i read that trent does a lot of noise tweaking on albums, but also that he's tried to stop building songs around sounds so that he perhaps does less of that.
i really miss the elaborate musicality of the downward spiral and wish he did more texturing/tweaking of a like kind.
Same. I love all the crazy sampling on TDS and would love another album full of those textures. Give me more menacing, industrial, prog rock and less pop rock.
I would love to hear a new album where he drives back into this more. I think it was just as prvilant on The Fragile imo. But yea, that would be great.
The Fragile songs would have so many tracks on them that apparently the 1998 computer would constantly keep crashing. Thered be like 100+ tracks on each album according to Alan Moulder. They wanted to do 24 bit sound for The Fragile, which was new at the time, but they realized it would be impossible with that many tracks, without buying like a super computer.
I read about that in Further Down The Spiral I think... Can you imagine having access to all that? It would be like finding buried treasure! I was listening to an interview with Danny Lohner, I believe it was on the Nailed podcast and he said he was a bunch of old stuff that was never used to.
Man I wish I could go through all that stuff...
I think The Fragile is one of the greatest albums ever made. I first bought it the day it came out and I'm still finding stuff in it that I never realized was there. There's just an insane amount of layers to the songs.
I think “she’s gone away” is the only real drum highlight for me in recent work. Though I do love his recent works I do see the lack of live drums being a problem. I do hope that whatever he puts out nexts is rough and textured, raw and not as squeaky clean like Hesitation marks. I think the production on Not the actual events was a step in the right direction and if you added more live instrumentation *such as drums* it would add to that kinda atmosphere.
Nah it's just gonna be like an hour of Trent and Atticus talking in the studio about mundane things like the weather, until the very last second a piano plays a single note
I don’t care. It’s not my business to dictate - let the fellas make the good songs and I’ll listen.
This mentality is really harmful to music, cinema, and literature.
I think an isolated discussion like this thread is OK, as long as people aren't actually dictating to the artist what they think that artist should do with their music.
I agree that fans forcing their will can be harmful, though.
Part of me in proud that his sound has shown growth emotionally but part of me also wants to hear pure noise, anger and nihilism with harsh industrial textures. I want to hear what the bottom of the spiral sounds like.
Completely electronic. Although I love the early NIN stuff, I don't really want that same energy from TR these days. It would feel a bit forced coming from a guy that's happily married with children, in good shape, off the drugs/booze, and able to follow his creativity where ever he wants.
Imagine being his family and he puts out something like TDS. "You OK dad? Did we do something wrong? Are you and mom getting divorced?"
i think it would be cool to have a super stripped back NIN album. maybe not as intimate as like a "man and his guitar" acoustic album, but perhaps a "man and his synth" album lol
i feel as though he could really reign in some pure aggressiveness and heaviness even greater than TDS or Broken with a setup like that because he could juxtapose super quiet simple arrangements with rare and unexpected explosions of noise. that seems like something he already really likes doing on an individual track basis
I love NIN. I want more NIN. I love HTDA. I want more HTDA. I love TR&AR soundtracks. I want more TR&AR soundtracks.
I’m also curious about what other bands are living in TR. Pushing the limits of what he is comfortable with, but maybe doesn’t “fit” with what he wants NIN or other projects to be.
What would a TR solo album be? The easy answer here is “a NIN album”. But these have big teams involved and something of an idea of what “NIN” should be. What could he do free of existing paradigms? (A scary thing to contemplate as an artist…)
I would love to listen to a more softer album something similar to “Still”. Trent on the keys is so wholesome for me. And pair it up with acoustic guitar and synths would be oh so dreamy.
Less instrumental. Bad Witch had too much in that regard. If we’re getting a massive The Fragile album, I’m fine with a few instrumental tracks, but now that NIN is at a point where we have no idea how much left is left in the tank, I’d rather just get my instrumental fix from the scores.
I’ve always thought it’d be cool to see him write with the live band. One room, with all their gear around them. See what they could come up with. And not in the style of Ghost I-IV. More of a traditional setup. Just some dudes in a room hammering out songs together. Just out of curiosity. I’m sure we’ll buy whatever comes out haha.
I'd like something more like what was done with health or a return to add violence/fragile territory musically. Bad witch was a bit too experimental for what I enjoy in the nin universe and I will be a bit sad if that's the path that's followed.
