Y34RZ3R0R3MIX3D / [CD/DVD Combo]

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Album Description
NINE INCH NAILS: Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D

YEAR ZERO ALBUM REMIXED: STEPHEN MORRIS, BILL LASWELL, KRONOS QUARTET, SAUL WILLIAMS, OLOF DREIJER, THE FAINT AND MORE

REMIX IT YOURSELF: EVERY MASTER MULTI-TRACK MADE AVAILABLE

"I'm very pleased with the way it turned out," says Trent Reznor of Nine Inch Nails' Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D (Interscope Records). "Remix records can be disposable garbage (of which I myself have been guilty to some extent) but this collection feels good to me."

Spun off from Year Zero, the #2-charting album issued in the spring, Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D features a stunning diversity of remixers, from Joy Division and New Order's Stephen Morris to classical crossover pioneer Kronos Quartet and hip-hop poet Saul Williams; from avant-garde leader Bill Laswell, electronica's Olof Dreijer from The Knife, Interpol drummer Sam Fogarino and post-punk revivalists The Faint to an unknown fan who submitted a remix via the Internet.

"I reached out to heroes, friends and strangers," says Reznor. "I encouraged those I approached to do anything and insert themselves as much as possible into the track. Some of the stuff that was done earlier led me to choosing other people to balance things out. The Pirate Robot Midget mix is a fan's work--I thought it was great, it filled a need and I asked permission to use it here. It's always interesting for me to hear my work reinterpreted--I hope it is for you as well."

In fact, purchasers can even reinterpret and remix Year Zero themselves. The CD package for Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D includes a DVD-ROM containing every track from Year Zero in multi-track format (Mac and PC). Perhaps for the first time, the master multi-tracks for every recording on a major album are being made available to the public. The tracks are pre-formatted for Apple GarageBand and Ableton Live (Mac or PC); the DVD-ROM also adds the demo version of Ableton Live (Mac or PC) and generic WAVE files at 16 bit 44K that can be loaded into any audio editor.

A special Web site, remix.nin.com, will debut upon Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D's release date. Says Reznor,"Remixes and fun encouraged."

Customer Reviews: Read 57 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Thoroughly engrossing November 21, 2007
29 out of 32 found this review helpful

Slightly half a year after the release of "Year Zero," (2007) Trent Reznor has released an album of remixes for that album, Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D (Year Zero Remixed, 2007).

Sometimes remix albums can truly suck, but both "Further Down the Spiral" (1995) and "Things Falling Apart" (2000) were good, (especially the former) so one should expect something of quality for a "Year Zero" remix album. But even though I expected Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D to be good, I was surprised by how good I found it.

Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is a little different from past NIN remix albums in that several other artists were brought in to remix individual songs. Each artist, such as Ladytron, the Faint, Saul Williams, Stephen Morris & Gillian Gilbert etc, put their own unique spin on the songs, so each track sounds pretty unique from the one that preceded it, yet everything works and it makes for a very interesting listen. The result is a remix album that sounds like a bunch of artists screwed around with "Year Zero," warped it, and then put it back together. Because several different artists stylized each song uniquely, Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is always taking twists and turns, and one never knows where one will wind up. And while some remix songs are rather tedious, every track on Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is thoroughly engrossing, and I say that as someone who generally doesn't like remixes.

If you own "Year Zero" and like it, Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is highly recommended as a companion piece. But even if you don't own that album, fans of dance/electronica remixes will get something out of Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D, as these tracks all sound great. Although one can appreciate this CD more fully if one is familiar with "Year Zero."

3 out of 5 stars

Not better than the original November 20, 2007
17 out of 34 found this review helpful

Interesting remixes - some quite compelling - some not. I'm not disappointed I purchased this product, but I am pretty sure over time the CD that gets the most plays will be the original Year Zero (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). I've almost every Halo and haven't found a remix that surpasses the originals (also probably a good thing). Certainly worth adding to your library if you are a serious NIN fan. Control your expectations if you are looking for the exceptional though. This isn't The Downward Spiral, The Fragile or Pretty Hate Machine. Three stars nothing more.

3 out of 5 stars

Leaves More To Be Desired November 20, 2007
14 out of 17 found this review helpful

Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D is without a doubt the fullest effort for any NIN remix LP/EP. Almost every song from the original 'Year Zero' is presented on the album (and presented only once.) One glaring negative, however, is that YZ already sounds like its been chopped, mixed, and laid out to dry already. Remixing an album that already feels remixed is something many of the artists on this LP try to overcome; some of them succeed, while others succumb to pure mediocrity.

