ine Inch ails - Hesitation Marks |OT|

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Bread said:
yea i get what you mean, like he actually built a song around that badass beat instead of just screwing around on a drum machine until he found something he liked.

but you're craaaaaaaazy for that second statement, broken was so fucking raw. my favorite 3 songs from NIN has to be a warm place>eraser>reptile.
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That wasn't a slight on Broken. Broken is incredible and sounds like it could have been made this decade. It's a compliment on The Slip.
 
People calling 'Satellite' poppy - have you listened to the lyrics?

Yes we can
Yes we did
Eliminate the spread
Better watch
what you think
What was that
you said
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That's not a pop song. Kind of hard to miss the explicit swipe at Obama over NSA wiretapping.
 
Kano On The Phone said:
That wasn't a slight on Broken. Broken is incredible and sounds like it could have been made this decade. It's a compliment on The Slip.
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oh i know, i'm just saying that i wasn't a huge fan of slip, especially not 999,999 (didn't do anything for me) or letting you (what i consider a middle of the road NIN track)
 
shagg_187 said:
Oh fuck this noise.
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I know, right.

Beyond some R&B elements on the record, Hesitation Marks couldn't be more different than that Timbaland produced garbage. The production and writing on HM absolutely destroys Scream, or anything Timbaland has ever produced, for that matter. It's layered and complex, while also appearing sparse. That Cornell track couldn't be more basic if it tried. Trent Reznor doing his Prince routine shits all over that garbage.
 
Most of the stuff I've preferred of his over the years has been where there are subtle shfits in the track as it goes along introducing new layers as it goes - and that is here, it's just not crammed to the limit like with the Fragile, which had about a billion layers and things going on. Looking back I appreciate and still love that album, but it's bloated, overproduced and feels sluggish to me.

I can appreciate the restraint here - there's a real pulsing electronic drive to most of these tracks that I'm enjoying. Plus I always appreciated the feel of Trent being the human element surrounded by this amazing machinery. It still feels cleaner, more robotic, and massive sounding than a lot of his more recent stuff.
 
I don't dislike the album but it's not great either. I decided to put on The Downward Spiral this morning and the more I listen to it the less I like Hesitation Marks.

Edit: Has anyone seen them on their current tour? Are they playing old stuff at all? Does it have the same intensity as it did back in the day?
 
Didn't see this anywhere else in the thread, but apparently there are two different masters of HM.

Audiophile vs loudness wars master of HM

Now I'm wondering what I will end up with. I would assume the vinyl will be the so-called audiophile mix, but it also includes the digital version. So is that the iTunes "loudness war" master or just the digital version of the audiophile master?

Interesting idea though.

EDIT: okay looking into it more on nin.com, it looks like the audiophile version is digital only, and the vinyl has it's own vinyl specific mastering.
The standard mastered version is in no way inferior to the Audiophile Version - we wouldn’t release something inferior as the default. And vinyl purists rest assured, the vinyl edition was mastered to sound the very best for that format. The Audiophile Version is merely an alternate take on the mastering, which some people will appreciate. It’s meant to give a slightly different experience, not denigrate the standard version. Listen to each and come to your own conclusions.
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Bread said:
I just don't see what you guys are so up in arms about. If anything, this album sounds too much like his others. The songs either sound like they're from PHM/PHM's demo/Fragile/The Slip.

Maybe you guys just forgot how much 80s synth pop influenced him before getting drugged up? I've been a huge fan of every instance of NIN, even when he changes his sound, he retains something from the past so you know it's him. Satellite may be one of his poppiest songs, but I hear some hints of Where Is Everybody in the beat, so it's not totally out of the blue.

The album is kind of like a self-tribute to how awesome he used to be, and while it obviously isn't matching the greatness of his 90s writing, it's as close as he's gotten to making good ol fashioned NIN.

edit:
also just for the record you so know where i'm coming from, my ranking of NIN albums goes Fragile>TDS>>>PHM>YZ>>>>>WT>Slip
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lol... What have you been smoking? Please point out the tracks that sound too much like the good stuff.

If anything, it's his half assed attempt at trying to sound like other artists and at times trying to capture some of the 80s synth stuff he used in PHM.
 
Omlagus said:
Didn't see this anywhere else in the thread, but apparently there are two different masters of HM.

Audiophile vs loudness wars master of HM

Now I'm wondering what I will end up with. I would assume the vinyl will be the so-called audiophile mix, but it also includes the digital version. So is that the iTunes "loudness war" master or just the digital version of the audiophile master?

Interesting idea though.

EDIT: okay looking into it more on nin.com, it looks like the audiophile version is digital only, and the vinyl has it's own vinyl specific mastering.
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Trent you crazy, makes buying it from the nin store all the more worth it.
 
Damn this album was depressing to listen to. I was looking so forward to it too. Guess I'll pop in Fragile and pretend this never happened.
 
Now I think that this album is the best since The Fragile. Or at least it's the right album for me now.
Anyway just saw them in Milan fuck yeah!
 
Vampirolol said:
Now I think that this album is the best since The Fragile. Or at least it's the right album for me now.
Anyway just saw them in Milan fuck yeah!
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It absolutely is, but I think that says more about the rest of his post-Fragile output than HM's quality. To be honest, I think HM lacks standout tracks (Various Methods of Escape is the best song by far since it sounds like a scrapped Fragile tune, and Copy of A is already one of my favourite NIN songs, though) but I like the mood of the album and the minimalist approach to the music.

I haven't read the lyrics of every song yet, but I think it fits the theme of reminiscing about life during TDS era very well. Feels like an introspective, contemplative album. I prefer noisy NIN (thats why I love Getting Smaller although it seems that a lot of people hate it), but I can appreciate what Trent was trying to do.