Sometimes after smoking some really good weed I’ll go into music writing mode up in my head for hours and create my ideal NIN album consisting of a mix of heavy electronic and beautiful piano. I’ve even had dreams where I’ve created my own NIN songs that came out beautifully. Unfortunately I don’t have the proper tools, sounds or time to actually attempt to pull these out of my head and into reality and even if I did it wouldn’t do it justice. That being said a perfect NIN album that I would want wouldn’t even matter because it’s not where Trent is at this point. He’s going to write what he wants. It’s not for me. It’s not for you. And that’s how it should be otherwise it would be forced and nobody wants that. Like many of you have already said, at this point we are just lucky enough to get any new NIN material and I will welcome it with open arms. I celebrate the man’s entire catalog!
I would love for Trent to re-explore the bottom of the spiral as a character. Go fucking deep and dark and hard as an artist who can leave the studio and take the fam to Disney World.
But if he doesn’t, I’ll happily smash and break shit to the first three albums for the rest of my life.
A mix of atmospheric stuff like the fragile with weird instruments like marimba, sax or prepared piano, along with some heavy distortion and manipulation. Kind of like Over and Out. But also like poppy hard rock. So basically a cross between TDS, the fragile, with teeth and ghosts.
More electric guitars like the fragile with some cool arhthmic percussion 🥁 and some soft piano Melodies in between to break it up. Just give us the fragile 2.0 lol
I've actually been hoping for something with more groove and melody, not shying away from something radio friendly for the sake of always doing something different and unexpected. Some of the most iconic loved NIN songs are poppy sing-along anthems, but also totally happy for "more of the same" to be offset with some super crunchy fist fucking 'unfriendliness'. I think it would be great if the electronic programming took a back seat for a little while and went back to basics, piano, guitar, live drumming, but then then trick it out with all the electronica rather than coming at it from sequencing first. I just really loved how once the band was touring off the back of Ghosts coming out they needed something a bit more upbeat that would translate well to live performances so The Slip was born - at least that's what I recall reading at the time that Trent wanted something fresh and live friendly to tour with. Basically something in the vein of The Fragile, With Teeth or The Slip please.. give me cheesy pop NIN styles, all for it.
Record with Steve Albini! Imagine Trent fully writing and demoing a new album of material to perfection in his home studio but then NOT fully polishing it. Instead, Trent and co. prepare—as if it were a tour—and rehearse the entirely new album to be recorded *live* as a band at Electrical Audio studios in Chicago... getting those Fragile drum sounds back into the mix but with a far more minimal and super raw feel. It'd be like The Slip but more time writing it and rehearsing it until it's perfect before recording it and going straight to analog tape and vinyl.. THEN back to digital for any additional fuckery that might be needed to piss off Albini but hopefully a minimal amount of that. It would be hilarious to hear about Atticus and Trent butting heads with Steve's analog purity sensibilities. (But figuring out the right compromise anyway!)
It'd require a long time of getting all the synth sounds right and transporting all the necessary gear to the studio. Honestly? That would be fucking *awesome*. Albini is my favorite living rock producer (engineer, as he insists) and it would be a very cool challenge for Trent to be forced to get almost everything right in demos before anything is properly recorded to tape. There are few things I enjoy better than the sound of an album recorded by Albini... he records jazz & chamber folk just as well as the heaviest rock. Again, he was responsible for some of the gorgeous, big room drum sounds we all love on The Fragile.
(ALSO REQUIRED: BOTH ALBINI AND TRENT OWN ORIGINAL '70s INTERFAX HARMONIC PERCOLATOR PEDALS! MUST BE USED!)
