I found myself surprised by the consistently high quality of many of the songs, far surpassing much of what I've heard by Reznor's contemporaries. Sure "March of the Pigs" may have sections that put one in mind of comedy "Gen-X'rs" hurling themselves into a "mosh pit" circa 1994-95, and the occasional distorted guitars take getting used to, but this album has more substance than many skeptics may think. In "Heresy," Reznor repeatedly screams Friedrich Nietzsche's proclamation that "God is dead," adding that "no one cares!" Like his philosophical predecessor, Reznor descends in order to transcend, delving into a side of humanity that many of us are afraid to acknowledge (especially within ourselves).

Reznor creates a disturbing atmosphere of cybernetic and vampiric sensuality through the sinewy industrial pounding of his music, providing an aural analog to the visual work of H.R. Giger. "Downward spiral" is by no means a conventionally "pleasant" album, but there exists a strange beauty within the bleak subject matter. One of the most stunning juxtapositions occurs through tracks 9 and 10 when Reznor twists oral sex into a horrifying power play of impotent machismo in "Big Man with a Gun," then dissolves into the vulnerability and elegiac beauty of the non-vocal "A Warm Place."

Appealing to "teen angst" has become a hot commodity, and the music industry cranks out much mediocrity by untalented dullards to make money off of the teenagers for whom it allegedly speaks. These corporate conceptions of teen angst cheapen the very real and complex feelings of adolescents. One may feel tempted to lump Trent Reznor into that category, but he executes "downward spiral" with a skill that transcends such allegations. Many may associate Reznor with alienated youth, but, through the personal pain and strange beauty of this album, perhaps he expresses feelings of angst that transcend the generations.


What can I say?   October 22, 2004
 13 out of 16 found this review helpful

This album is by far one of my favorite albums of all time. The first time I listened to it, I was stunned. I just had to listen to it again to see if what I heard was real. Sure enough, it was. I had been familiar with Nine Inch Nails for quite some time, but never really liked them enough to out and buy one of their albums. I'm not sure what persuaded me to do so, but I'm sure glad I did. This album really tells a story though, and during the story, the character (he or she) slowly destroy's themself.

1. Mr. Self Destruct (10/10) This song opens with what sounds like a man being beaten. Then the song starts abruptly, and basically sums up everything the album is about. It's like a Table of Contents. The pounding drum arrangement that runs through almost the entire song is amazing.
2. Piggy (10/10) One of the slowest songs on the album, this song has always been one of my favorites. This song also has some of the best lyrics IMO. This a just a really mellow song that you can chill out to. The drum arrangement at the end of the song is crazy! Amazing.
3. Heresy (8/10) The sounds at the beginning of the song kinda sound like ones you'd hear from one of those old video games. And like someone has said before me, this song is NOT a stab at religion. A good song, but not one of the best on the album.
4. March of the Pigs (10/10) This song is like one big, short, violent outburst! The drums are what really make the song. Man, this song would be AWESOME to mosh to... Oh, and when the song seems to end about a minute in, don't be fooled... or you might regret it.
5. Closer (10/10) The first song I ever heard by NIN. I love to listen to this song! It's pure ear candy. The lyrics aren't the best, but they aren't bad either. The music in this song is amazing though. It's a pretty dark song to. As the song gets further in, the music just keeps adding layers and layers, but it sounds like music, and not a mess. Amazing!

6. Ruiner (9/10) This is when the album really starts to tell the story. The only thing keeping this song from being 10/10 is the fact that a few parts of the song, I can barely understand a word Trent is saying. The lyrics are great, as is everything else.
7. The Becoming (10/10) This song is pretty dark, and crazy. The screams in the background are quite disrurbing, and the beat sounds really techno and mechanical. Again, great lyrics, with a great meaning.
8. I Do Not Want This (9/10) The music on this song is pretty slow for the most part, except during the chorus. This song has more great lyrics, and the song really gets good near the end.
9. Big Man With a Gun (7/10) This is the worst song on the album IMO, but is still a good song. It's also the shortest song.The lyrics are pretty clever, because you can interpret it two different ways, and the beat is a lot heavier than most of the songs on the album.
10. A Warm Place (10/10) Instrumental. This song is absolutely beatiful. The calmest point of the album and the story. This song can generate so many different emotions from me, which is one of the reasons why I love it so much. Absolutely stunning.

Now, this is the point in the album where it reaches it's lowest point, not lyrically or musically, but emotionally, if that makes any sense.

11. Eraser (10/10) One of my favorite songs. This song really let's you get into it with it's awesome instrumental bit, before the lyrics come into play. The lyrics are some of my favorite ever, and are really self destructive lyrics.
12. Reptile (10/10) This is by far the heaviest song on the whole album, and is by far the longest song, almost reaching 7 minutes! It starts of with what sounds like a factory, before the song really starts. The lyrics are definitely some of the best on the album. I love after the choruses with the REALLY HEAVY guitar parts. Another one of my favorite songs.
13. The Downward Spiral (10/10) This is one of the most depressing songs I've ever heard. It's definitely not easy to listen to. The guitar part from "Closer" makes an apperance, and adds to the dark mood of the song. The lyrics are even more self destructive than "Eraser", and this is that point in the album where the character really destroys himself.
14. Hurt (11/10) This song is hard to describe in words. This is by far my favorite NIN song, ever. The lyrics alone are enough to bring a person to tears, and Trent just sounds so emotional... I love this song. This song is the end of the album.