For me, right now, TDS > The Fragile > PHM = Broken >>>>>>> HM >>>>>>>>>>>>>> With_Teeth >>>>>>>> The Slip >>>> Year Zero.

Oh, and regarding Everything: I like it in the context of the album, but it feels like a wasted chance. I think he could have tackled the subjects adding some layers of things falling appart, dischordant tunes or out-tuned strings to leave the impression that everything is not alright after all, that in the end is hapiness is only a mask and you can see its cracks. I know that the song wasn't about that at all, but I had a similar idea for a song :lol
 
Fare Godmace said:
It absolutely is, but I think that says more about the rest of his post-Fragile output than HM's quality.

For me, right now, TDS > The Fragile > PHM = Broken >>>>>>> HM >>>>>>>>>>>>>> With_Teeth >>>>>>>> The Slip >>>> Year Zero.
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We've got a similar ranking but mine is shorter, there are less ">" and Year Zero/The Slip are inverted.
 
Howwwwwwwww could YZ ever be ranked in far last place? So many fuckin great songs on that. Me, I'm Not is one of the best he's ever made.

So after a lot of listening, one thing I like about this album is the build up in each song. The first minute or 2 of each song are kind of boring/too minimalist. But the last 1/2 always turns into kick ass NIN goodness.
 
Still kind of annoyed that this ended up streaming on iTunes exclusively, and not through nin.com as well or *anywhere* else actually. That being said, the girlfriend played it last night and I listened in half way. Nothing really grabbed me but, I've found that NIN records are best experienced either live or with headphones.

Tonight I gave in and found a copy of the full album streaming on YouTube, and I'm only just a bit past Everything - but that's what actually prompted me to come post here.

Everything has grown on me by leaps and bounds. I was really not sure how it'd fit in the flow of the album, but on this first real listen - it comes across *really* well. After yet another by the numbers NIN track, it just comes screaming out like a breath of fresh air. It might not be perfect, but its the first time that I've actually felt like Trent had some passion for performing a song on this album.

Curious how the back half will hit me, as the first half has been kind of ho-hum. And I really liked Copy of A and Came Back Haunted as singles. As an album though... kind of meh front end.
 
Vesmir said:
Damn this album was depressing to listen to. I was looking so forward to it too. Guess I'll pop in Fragile and pretend this never happened.
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Wait, could this album be more depressing than TDS? Hmm, listening to "Everything" for the first time made me feel more depressed than when I listened to "Hurt" for the first time. Shit...
 
This is definitely the best NIN album since The Fragile but I still don't think it's as good as that album and everything that came before it. At least it isn't mediocre as fuck like everything NIN from the 2000's have been.
 
Fantastic incredible record - best since Fragile for sure.

If there's anything disappointing about this record, I wish there was more Lindsey Buckingham. His parts in In Two and While I'm Still Here add a lot to the songs.
 
Really diggin this album. Disappointed is the only track I really don't like (I'm kinda meh on Running too). In Two might be my favorite track, but there are a lot of great ones like Copy of A, Satellite, Find My Way, and While I'm Still Here. I wouldn't say it's on TDS or The Fragile level of awesomeness, but it's certainly better than The Slip, which just felt really rushed to me. A great addition to the NIN catalogue.
 
TheSpaceBetween said:
Really diggin this album. Disappointed is the only track I really don't like (I'm kinda meh on Running too). In Two might be my favorite track, but there are a lot of great ones like Copy of A, Satellite, Find My Way, and While I'm Still Here. I wouldn't say it's on TDS or The Fragile level of awesomeness, but it's certainly better than The Slip, which just felt really rushed to me. A great addition to the NIN catalogue.
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Same as this guy, the only song I don't like is Disappointed.

My favourite at this moment is Various Methods of Escape. Incredible song with lots of power.
 
TheSpaceBetween said:
Really diggin this album. Disappointed is the only track I really don't like (I'm kinda meh on Running too). In Two might be my favorite track, but there are a lot of great ones like Copy of A, Satellite, Find My Way, and While I'm Still Here. I wouldn't say it's on TDS or The Fragile level of awesomeness, but it's certainly better than The Slip, which just felt really rushed to me. A great addition to the NIN catalogue.
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Same here, Disappointed is the only flat track for me. The build from I Would For You to In Two is incredible.
 
Started listening to the bonus audio interview, "Conversation With...". I think I'll write up my overall opinion after listening to Trent talk about Hesitation Marks for 42 mins.
 
TheSpaceBetween said:
Really diggin this album. Disappointed is the only track I really don't like (I'm kinda meh on Running too). In Two might be my favorite track, but there are a lot of great ones like Copy of A, Satellite, Find My Way, and While I'm Still Here. I wouldn't say it's on TDS or The Fragile level of awesomeness, but it's certainly better than The Slip, which just felt really rushed to me. A great addition to the NIN catalogue.
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That's interesting, because Disappointed and Running are far and away my favorite tracks on the album. Running is so tribal sounding, reminds me of the HLAH remix EP. Good shit. Will be great live.
 
Have this on heavy rotation now. I'd say it's as good as Year Zero.
This is how I currently feel about the songs. Don't you tell me how I feel.
Love:
Eater of Dreams / Copy of A
Satellite
All Time Low
Running
Everything (yeah that's right)

Like:
In Two
Came Back Haunted
I Would For You
Various Methods of Escape
While I'm Still Here / Black Noise


S'alright:
Disappointed
Find My Way
 
I have liked (to varying degrees) every song on this album. After The Fragile, I have appreciated the way in which TR has branched out and tried new ways to create music, successful or otherwise (which is of course all subjective. I have enjoyed most of it, sans Year Zero.)

This album is pretty fucking great.
 
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