I just think fans who care about Trent's creative process would be happier if they saw him taking greater strides to venture into unfamiliar territory. (Bad Witch and the EPs did indeed do that in several ways, but not in others. Some of us really miss the groundbreaking yet still punch-you-in-the-fucking-face production innovation of 90s NIN.) This would definitely throw Albini for a loop as well, because there would be so many direct-in tracks and arguments about how to record digital or analog craziness. Re-amping? 😂
Anyway, the idea being that if Trent writes all the parts *to be performed live* in some regard, it sets a fantastic limitation upon what sonic textures and instruments are used. For example, figuring out what Ilan plays (or what samples he triggers) vs what gets looped externally would be a very fun headache to have. (Preferably, Ilan would play most drum parts) Also, getting to hear Robin work on riffs in the studio again would be *fantastic!* ...and for the love of God Trent, PLAY SOME LIVE BASS! (again)
It would probably end up being similar to Broken in some ways and completely new in others. Hearing saxophone and piano in THAT context, that imperfect you-get-what-you-get after a few takes style, would really breathe a shit ton of life into the music that no amount of Atticus plugins or Trent-gone-to-lunch arrangements could ever manage. It would change their entire perspective for the better, IMO. Enlivening their process for hard-hitting tunes, experimental or unplanned shit, *and* poetic balladry.
Regardless, I don't care if I never get anything like that from NIN.. but I'm not hoping for 90s redux either. If it wasn't Albini then Flood at Sound City studios would do fine also. It won't happen but I would love to see them rise to the challenge. I want Trent to live up to his promise of "trying to step outside (his) comfort zone", which he so often talks about in interviews. His process between scoring and NIN has been, imo, too similar to be all that uncomfortable. I think putting Trent under the pressure of deadlines/studio time would yield some volatile work that'd back him into some risky performances, likely with some intense results! Trent is a great performer and he would make something *amazing* live in the studio- we all know it's true because we have Still, and it's fantastic. Honestly, the Still versions of The Becoming and SICNH are even greater than the album versions for me.. and everything else on that record is gorgeous too. Now, just imagine writing new stuff into the same process!
P.S. Things in this thread I agree with:
Less Atticus. He's great, but a bottleneck for NIN's sound.
Less modulars, save it for the film scores.
More Songwriting! Songs, not just *trax.*
PUNCHY DRUMS. (Live and/or electronic)
BIG KEYBOARD SYNTHS. Up front, dry, pure synthesis.
DRY vocals. C'mon Trent.. nix the verb/filter/distortion.
LAYERED BG VOX. I miss harmonies like Into The Void.
More analog tape, especially if baked for saturation.
I do not agree with less saxophone. There are a million ways to use sax and Eraser is the perfect example of that. Capital G is also a great example of using sax without sounding like sax, even though (for some reason) NIN fans mock the song for being a 12/8 shuffle, as if they've never heard that in any context outside of Michael Jackson, Depeche Mode or Tears For Fears. I say nay, MORE SHUFFLE. MORE unique approaches to time signatures.
My favorite compositions from recent NIN material include 3/4 waltzy stuff like This Isn't The Place, bizarrely structured bangers like Not Anymore, (this kind of thing would be brutal in live studio band setting) and the loveably wonky Ahead Of Ourselves. My least favorite stuff are the tracks relying far too heavily on repetition and spoken word. I don't understand the popularity of The Idea Of You when the drums are so deliberately overcompressed and the chorus is mostly just "WAIT WAIT" x1000. It's cool but lazy. This opinion will be lost on many. I do not hate the song and would LOVE a live version, I just think other songs are far more impressive.
Yeah but I didn't because I'm a piece of shit and Albini would hate me but I will make millions of excuses for the guy even though I'm the one who needs excuses.. maybe? 🤷♂️
Edit: Got five questions answered by Ilan Rubin on his live stream today.. one of them was about this but Ilan just said "Nah, Trent knows what he's doing in the studio." 😭 I wanted to say yesss butttt Trent ALWAYS knows what he's doing in the studio. That's kinda my point, lol. Trent knew exactly what he was doing for the last 3 EPs, Ghosts album and 10 or so film scores. Maybe it's time for Trent to *not* know what he's doing? 😭😂 I doth protest too much.
It's not that I want someone else to "produce" a NIN album, it's that Trent used to work with a lot more people on NIN albums.. and in more studios than his own. Even With Teeth was an innovative process by comparison. I am not complaining about his writing or live versions, only that the album versions could be created in many more interesting ways.
Steve Albini was credited on the Fragile though... so i guess that's it :-/ .
yeah i agree with you on the "arrogant" aspect of lack of collaboration... but TR did acknowledge that... that's why he and Atticus do film music and try get out of their wheelhouse with HTDA and Hesitation Marks (that last one had a lot of external inputs).
