve, but Trent squeezes more life and passion out of keyboards and synthesizers than most artists can out of conventional instruments. HLAH
Broken(1992) – In the midst of a career starting to take off came a label dispute that nearly ended his career as a musician. The anger and frustration of this time for Trent is more than evident on his hardest and shortest release. Broken is a 20 minute bombardment of guitars and pounding beats driving the “fuck you” attitude Reznor clearly had towards his old label. Wish
Good
With Teeth(2005) – A solid album with some high points. There are a few missteps that make you question whether or not Reznor’s rage had run its course (revisiting themes, a single lamenting the repetitiveness of daily life). Most importantly, this album put Reznor back on track after The Fragile. Doubters from the last effort could take comfort that Trent can still deliver. Everyday
Ok
The Fragile(1999) – The 1999 flop. Reznor waited five years to follow up his masterpiece and foolishly fell victim to expectation. He felt compelled to continue to top his own efforts and forced together an opus spanning two discs in an elaborate tri-fold package. Careers and genres of popular music came and went between albums and this grand gesture was delivered to an audience that had moved on. The singles were weak and the album was terribly disjointed. Like any other release of Trent’s, there are some fantastic songs, but 2 discs is asking a lot of listeners to sift through.
The Slip(2008) – It’s free! More or less, this one sounds like a compilation of songs not used on With Teeth and Ghosts. Still, it’s good and it’s free. FREE!
And All That Could Have Been(2002) – The live companion to The Fragile. I so wish that they had done this after TDS. That was by far the best line-up and tour that NIN has had. It’s good and kind of a best of for his earlier work. Oddly, the Fragile numbers mostly are the more forgettable ones especially placed among Wish and Head Like A Hole. The companion disc has some worthwhile stuff including “acoustic” versions of some older tracks and other tracks from the Fragile sessions.
Hard listen
Ghosts 1-4(2008) – Great instrumental collection. But it’s two discs of instrumentals.
Fixed(1992) – The partner to broken remixes the songs and clocks them in at more than twice the length of the original. Fixed clears up any fears that nin were turning into a guitar rock band. This is a noisy industrial powerhouse.
Fans only
The next three are remix albums and eps that work as companions to legitimate albums.
Things Fall Apart(2000) – companion to The Fragile
Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D(2007) – companion to Year Zero
Further Down The Spiral(1995) – companion to The Downward Spiral
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