Nine Inch Nails Album: “The Slip [Digipak]”

Reznor has been quite a busy man these past few years. Long gone are the days where fans would have to wait 4 or 5 years for a new album to come out. There is so much NIN news going on right now..it's really great to be a fan.

In 2007, it started with the apocalyptic alternate reality game. Dozens of websites popped up relating to this futuristic mythology of the world. This eventually led to the release Year Zero. A truly great masterpiece composed Reznor. The album featured lyric themes never heard in the NIN world before and sounds that you would never think be considered music. This electronic masterpiece was one of the most creative and noisy albums of 2007.

A few months go by and BAM! Ghosts I-IV was released. "A soundtrack for daydreams" Reznor describes. He's definitely right. This is the most experimental and "out there" NIN has ever gotten. From beautiful piano pieces, to trippy guitars, and video game-esque beats, this album was amazing. It still managed to keep that classic NIN sound we all love.

Just when it couldn't get any better, another album comes along. Best of all, it's for free. THE SLIP.

When I first listened to The Slip, I was honestly disappointed. It felt generic and boring, the songs were badly recorded, and there was so much noise you could hardly tell was Trent was singing. I disregarded it for a few weeks before listening to it again.

As I started listening to it more. I began to realize how great it really was. The Slip is so much different from other NIN albums, yet somehow the it goes back to their roots of The Downward Spiral and The Fragile.

The first thing I noticed is the recording of the album. I found it to be sloppy and muffled at first, but now I think that's one of the things that make the album awesome. All the songs sound a like a garage band recording. This makes the music sound raw and in your face. It sounds like the band is playing right next to you. The most notable use of the recording quality I'm talking about is on "Head Down".

The flow of the album is superb. There's so much variety in the styles of the songs, but Reznor (of course) finds a way to make them all flow together. The album feels like one giant song split up into different parts (like a Pink Floyd song).

The albums starts off with 999,999 (Instrumental). The song starts out slow but slowly progresses, adding more and more layers of sounds and noises. Although it's an instrumental song, it eventually builds up with Trent's muffled and chaotic voice, ending with "How did I slip into this?-".

1,000,000 kicks off with hard beating drums and typical NIN synth riffs. This song is a classic NIN rocker. Very "With-Teethy". It leads straight into..

Letting You. This song starts out with a complex and fast drum beat before being overtaken by some very noisy bass and synth. There's definitely some Year Zero-esque lyrics here. It ends with an intense bang.

Discipline is the next song. Dark disco is the best way to describe it. It's catchy, dance-able, and full of NIN goodness. Be sure to watch to the "music video" ;).

Echoplex. This song is very dark, yet fragile. The chorus is really melodic. The ending of the song has a lot of build up and instrumental goodness.

Head Down is the next song. The best song off the album in my opinion. The song starts of very heavy and angry before going to into the epic and beautiful chorus. The end of the song gets intense and chaotic before calming down to a slow and ambient synth. This leads into..

Lights in the Sky. This is the "piano" song off the album. It really is just Trent and a piano. The lyrics are extremely well written and gives the album a turning point in atmosphere. It flows very well into..

Corono Radiata (Instrumental). This song starts out with 5 minutes of serene ambiance. By the end it quickly turns into a dark and surreal soundscape. A great instrumental.

The Four of Us Our Dying (Instrumental). The dark and surreal ambiance of CR continues with this song, adding more sounds and noises. Pairs really nicely with CR.

Demon Seed. This is a really original NIN song. I really haven't heard anything like it. I can't really describe it well either. You'll just have to listen to it yourself =D. It's a great closing song though.

Overall, The Slip is a really great album. It has a wide variety of songs that go together really well. It will definitely grow on you, so please give it some time. Highly recommended as a first NIN album to listen to. It covers all the areas of NIN, as well as covering some new ones.

Key tracks: 1000000, Echoplex, Head Down, Lights in the Sky, The Four of Us Our Dying, Demon Seed.

First, I'd like to point out that all you whiners complaining that this is the same as Trent's other stuff are the same people that are the first to whine when your favorite band comes out with new stuff (that you don't like). You're also the same people that get all mad at concerts because they only play a couple of the older hits. STFU already!