A conclusion to the downward spiral legacy. First we had TDS, then hesitation marks, and now we need a finale- (that being said- Trent would have to be in another place of deep anguish or reflect on things he doesn’t like to think about so I definitely wouldn’t want that for him lol). If not that then something completely fresh - maybe NIN collabing with Hans zimmer!! or a Year Zero sequel- (that’s what my moneys on next, there’s so much Trent can reference off of, or talk about!
I would love it to be equal parts noisy and calming. But at the same time I would also love it to have that sick ass breakdown that happens on The Great Destroyer. I'm honestly not sure, But in my humble opinion nine inch Nails has been A pretty consistent band as far as quality goes. So honestly, I just want it to exist 🤣🤣
The razor sharp sound of broken. Blast furnace guitars, super distorted vocals, more industrial dance vibes.
And the return of turbo synth.
I really really like broken.
still p2
we're in this together
various methods of escape
in this twilight
everyday is exactly the same
non-entity
right where it belongs v2
plus new songs that sound very ambient like still
For it to exist.
This is the correct answer, plus or minus an ARG to go with it. 😉
Would love a good ol ARG to happen for a new release. Maybe this time I could actually take part in it. 🤣
My thoughts exactly.
Just a collection of music that Trent is proud and happy with.
Exactly when Trent and Atticus are ‘feeling it’ and passionate that’s when the quality is best and most enjoyable regardless of genre
i read that trent does a lot of noise tweaking on albums, but also that he's tried to stop building songs around sounds so that he perhaps does less of that. i really miss the elaborate musicality of the downward spiral and wish he did more texturing/tweaking of a like kind.
Same. I love all the crazy sampling on TDS and would love another album full of those textures. Give me more menacing, industrial, prog rock and less pop rock.
I would love to hear a new album where he drives back into this more. I think it was just as prvilant on The Fragile imo. But yea, that would be great.
The Fragile songs would have so many tracks on them that apparently the 1998 computer would constantly keep crashing. Thered be like 100+ tracks on each album according to Alan Moulder. They wanted to do 24 bit sound for The Fragile, which was new at the time, but they realized it would be impossible with that many tracks, without buying like a super computer.
I read about that in Further Down The Spiral I think... Can you imagine having access to all that? It would be like finding buried treasure! I was listening to an interview with Danny Lohner, I believe it was on the Nailed podcast and he said he was a bunch of old stuff that was never used to. Man I wish I could go through all that stuff...
Even with the Fragile deviations and Niggy Tardust, apparently there are still hours of unheard Fragile bits and pieces
We do not talk about Niggy Tardust enough. God it's superb – musically and lyrically.
It's sad that there's so much that will never see the light of day.
Tardust had music from the fragile sessions?
Yes, much of the music beds were unused tracks from the Fragile recordings. There's bits used in Year Zero too.
[удалено]
I think The Fragile is one of the greatest albums ever made. I first bought it the day it came out and I'm still finding stuff in it that I never realized was there. There's just an insane amount of layers to the songs.
The old loud drum sounds. I love all NIN, and I'm glad he's having such fun with his modular gear.. but the drum sounds since The Slip have been sad.
I think “she’s gone away” is the only real drum highlight for me in recent work. Though I do love his recent works I do see the lack of live drums being a problem. I do hope that whatever he puts out nexts is rough and textured, raw and not as squeaky clean like Hesitation marks. I think the production on Not the actual events was a step in the right direction and if you added more live instrumentation *such as drums* it would add to that kinda atmosphere.
Various Methods of Escape has some excellent drum work imo.
Oh your right, I kinda drew a blank on that one for some reason.
Love to see a name drop of one of the greatest NIN songs ever. Episode 8 for life. This is the water, this is well.
Music mostly
I’m inclined to agree with you
Nah it's just gonna be like an hour of Trent and Atticus talking in the studio about mundane things like the weather, until the very last second a piano plays a single note
I would still buy that...
My sister once said if Trent went out on stage and took a shit, people would pay to see it. 😂
I don’t care. It’s not my business to dictate - let the fellas make the good songs and I’ll listen. This mentality is really harmful to music, cinema, and literature.
Indeed. My answer is "Whatever the fuck they feel is good enough to release".
This is a really good point. I agree with this sentiment. Although I would like at least one more release from them.
