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Nine Inch Nails - The Slip review



Reviewer:
N/A

151 users:
7.13
Band: Nine Inch Nails
Album: The Slip
Style: Industrial metal, Industrial rock
Release date: July 2008


Disc I
01. 999,999
02. 1,000,000
03. Letting You
04. Discipline
05. Echoplex
06. Head Down
07. Lights In The Sky
08. Corona Radiata
09. The Four Of Us Are Dying
10. Demon Seed

Disc II [Limited Edition DVD]
01. 1,000,000 [live]
02. Letting You [live]
03. Discipline [live]
04. Echoplex [live]
05. Head Down [live]

Nine Inch Nails fans have it good in recent times. Their favourite artist not only releases a new album as often as a man with irritable bowel syndrome goes to the toilet, he also began to share the products of his creativity completely free of charge. The same is true of The Slip, an album that one can download freely without even being urged to make a voluntary donation.

The Slip sounds like a continuation of the catchy direction of With Teeth but with acknowledgement of Trent's renewed interest in making a lot of noise. The album has a bare and primal quality to it, emanating an urgency often associated with post-punk, to the aesthetics of which the excellent album cover also seems to refer. This is not a bloated conceptual album but one that is quite happy to violate the senses with distorted synths or the once again more prominent guitar squeal. Indeed, songs like "Letting It Go Away" and "1,000,000" bring to mind the more extreme experiments of one Alec Empire, and even an unashamedly pop song like "Discipline" retains a gritty, claustrophobic sound. Meanwhile, the best songs on the album, such as "Echoplex", "Head Down" and "The Four Of Us Are Dying" recall the rich textures of The Fragile but without being beaten to death and overstaying their welcome. Truly, the name of the game here is being concise and succinct.

Evidently, Trent's output isn't a form of artistic diarrhoea and is instead more akin to a good-natured chef proud enough of his work to let people taste it for free. Let's hope his insane productivity doesn't result in our indigestion; however, at least for now, his latest album, The Slip is a very nourishing meal.





Written on 12.05.2008 by With Metal Storm since 2002, jupitreas has been subjecting the masses to his reviews for quite a while now. He lives in Warsaw, Poland, where he does his best to avoid prosecution for being so cool.


Comments

Comments: 11   Visited by: 266 users
12.05.2008 - 03:19
Rating: 8
Dangerboner
Lactation Cnslt
It's great to see Trent expose himself in a positive manner now. I've only heard the five or so songs on their MySpace, but it sounded like he went back to his roots. Still, some parts did indeed sound average, but much better than I expected. It's amazing how fast this was released after Ghosts.
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12.05.2008 - 12:47
Manhelm
Account deleted
Sounds like an interesting album but i wish these rich musicians would stop giving away their music for free. Any musician trying to get ahead on the industry knows how hard it is to get records sold and with these already very wealthy artists giving away their tunes for free - it really degrades and devalues music in general. Giving away tracks online is a great way to get noticed and promote new material but allowing an entire album to be downloaded for free really disadvantages the new up and coming acts trying to get their music heard.

Come on trent - get back on drugs. If he was still messed up he would be overcharging for his albums to feed his addiction and therefore keeping the wheels of capitalism rolling.
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12.05.2008 - 18:34
Cassian

I've never listened to NIN before, but since this album is freely downloadable, I'm downloading it right away!
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13.05.2008 - 06:07
Kap'N Korrupt
Account deleted
Nice use of metaphors in your review man...you were spot on about which songs really stand out...you write very short and to the point reviews and it's refreshing...

Yeah, it's great to see Trent releasing more work...the Slip is so much better than Ghosts...I thought he was losing his way a bit...or smoking too much ganja...
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15.05.2008 - 10:02
rohgue123

Written by Guest on 12.05.2008 at 12:47

Sounds like an interesting album but i wish these rich musicians would stop giving away their music for free. Any musician trying to get ahead on the industry knows how hard it is to get records sold and with these already very wealthy artists giving away their tunes for free - it really degrades and devalues music in general. Giving away tracks online is a great way to get noticed and promote new material but allowing an entire album to be downloaded for free really disadvantages the new up and coming acts trying to get their music heard.

Come on trent - get back on drugs. If he was still messed up he would be overcharging for his albums to feed his addiction and therefore keeping the wheels of capitalism rolling.


I don't see how it devalues music at all. This shows how dedicated to his fans he really is. I think you have the wrong idea of music in general if you think music is for making money.
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God has a hard-on for me.
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17.05.2008 - 14:35
Manhelm
Account deleted
Music is not purely about making money but sadly it's as capitalist dominated arena as any other industry and when your a fan you have nothing more invested in it then the $x you spend on a cd. But when you're a musician and the industry is your main source of income, it hurts to see people giving away music for free like that because it really does devalue music as a whole. People pay money for music and always have therefor music has a value and that value is what alot of aspiring musicians crave for. Tours arn't cheap and neither is recording time so when it comes to breaking into the industry every cent is important and when people like trent are giving away music for free it is great for the fans but it also sets a precedent stating that you dont HAVE to pay for music if you don't want to. Why go out and buy a new up and coming bands cd when you can download an older more wealthy bands work for free?
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20.05.2008 - 06:56
Goat-Christ

Bands have never made a great deal of money from record sales unless of course they're a multi-platinum artist. Constant touring is how the cash flow starts. The whole idea behind giving away albums or select tracks from the record is exposure. The more people who hear your music and like it are most likely going to shell out the fifteen bucks they didn't spend on a CD to go to your show.
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27.05.2008 - 12:25
Manhelm
Account deleted
I agree with what you was but do you think in this case that trent needs that little boost of exposure? I dont think someones going to go "Well i've never heard of Nine Inch Nails, Now is my chance to hear what they're like"
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17.07.2008 - 00:47
Rating: 8
Marcus
Doit Like Bernie
Written by Guest on 27.05.2008 at 12:25

I agree with what you was but do you think in this case that trent needs that little boost of exposure? I dont think someones going to go "Well i've never heard of Nine Inch Nails, Now is my chance to hear what they're like"


Written by Cassian on 12.05.2008 at 18:34

I've never listened to NIN before, but since this album is freely downloadable, I'm downloading it right away!


There you go. It's already been said, he did this not for exposure but as a treat to his fans, giving them music for free, which is how it should be.
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30.06.2009 - 08:00
Uirapuru
Liver Failure
Worse NIN album to me. I just didnt get into it, it sounded weird.

Maybe after some more spins.
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member of the true crusade against old school heavy metal, early 80s thrash, NWOBHM, traditional doom, first and second wave black metal, old school death metal, US power metal, 70s prog rock and atmospheric doomsludgestoner. o/
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05.01.2010 - 12:55
Rating: 9
tea[m]ster
Au Pays Natal
I really like this cd. Sounds like a continuation from "Year Zero" which is a great thing cause I liked that direction Trent took. I just wish this album was longer!
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rekt
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