Saturday, May 3, 2008

Deja Vu

So another new NIN single has hit the internets, this time via their official Facebook account. I present to you:

Echoplex



Trent goes on and on and on throughout this ditty how his "voice just echoes off these walls." You know why your voice just echoes off the walls? Hmm? If this song is any indication, it's because you've got nothing left old man and the room that used to hold inspiration for amazing music is EMPTY! And that place, a.k.a. this song, you built from broken parts is exactly that. A song you built out of older, better ones. Is that the whirling noise from "Wish" at about the 2:15 mark? Then there's the piano tinkering thrown in. We get it. Those couple bars of piano are lovely but you're even wearing me out with it already and I'm a piano junkie. Even the guitar (bass? I'm terrible with identifying instruments) towards the end sounds VERY familiar...can't quiet place my finger on where yet but it strikes me as March of the Pigs but slowed down slightly. Maybe. Maybe not. Either way the whole thing just seems like a bad patchwork quilt of old and borrowed sounds.

The only thing "new" to this latest release is the drumbeat but even that isn't original. Just new to the NIN realm. Most others will recognize it as the prerecorded sound bite that comes programed on all keyboards. I believe it's Funky Beat #107 if I'm not mistaken.

I appreciated the seemingly straightforward lyrics of "Discipline" and I'm not saying the lyrics for "Echoplex" aren't honest, it's just that I don't know that I like the direction you're going here. Are you trying to tell us that you're going to be fading away into obscurity and won't be making music anymore because, as I deciphered earlier from the lyrics, you're inspirationally drained? Or is it that you're calling yourself out that all your new songs are echoes of previous works? Can someone help me out here?

Okay, so I may be a bit cranky in this assessment but I stand by my opinion that this song is not working for me in the least little bit. I really want to like it but...um...no. Sorry Mr. Reznor, can we please try this again.

6 comments:

D:ANGEL said...

Thank you, Iris. That is what I said about the last one... it all sounds so familiar and recycled. That little "wish" part, the piano... It's like, dude... if you want this self distro to work stop releasing demos that make your product seem common.

I am not the superfan like the rest of you but even I know he is capable of better.

Here's an idea trent, throw out ALL your existing "go-to" patches, sounds and samples and start over. New beats, new guitar tones, new keyboard patches. All of it. Maybe even new instruments. Do it. Please.

Anonymous said...

I actually like the last two singles. But at the same time, yeah, this seems to be a bit stale to me
I don't know
maybe it'll be a grower

then again
he's hanging out with Rob Sheridan, maybe constantly recycling the same ideas is contagious.

a-hurr-hurr.

Gillian said...

Oh hi
that last anon was yours truly

Gillian said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Anonymous said...

In my mind, I am retitling this post "Iris Finally Sees The Light" and then I say Hallelujah!

Gillian said...

Oh hey

check out nin.com

New album, completely free
it's only been up for a couple hours
so I imagine the servers are going to die horribly pretty soon.

Haven't downloaded it yet so uh, I haven't got much else to say
just thought I'd give you all a heads up or something


I dunno.