This album is absolutely great. What's even more fantastic is what Trent is doing for the music world. Even if you don't like his music, you can't ignore his message.

In a world of pedantic, money-grubbing, music fan hating old farts that are the RIAA, Trent rises above and shows us where the real energy & effort should be spent - on catering to the fans of the music instead of suing them.

Trent doesn't EXPECT anyone to buy his album because he's released something new (again!). He gives (part of) it away as a free download, then creates something amazingly unique. His marketing techniques are pure genius.

I'm just one of many long-time NiN fans that have gone out of my way to purchase everything Trent has produced because of his attitude towards the music industry and RIAA.

We need more artists like Trent. If your favorite band still has the RIAA leash around their necks, DON'T buy the CD - the RIAA makes too much money from them, and the artist doesn't get squat. Go to the concerts, buy the merchandise, and urge them to go independent like Trent.

The only way we can fight the RIAA is to avoid them like a plague. They will eventually wither and die like the rotting old corpses that they are.

This is a great NIN album. Each song is a masterpiece. But unless you're buying the physical cd, DO NOT pay for it!!! Trent Reznor has made a point of giving his music to his fans for free since leaving Interscope Records. Go to nin.com and download this entire album for FREE!

This review is for the downloadable version of The Slip that has been available for free on the NIN website for several months. Today (07/22/08) the same MP3-only version of the album (with ten songs) was made available here on AMZN, along with the limited-edition physical CD. I know nothing about the bonus DVD that comes with that package. Here I am reviewing the music of The Slip for the benefit of fans wondering about the album. The bonus DVD on the physical release is probably only essential for collectors or those uncomfortable with downloading. But note that the album's music is still available for free on the NIN website (apparently forever), and Trent Reznor is obviously willing to forego royalties in order to cut out the middlemen who distribute physical products.

The digital music era has freed Trent from record company strictures, and he sure is active lately, as The Slip is technically his fourth album-length product in about a year (though the double Ghosts I-IV should be regarded as an experimental side project). I was not too enthralled by Year Zero, finding it forced and unfocused, but The Slip is much more coherent and self-contained, with Trent displaying a sense of "Discipline" that allows him to both look forward and build upon his past strengths. The blistering "Letting You" recalls Trent's classics of barely-contained rage, and the fascinating "Echoplex" recalls some of the moody experimentation of The Fragile. The quiet and haunting "Lights in the Sky" is surely Trent's best piano ballad ever. The two extended atmospheric experiments, "Corona Radiata" and "The Four of Us Are Dying" hearken back to the most terrifying quiet moments of The Downward Spiral while also feeling fresh and forward-looking. The only misstep is the weak whispered vocals on "Demon Seed," though that track is still a powerful close to Trent's most focused album is recent memory.

In fact, this might be the tightest collection of songs in the history of NIN. Trent no longer has the need to create albums as lengthy as record companies want when they want them. Faithful NIN fans should get their hands on this, either physically or virtually. [~doomsdayer520~]

All audio on the audio cd can be found for a free (band supported and sponsored) download on Nine Inch Nails' website:

[...]

This product is for the dedicated NIN fanbase. It does not disappoint.

This physical verison of "The Slip" brings back meaning for "Limited Edition." The term has become somewhat of a marketing gimmick as many companies label their products as "limited" and yet they remain in production years later. I was very pleased to find a unique xxx,xxx / 250,000 printed on the back of the of casing.

Inside you'll find the complete slip audio cd, 3 random artwork stickers for tracks off the album, a artwork/lyrics booklet, and a rehearsal DVD featuring 5 tracks; 1,000,000, Letting You, Discipline, Echoplex, and Head Down. The rehearsal DVD is my favorite part of this product as I prefer to listen to Robin Finck play lead guitar on all of these songs live over the album versions (especially Head Down.) I look forward to extracting the audio from the live recordings.

This product is a must own for anyone who openly refers to themselves as a Nine Inch Nails fan.

If you haven't heard the album, I suggest you download it for free (above) before purchasing this and possibly lowering it's product rating with unnecessary ignorance.