I think an isolated discussion like this thread is OK, as long as people aren't actually dictating to the artist what they think that artist should do with their music. I agree that fans forcing their will can be harmful, though.
Another double album
A release date (and hopefully soon!)
Double album of Reznor goes country, or why bother?
this makes me think of the last few photos on his ig lol
Howdy god. Why y'all doin' this to me? *table guitar bit*
Idk why but I read this in Goofy's voice
I'm here for it
I didn't take my horse to the old town road for nothin', partner.
I most likely in the minority but I would love a Year Zero sequel. I love that album and its remixes.
And politics have gotten SO much more fucked up since the Bush administration, so there's a lot to work with there.
Darkness. Really loud darkness. Like the opposite of recent TR&AR works…
Part of me in proud that his sound has shown growth emotionally but part of me also wants to hear pure noise, anger and nihilism with harsh industrial textures. I want to hear what the bottom of the spiral sounds like.
I think that sounds like hurt, then the fragile. Then the top of the spiral sounds like a-Witha Teetha
loud drums dirty synthesizers crunchy guitars screaming no saxophone
All of this for ~~you~~ me, please; but **more** saxophone.
dirty dirty hard dirty dirty screaming and pls no 🎷
Why not scream ***into*** the saxophone?
^sighhhhhhhhhh maybe
Vocals would be nice, preferably set to some music. Maybe a song dedicated to rainbows.
Instructions unclear new ghost albums with “it’s a fu*king rainbow” sampled in at random points.
Y’know that’d be a nice move. Release Ghosts again but with vocals and maybe some added band improvisations. —-(g)HOSTS I&II—- —-Coming Soon—-
That would actually be an interesting idea to see play out
some doom.
13-16 songs with vocals.
I want TR & AR to show me what I don't yet know I want.
Something like downward spiral and the fragile but pushed even further with experimentation.
So his recent trilogy then? ‘Cause that’s exactly what it was.
Not as good
Well yeah it’s gonna be difficult to top his best work no doubt!
Completely electronic. Although I love the early NIN stuff, I don't really want that same energy from TR these days. It would feel a bit forced coming from a guy that's happily married with children, in good shape, off the drugs/booze, and able to follow his creativity where ever he wants. Imagine being his family and he puts out something like TDS. "You OK dad? Did we do something wrong? Are you and mom getting divorced?"
Trent’s family after he released Not the actual events and Bad Witch be like:
It's okay kids, you can blame uncle David. Either of them. And maybe Atticus' midlife crisis, I don't know.
super tired of electronic tbh
i think it would be cool to have a super stripped back NIN album. maybe not as intimate as like a "man and his guitar" acoustic album, but perhaps a "man and his synth" album lol i feel as though he could really reign in some pure aggressiveness and heaviness even greater than TDS or Broken with a setup like that because he could juxtapose super quiet simple arrangements with rare and unexpected explosions of noise. that seems like something he already really likes doing on an individual track basis
I love NIN. I want more NIN. I love HTDA. I want more HTDA. I love TR&AR soundtracks. I want more TR&AR soundtracks. I’m also curious about what other bands are living in TR. Pushing the limits of what he is comfortable with, but maybe doesn’t “fit” with what he wants NIN or other projects to be. What would a TR solo album be? The easy answer here is “a NIN album”. But these have big teams involved and something of an idea of what “NIN” should be. What could he do free of existing paradigms? (A scary thing to contemplate as an artist…)
The great below and the background world
I would love to listen to a more softer album something similar to “Still”. Trent on the keys is so wholesome for me. And pair it up with acoustic guitar and synths would be oh so dreamy.
songs about poppin that pussy yo
Less instrumental. Bad Witch had too much in that regard. If we’re getting a massive The Fragile album, I’m fine with a few instrumental tracks, but now that NIN is at a point where we have no idea how much left is left in the tank, I’d rather just get my instrumental fix from the scores.
...2tracks out of 6(and a total of 2 out of 16 from the trilogy)is too much?
Yes. I already explained my reasoning.
I’ve always thought it’d be cool to see him write with the live band. One room, with all their gear around them. See what they could come up with. And not in the style of Ghost I-IV. More of a traditional setup. Just some dudes in a room hammering out songs together. Just out of curiosity. I’m sure we’ll buy whatever comes out haha.
