Yeah, there’s definitely quite a bit of guitars actually. They just don’t really sound like guitars and aren’t played like traditional guitars. A lot of stuff on TF that sounds like synths is actually guitars as well.
I’m really digging Hesistation Marks. I was pretty excited for new NIN, but wasn’t expecting this to be his best one since the 90s.
There seems to be something new I notice with each listen and/or a song that becomes a new favorite with each listen. Like, “This is awesome. I don’t remember hearing this song last time.” Currently going through that with the ending of “Satellite”. Reminds me of when I first got into NIN. Even the remixes are top shelf.
I’d read somewhere he said he’d started writing this primarily with just a drum machine and that it’s a sparse [minimal] record. It sounds anything but sparse to me. Much more going on than his last few.
Even the remixes are top shelf.
I just heard the Breyer P Orridge mix available on the deluxe version.
Top notch shit. Very creepy. Very impressive.
There seems to be something new I notice with each listen and/or a song that becomes a new favorite with each listen. Like, “This is awesome. I don’t remember hearing this song last time.” Currently going through that with the ending of “Satellite”. Reminds me of when I first got into NIN. Even the remixes are top shelf.
I’m listening for the first time now. I must say, although the beginning of the album is very memorable, it slowly becomes less and less so as it progresses. A few of the tracks (Disappointed, Various Methods Of Escape) seem like after thoughts. Satellite is a good idea (dance funk) but seems to be missing…something. And the chorus is lazy.
So far it’s scoring a high 6 (maybe a 6.8 out of 10). That tinny drum machine sound starts to wear thin after a while.
Favourite songs:
Copy Of A
All Time Low
Everything
In Two
Find My Way
It’s very different from his early material - which I’ve never liked anyway. So that’s a good thing.
But it’s not a great album by any means. Apart from Copy Of A, Everything and All Time Low, there’s very little that sticks in my head.
SIN and SANCTIFIED are Trent’s best works
^ “Sanctified” is not just a horrible NIN song. It’s one of the worst songs ever created in general.
Peligro, I agree with “Disappointed” sounding like an afterthought. It’s really weak and doesn’t do anything really. Despite that track I still think it’s a great album. I didn’t think the drums sounded tinny at all. Weird. First I’ve heard anyone say that.
Shit, I got my copy of the deluxe edition in the mail yesterday and had no idea. Maybe I should go out to the mailbox and check for mail more often.
Really nice packaging and presentation with the hardcover book and artwork by Russell Mills. I’m looking forward to listening to the album all the way through again but with the artwork after work today.
Also a cool video documenting the tour and rehearsals up on nin.com.
I’m with Peligro on this one.
First half is quite good, I enjoy a lot Copy of A and All Time Low. Second half is more uninspired and dull at times.
Overall I think it’s a good effort.
Anyone who ordered from nin.com will also get to download a copy of the album that retains the lo end, which is often sacrifice when mastering now days thanks to the “loudness war”.
[i]Hesitation Marks was mastered in two different ways - the standard, “loud” mastering (which is what you’ll find on the CD, on iTunes, and everywhere else), and also an alternate “audiophile” mastering, which we’re offering as a free download option for anyone who purchases the album through nin.com. For the majority of people, the standard version will be preferable and differences will be difficult to detect. Audiophiles with high-end equipment and an understanding of the mastering process might prefer the alternate version.
Alan Moulder, who mixed the album, offers a more detailed explanation:
When we were mixing Hesitation Marks we decided to treat the mastering process in a slightly different way to the usual. Since we had tried to treat every other aspect of making this record differently to how we were used to, it seemed to make sense. We were mixing as we went along with the production of each song rather than at the end, so we thought that once we had a song pretty close we would send it off to Tom Baker, our long time serving mastering engineer, to give it some mastering treatment. Normally you wait until the record is finished being recorded and mixed, then take all the mixes to mastering. But we thought doing it again, as we went along, might make us push the process further and spend more time on mastering rather than rush through it at the end. Whilst doing this we became aware of how much low bass information there was on the record. Since that can define how loud of a level the mastering can be, we were faced with a dilemma: do we keep the bass and and have a significantly lower level record, or do we sacrifice the bass for a more competitive level of volume? The biggest issue in mastering these days tends to be how loud can you make your record. It is a fact that when listening back-to-back, loud records will come across more impressively, although in the long run what you sacrifice for that level can be quality and fidelity. So after much discussion we decided to go with two versions. On the main release Tom did exceptional work to maintain the integrity of our mixes and reproduce the low end as much as possible and still get a decent level, although it’s still nowhere as loud as a lot of modern records. The Audiophile Mastered Version is more true to how the mixes sounded to us in the studio when we were working on the songs. Have a listen, turn up the volume and enjoy the experience!
Mastering Engineer Tom Baker adds:
I believe it was Trent’s idea to master the album two different ways, and to my knowledge it has never been done before.
The standard version is “loud” and more aggressive and has more of a bite or edge to the sound with a tighter low end.
The Audiophile Mastered Version highlights the mixes as they are without compromising the dynamics and low end, and not being concerned about how “loud” the album would be. The goal was to simply allow the mixes to retain the spatial relationship between instruments and the robust, grandiose sound.
NOTE: 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.
If you ordered any format of Hesitation Marks from nin.com, you’ll be able to download one or both mastering versions, in whichever formats you prefer (MP3, FLAC, Apple Lossless, and WAV), beginning September 3rd.[/i]
http://nineinchnails.tumblr.com/post/59587808317/hesitation-marks-was-mastered-in-two-different#=
So that’s pretty fucking cool.