Final Score - 10/10


A 90s Classic   September 13, 2005
 13 out of 18 found this review helpful

In 1994 Trent Reznor released "The Downward Spiral," the highly anticipated follow-up to Nine Inch Nail's debut "Pretty Hate Machine," (1989). The album shot to the top of the charts and has sold over four million copies to date. Along with Nirvana's "Nevermind" (1991) and Green Day's "Dookie," (1994) "The Downward Spiral" is a landmark album that serves as the soundtrack to the generation X of the 90s, and of the cynicism of the times.

"The Downward Spiral"-never was an album so aptly named. "The Downward Spiral," as its title suggests, tries to convey to the listener what happens when everything goes wrong. The modern day industrial opera showcases one mans torment and decent into a hell-on-earth.

The themes of "The Downward Spiral"-anger, fear, regret, nihilism-were also the prevalent themes of its predecessor "Pretty Hate Machine." But compared to "Pretty Hate Machine," "The Downward Spiral" is a far more intense and ultimately aggressive album. Although "Pretty Hate Machine" is a classic, no doubt, and a fan favorite, "The Downward Spiral" has far more to offer. It takes "Pretty Hate Machine" to the next level in terms of musical arraignments, songwriting, and overall intensity. So while the novice should start off with "Pretty Hate Machine," "The Downward Spiral" has more of an edge and is the better of the two.

Generally speaking, it has been my experience that most albums are either one of two things-catchy and assessable (Aerosmith, Beatles, KISS) or abstract and arty and need repeated listens to fully appreciate (The Velvet Underground, Sonic Youth, Pink Floyd). "The Downward Spiral" is a unique album in that the first half fits the "assessable" category and the second half fits the "abstract" category. It is no surprise then that most of the albums singles are from the first half.

The journey begins with "Mr. Self-Destruct" and at once the listener is thrust into a bleak musical landscape that is relentless in its pessimism and gives the listener little respite. Over pounding beats, Reznor addresses the listener directly, telling him/her of their pent up lust and rage. Although the song slows down and calms, angry whispers seem only to heighten the songs intensity, before the listener is thrust back into the hammering beats.

"Piggy" reads like a submission, a capitulation to defeat. It's an admission that all hope is lost. At this point, early on in the journey, you know that there is no hope of redemption. At the same time, however, since all is lost, nothing matters, so there is a sort-of fatalistic release from suffering. As the song winds down, tension grows and grows. The song climaxes with manic, bohemian-like drumming towards the end, which signifies chaos, giving the song the perfect effect.

If resignation is the theme of "Piggy," pure unadulterated rage is the theme of "Hearsay." "God is dead, and no one cares, if there is a hell, I'll you there!" Reznor declares. Although possibly Reznor's darkest song, it is also one of his catchiest. The crushing industrial beats pound as the riff takes hold.

The stage is now set for "March of the Pigs," an ode to a heard mentality. The industrial tinged metal riff grabs hold of the listener, refusing to let go-until synthesizers pulsate the listeners every nerve. This was one of the albums major hits and also one of the album's most infectious songs.

"Closer," the album's huge hit and highlight, is one of the 90s catchiest singles. The theme of this mid-tempo, semi-club song seems to be not just about lust, but of longing. Although unfulfilled carnal lust is a major premise, it's equally a song of wanting to be fulfilled. It's a plea of wanting to connect with someone-to help alleviate the loneliness, to be fulfilled, to "be closer to God."

"Ruiner," as the title would suggest, tells the story of someone who is a parasite, a deceitful leach who ruins lives. The lyrics are rather abstract, so the listener can take away from it whatever he or she sees. Although not the catchiest song on the album, it keeps the momentum going.

For the most part, the lyrics of the frantic "The Becoming," are also abstract. I take the theme of the song to be a desire to end all cognition-as it is just "noise" that is making the protagonist hysterical. This downbeat song gets better with repeated plays.

Although "I Do Not Want This" is not one of the albums best known songs, it is a personal favorite of mine. It starts out slow, yet forceful, and builds up momentum as it slugs along. I take it to be about (1) feeling frustrated with everything and being despondent and (2) rejecting how others perceive you and (3) longing for a deeper meaning and fulfillment.

The short but catchy frantic "Big Man with a Gun," serves as a catharsis of all pent-up sexual frustration. As the song progresses, it gets more and more intense, which is in total contrast to the following instrumental track "A Warm Place."

At last, with "A Warm Place," the listener gets a temporary reprieve. This morose beautiful piece commutates what its title states-a sense of feeling safe in a world and in a mind gone mad.

But alas, the reprieve is short lived. "Eraser" tells of how one person can hurt and use another. It's a fuming song that just gets angrier and more intense as it progresses.

The infectious "Reptile" commutates musically just that-long, scaly and slithering. Again, like much of the second half of the album, its meaning can be interpreted in different ways. The lyric "she spread herself wide-open to let the insects in," leads me to believe that the song is about someone lonely and desperate, who longs for love and affection and allows herself to be used by "insects". It's a song about someone "impure" yet "beautiful."

The album's title track tells of the suicide of a lifelong, self-loathing person, who ends it all in one-tiny-flash. Although not really a song, this track puts the whole album in perspective.

The album's second highlight "Hurt" is undeniably one of the best songs from the 1990s. It's very straight-forward and simple, yet powerful. If all that proceeded this song was rage and anger, "Hurt" is a total and complete descent into sadness-of realizing that everyone close to you is going to leave you, one way or another, sooner or later and that we all die alone. It's a little ironic that such an intense album would end on a whimper rather than a bang. But that just adds to the power of the song and is the perfect way to close the album.

"The Downward Spiral" is not the easiest album to listen to. The anger and intensity of this album might initially turn-off some listeners. But along with anger, this album also shows beauty, depth, and empathy of human suffering.

If you are collecting the best works of the 1990s or the best-albums of all-time, "The Downward Spiral" is an essential album to add to any collection.