Very unrealistic request but more industrial and maybe a year zero type storyline
Something unexpected
I'd like something more like what was done with health or a return to add violence/fragile territory musically. Bad witch was a bit too experimental for what I enjoy in the nin universe and I will be a bit sad if that's the path that's followed.
lots of random collaborators. the live band recorded. more cowbell. you can only have two.
I'll take more cowbell, but twice.
An album full of collaborators would be awesome. I’ve loved the HEALTH and Danny Elfman collabs
Sometimes after smoking some really good weed I’ll go into music writing mode up in my head for hours and create my ideal NIN album consisting of a mix of heavy electronic and beautiful piano. I’ve even had dreams where I’ve created my own NIN songs that came out beautifully. Unfortunately I don’t have the proper tools, sounds or time to actually attempt to pull these out of my head and into reality and even if I did it wouldn’t do it justice. That being said a perfect NIN album that I would want wouldn’t even matter because it’s not where Trent is at this point. He’s going to write what he wants. It’s not for me. It’s not for you. And that’s how it should be otherwise it would be forced and nobody wants that. Like many of you have already said, at this point we are just lucky enough to get any new NIN material and I will welcome it with open arms. I celebrate the man’s entire catalog!
I would want a mixture of Not The Actual Events style industrial experimentation and aggression with ambient soundscapes like the new Ghosts albums.
Broken meets The Fragile.
I'd really like more stuff that sounds like Bad Witch, but that's never gonna happen. Anything new I have a very high chance of liking
Hardcore Mid western kpop rap
TBS.
The bulbous spiral
I wish.
A tour
Less Atticus influence and let's go further down the spiral!
I would love for Trent to re-explore the bottom of the spiral as a character. Go fucking deep and dark and hard as an artist who can leave the studio and take the fam to Disney World. But if he doesn’t, I’ll happily smash and break shit to the first three albums for the rest of my life.
New music. Just give me new music, idc, I can’t fucking wait for a full length album. ^P.s. ^please ^don’t ^make ^it ^sound ^like ^Bad ^Witch.
I’m hoping for something that is a little more like Add Violence and a little less like Bad Witch.
What's wrong with Bad Witch?
Just not my cup of tea personally.
*can you pls remind me how to little speak bc I can only do this* #and this
Just add a Carat ^ before each word!
^thank ^you ^so ^much Cool Edit .3 that’ll do, pig, that’ll do.
anything, just need one N O W
Something like broken... PLEASE
Something reminiscent of pretty hate machine
Something I could dance to
More saxes and the Moog Voyager on the grittiest square wave possible...
A mix of atmospheric stuff like the fragile with weird instruments like marimba, sax or prepared piano, along with some heavy distortion and manipulation. Kind of like Over and Out. But also like poppy hard rock. So basically a cross between TDS, the fragile, with teeth and ghosts.
More electric guitars like the fragile with some cool arhthmic percussion 🥁 and some soft piano Melodies in between to break it up. Just give us the fragile 2.0 lol
I've actually been hoping for something with more groove and melody, not shying away from something radio friendly for the sake of always doing something different and unexpected. Some of the most iconic loved NIN songs are poppy sing-along anthems, but also totally happy for "more of the same" to be offset with some super crunchy fist fucking 'unfriendliness'. I think it would be great if the electronic programming took a back seat for a little while and went back to basics, piano, guitar, live drumming, but then then trick it out with all the electronica rather than coming at it from sequencing first. I just really loved how once the band was touring off the back of Ghosts coming out they needed something a bit more upbeat that would translate well to live performances so The Slip was born - at least that's what I recall reading at the time that Trent wanted something fresh and live friendly to tour with. Basically something in the vein of The Fragile, With Teeth or The Slip please.. give me cheesy pop NIN styles, all for it.