I bought my copy yesterday afternoon. It’s the first time I’ve sat down and listened to Nine Inch Nails in almost a decade. So far it’s worth it. Agree that it’s very top heavy. Most of the memorable stuff is to be found in the first half. The second half is a hodge podge of samey sounding filler. Running is especially dull. The last proper track While I’m Still Here picks up the interest levels a bit. But by then you can’t help but feel that it was something of a lost opportunity.
I agree with Peligro in that the album deserves a high 6.
Does sound good on headphones though.
Reznor can take the audiophile version and stick it up his pretentious ass. I’d rather have an awesome album that blows my mind than some elitist audiophile horseshit copy of a copy of a copy of a lackluster limpdick album that any emo/ebm fuckstick could put out. Next person that calls this album “Brilliant!” is gonna get a fuckin’ love letter from me. Fuck the new album, fuck the Fincher soundtracks, fuck the Plastic Ono Angels shit, fuck Ghosts, fuck the Slip (fuck me for stupidly paying for it), fuck the Tapeworm catastrophe (you cannot tell me that would have been any worse then all the other shit he and Maynard have done since then). Also, fuck the last company that I worked at for laying me off, fuck AMC if they cancel The Killing again, and fuck the girl at KFC who fucked up my order today.
Reznor can take the audiophile version and stick it up his pretentious ass. I’d rather have an awesome album that blows my mind than some elitist audiophile horseshit copy of a copy of a copy of a lackluster limpdick album that any emo/ebm fuckstick could put out. Next person that calls this album “Brilliant!” is gonna get a fuckin’ love letter from me. Fuck the new album, fuck the Fincher soundtracks, fuck the Plastic Ono Angels shit, fuck Ghosts, fuck the Slip (fuck me for stupidly paying for it), fuck the Tapeworm catastrophe (you cannot tell me that would have been any worse then all the other shit he and Maynard have done since then). Also, fuck the last company that I worked at for laying me off, fuck AMC if they cancel The Killing again, and fuck the girl at KFC who fucked up my order today.
What’d she do? Give you original recipe instead of extra crispy?
Reznor can take the audiophile version and stick it up his pretentious ass. I’d rather have an awesome album that blows my mind than some elitist audiophile horseshit copy of a copy of a copy of a lackluster limpdick album that any emo/ebm fuckstick could put out. Next person that calls this album “Brilliant!” is gonna get a fuckin’ love letter from me. Fuck the new album, fuck the Fincher soundtracks, fuck the Plastic Ono Angels shit, fuck Ghosts, fuck the Slip (fuck me for stupidly paying for it), fuck the Tapeworm catastrophe (you cannot tell me that would have been any worse then all the other shit he and Maynard have done since then). Also, fuck the last company that I worked at for laying me off, fuck AMC if they cancel The Killing again, and fuck the girl at KFC who fucked up my order today.
Haha! What the fuck? Total failure and overkill on the pseudo-Bill Hicks anger rant there, buddy. Abort this mission while you’re ahead, jackass.
I think this new NIN album is Brilliant!!!(<----- 6 exclamation points)
Late,
grmpysmrf
BRILLIANT!!!
Reznor can take the audiophile version and stick it up his pretentious ass. I’d rather have an awesome album that blows my mind than some elitist audiophile horseshit copy of a copy of a copy of a lackluster limpdick album that any emo/ebm fuckstick could put out. Next person that calls this album “Brilliant!” is gonna get a fuckin’ love letter from me. Fuck the new album, fuck the Fincher soundtracks, fuck the Plastic Ono Angels shit, fuck Ghosts, fuck the Slip (fuck me for stupidly paying for it), fuck the Tapeworm catastrophe (you cannot tell me that would have been any worse then all the other shit he and Maynard have done since then). Also, fuck the last company that I worked at for laying me off, fuck AMC if they cancel The Killing again, and fuck the girl at KFC who fucked up my order today.
Hahahahaha! I needed that laugh.
[reply]Haha! What the fuck? Total failure and overkill on the pseudo-Bill Hicks anger rant there, buddy. Abort this mission while you’re ahead, jackass.
Mission aborted, sire. Oh, and fuck the sperm and the ovum that came together to grace us with your “holier than thou” douchefuck presence. We need to send one of those Terminators that you were babbling on about on my other post back in time to introduce your father to a rubber (or a coathanger).
[reply]Hahahahaha! I needed that laugh.
I’m glad I could oblige. I was pissed and yet had great fun typing it as well.
[reply]Haha! What the fuck? Total failure and overkill on the pseudo-Bill Hicks anger rant there, buddy. Abort this mission while you’re ahead, jackass.
Mission aborted, sire. Oh, and fuck the sperm and the ovum that came together to grace us with your “holier than thou” douchefuck presence. We need to send one of those Terminators that you were babbling on about on my other post back in time to introduce your father to a rubber (or a coathanger).
[/reply]
Why would his father need a coat hanger? you’d think that would be a woman’s tool in this particular situation. Don’t get me wrong, I absolutely agree with your assessment of Atom, as do most people here, (he was a nuisance at Piss Army too from what several PMs that have come to me have said) but if your gonna call him out at least be somewhat productive about it. instead of just sputtering out nonsense.
This has been a tip from your local grmpysmrf.
Late,
grmpysmrf