- "Gunshots by Computer" (Saul Williams) - HYPERPOWER! with rap lyrics. Not something stunning, but something not seen before on a NIN release
- "The Great Destroyer" (Modwheelmood) - Interesting mix of acoustic strings and technology. A must-listen!
- "My Violent Heart" (Pirate Robot Midget) - Fun little dance mix, though discardable after a few listens.
- "The Beginning of the End" (Ladytron J-Type Overdrive Mix) - Horrible take on one of the most hard-rocking songs found on YZ.
- "Survivalism_Tardusted" (Saul Williams) Nice, polished mix with bass levels to die for.
- "Capital G" (Phones 666RPM Mix) - Rave mediocrity.
- "Vessel" (Bill Laswell) - Sounds like the original and totally average.
- "The Warning" - (Stefan Goodchild) - Wonderful drumming with hardly any of the guitars that carried the original. Likely the freshest track from this album.
- "Meet Your Master" - (The Faint) - Same as the 'Vessel' remix. Average at best.
- "God Given" (Stephen Morris/Gillian Gilbert) - Another average take.
- "Me, I'm Not" (Olof Dreijer) - On par with some of the worst NIN remixes in the bands history. 14 minutes of droll nothingness.
- "Another Version of the Truth" (Kronos Quartet & Enrique Gonzalez Mueller) - Cool string section that could have easily been an outtake from 'The Fragile' sessions.
- "In This Twilight" (Fennesz ) - Too much distortion put into a slow-paced song. The concept could have worked with a different method, but it fails here.
- "Zero-Sum" (Stephen Morris/Gillian Gilbert) - Fun background beat, but nothing strikingly different from the original.

The album is worth getting for both the NIN faithful and casual listeners, but free open-source remixes circulating around are just as fun to listen to.

4 out of 5 stars

Reznor Remix 2.0 November 20, 2007
13 out of 13 found this review helpful

I've only listened to it once(got it just a few hours ago), but when I did, it was via an iPod & professional studio headphones (not ear buds) thus allowing me the ability to focus completely on it, even though I was commuting to work on a city bus, lol.

Leading up to this release I listened to my entire NIN library a couple of times (includes nearly every Halo 'cept for certain spendy singles) and I must say that year after year Trent continues to push himself creatively and artistically forward project after project to find new, yet familiar soundscapes to sonically paint on and in. Y34RZ3R0R3MIX3D is a different approach to his now usual routine that follows every major studio release he does; the remix album. It's not jaw-droppingly different, but still sounds unique, and I found that to be exciting and inspiring.

His collaboration with Saul Williams on this (and producing Saul's stunning new album "Niggy Tardust") is breathtaking as is breaking out of his normal creative cocoon and jamming with so many different bands and composers then weaving their approaches of these cuts into his own, hitting "puree" in the mixing booth and coming up with something unusual and cool on every track.

This is not meant to be played softly in the background at your next social function (and if you didn't care for "With Teeth" or "Year Zero", stay FAR away from these modern NIN waters, you won't like them/it either).

Instead, for maximum results, I recommend how I enjoyed it so much on my first pass - with a good set of real ear googles, a healthy volume, minimal distractions and the desire to hear Trent surprise all of us once again by being unpredictable and in my opinion, brilliant.

1 out of 5 stars

Horrible December 5, 2007
13 out of 22 found this review helpful

I have been a Nine Inch Nails fan since 1992 when I first heard about them. I am also very open-minded about music. I have liked everything they have put out for the most part - but this...this is absolutely terrible. I saw it in the store, didn't know it had come out, bought it on impulse because it had NIN's name on it so I was excited and I grieve for the $14 I spent on it. I wish I had my money back, and my time I spent listening to this (only once, believe me). I mean I have no words. It's not Nine Inch Nails that I can even blame completely for this because this is just remixes done TO NIN songs BY other people. I mean I am straight up embarrassed about this. By the time you read this, with any luck, this CD of mine will be resting in a landfill, never to enter my ears again.

Luckily, Amazon seems to have a sample of the tracks you can listen to for this album so I suggest you do that before you buy it. Please. And the samples you hear - if you're wondering if the non-sampled parts of the songs get better - the answer is no.

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