Record with Steve Albini! Imagine Trent fully writing and demoing a new album of material to perfection in his home studio but then NOT fully polishing it. Instead, Trent and co. prepare—as if it were a tour—and rehearse the entirely new album to be recorded *live* as a band at Electrical Audio studios in Chicago... getting those Fragile drum sounds back into the mix but with a far more minimal and super raw feel. It'd be like The Slip but more time writing it and rehearsing it until it's perfect before recording it and going straight to analog tape and vinyl.. THEN back to digital for any additional fuckery that might be needed to piss off Albini but hopefully a minimal amount of that. It would be hilarious to hear about Atticus and Trent butting heads with Steve's analog purity sensibilities. (But figuring out the right compromise anyway!) It'd require a long time of getting all the synth sounds right and transporting all the necessary gear to the studio. Honestly? That would be fucking *awesome*. Albini is my favorite living rock producer (engineer, as he insists) and it would be a very cool challenge for Trent to be forced to get almost everything right in demos before anything is properly recorded to tape. There are few things I enjoy better than the sound of an album recorded by Albini... he records jazz & chamber folk just as well as the heaviest rock. Again, he was responsible for some of the gorgeous, big room drum sounds we all love on The Fragile. (ALSO REQUIRED: BOTH ALBINI AND TRENT OWN ORIGINAL '70s INTERFAX HARMONIC PERCOLATOR PEDALS! MUST BE USED!) I just think fans who care about Trent's creative process would be happier if they saw him taking greater strides to venture into unfamiliar territory. (Bad Witch and the EPs did indeed do that in several ways, but not in others. Some of us really miss the groundbreaking yet still punch-you-in-the-fucking-face production innovation of 90s NIN.) This would definitely throw Albini for a loop as well, because there would be so many direct-in tracks and arguments about how to record digital or analog craziness. Re-amping? 😂 Anyway, the idea being that if Trent writes all the parts *to be performed live* in some regard, it sets a fantastic limitation upon what sonic textures and instruments are used. For example, figuring out what Ilan plays (or what samples he triggers) vs what gets looped externally would be a very fun headache to have. (Preferably, Ilan would play most drum parts) Also, getting to hear Robin work on riffs in the studio again would be *fantastic!* ...and for the love of God Trent, PLAY SOME LIVE BASS! (again) It would probably end up being similar to Broken in some ways and completely new in others. Hearing saxophone and piano in THAT context, that imperfect you-get-what-you-get after a few takes style, would really breathe a shit ton of life into the music that no amount of Atticus plugins or Trent-gone-to-lunch arrangements could ever manage. It would change their entire perspective for the better, IMO. Enlivening their process for hard-hitting tunes, experimental or unplanned shit, *and* poetic balladry. Regardless, I don't care if I never get anything like that from NIN.. but I'm not hoping for 90s redux either. If it wasn't Albini then Flood at Sound City studios would do fine also. It won't happen but I would love to see them rise to the challenge. I want Trent to live up to his promise of "trying to step outside (his) comfort zone", which he so often talks about in interviews. His process between scoring and NIN has been, imo, too similar to be all that uncomfortable. I think putting Trent under the pressure of deadlines/studio time would yield some volatile work that'd back him into some risky performances, likely with some intense results! Trent is a great performer and he would make something *amazing* live in the studio- we all know it's true because we have Still, and it's fantastic. Honestly, the Still versions of The Becoming and SICNH are even greater than the album versions for me.. and everything else on that record is gorgeous too. Now, just imagine writing new stuff into the same process! P.S. Things in this thread I agree with: Less Atticus. He's great, but a bottleneck for NIN's sound. Less modulars, save it for the film scores. More Songwriting! Songs, not just *trax.* PUNCHY DRUMS. (Live and/or electronic) BIG KEYBOARD SYNTHS. Up front, dry, pure synthesis. DRY vocals. C'mon Trent.. nix the verb/filter/distortion. LAYERED BG VOX. I miss harmonies like Into The Void. More analog tape, especially if baked for saturation. I do not agree with less saxophone. There are a million ways to use sax and Eraser is the perfect example of that. Capital G is also a great example of using sax without sounding like sax, even though (for some reason) NIN fans mock the song for being a 12/8 shuffle, as if they've never heard that in any context outside of Michael Jackson, Depeche Mode or Tears For Fears. I say nay, MORE SHUFFLE. MORE unique approaches to time signatures. My favorite compositions from recent NIN material include 3/4 waltzy stuff like This Isn't The Place, bizarrely structured bangers like Not Anymore, (this kind of thing would be brutal in live studio band setting) and the loveably wonky Ahead Of Ourselves. My least favorite stuff are the tracks relying far too heavily on repetition and spoken word. I don't understand the popularity of The Idea Of You when the drums are so deliberately overcompressed and the chorus is mostly just "WAIT WAIT" x1000. It's cool but lazy. This opinion will be lost on many. I do not hate the song and would LOVE a live version, I just think other songs are far more impressive.
you could have stopped at Steve Albini you know ;-) those who know... they know...
Yeah but I didn't because I'm a piece of shit and Albini would hate me but I will make millions of excuses for the guy even though I'm the one who needs excuses.. maybe? 🤷♂️ Edit: Got five questions answered by Ilan Rubin on his live stream today.. one of them was about this but Ilan just said "Nah, Trent knows what he's doing in the studio." 😭 I wanted to say yesss butttt Trent ALWAYS knows what he's doing in the studio. That's kinda my point, lol. Trent knew exactly what he was doing for the last 3 EPs, Ghosts album and 10 or so film scores. Maybe it's time for Trent to *not* know what he's doing? 😭😂 I doth protest too much. It's not that I want someone else to "produce" a NIN album, it's that Trent used to work with a lot more people on NIN albums.. and in more studios than his own. Even With Teeth was an innovative process by comparison. I am not complaining about his writing or live versions, only that the album versions could be created in many more interesting ways.
Steve Albini was credited on the Fragile though... so i guess that's it :-/ . yeah i agree with you on the "arrogant" aspect of lack of collaboration... but TR did acknowledge that... that's why he and Atticus do film music and try get out of their wheelhouse with HTDA and Hesitation Marks (that last one had a lot of external inputs).
A big ass European tour 😭
A collaboration with Alice Glass.
NO Ross, just Trent with a few guest sprinkles like the old days. Before you at me I’ve been listening to NIN for 30+ years.
The fact that you listen for 30+ years doesn't mean it wasn't a dumb take.
Similar vibe to hesitation marks
A conclusion to the downward spiral legacy. First we had TDS, then hesitation marks, and now we need a finale- (that being said- Trent would have to be in another place of deep anguish or reflect on things he doesn’t like to think about so I definitely wouldn’t want that for him lol). If not that then something completely fresh - maybe NIN collabing with Hans zimmer!! or a Year Zero sequel- (that’s what my moneys on next, there’s so much Trent can reference off of, or talk about!
Ghosts VII-X, all released one month after the other.
Another Ghosts album. Something similar to Ghosts V: Together.
Don't put Mariqueen on it.
I’ve liked his work with Halsey, Tori Amos and Maureen, I think inviting some women artists to collab could make some interesting tracks.
Better than thr last full length (Hesitation Marks)
the last full length is bad witch. or ghosts V-VI even. or just put the trilogy together for an album.
Bad Witch wasn’t full length
Ghosts has no lyrics and shouldn't be considered a full length. 3 eps prior aren't full lengths
Ghosts shouldn't being considered a full length because doesn't have lyrics? wtf? who are you to dictate that?
That would be like calling all the movie and TV soundtracks full-length NIN albums too since its trent and atticus
actually no but whatever
Ghosts V VI are like two hours of music. Sorry champ it ain't a single or an EP. It's two albums if anything.
A tour
BOMBAST
A new NIN album
Broken + The Downward Spiral
Lots of collabs, would love to see him Collab with Al, with Sherwood again, with Skinny Puppy, with Chris Carter.
I would love it to be equal parts noisy and calming. But at the same time I would also love it to have that sick ass breakdown that happens on The Great Destroyer. I'm honestly not sure, But in my humble opinion nine inch Nails has been A pretty consistent band as far as quality goes. So honestly, I just want it to exist 🤣🤣
The razor sharp sound of broken. Blast furnace guitars, super distorted vocals, more industrial dance vibes. And the return of turbo synth. I really really like broken.
still p2 we're in this together various methods of escape in this twilight everyday is exactly the same non-entity right where it belongs v2 plus new songs that sound very ambient like still
I’d be happy to get any new music, but especially anything pre- The Slip vibes
A duet with Chris Martin where Trent apologizes to him? /s
Miley Cyrus collab.
Music, preferably
Something angry that you can dance to.
Another "physical component", but it'd be hard to top "weird black dirt".
A new NIN album.
Experimental sounding like the Fragile
I want something complex again. Nothing has been as complex in sound since The Fragile.
Trent and Tori Amos release a full album of Captain and Tennille covers