To place it mildly, loads modified on this planet of rock and metallic within the half-decade that separated the discharge of 9 Inch Nails’ two long-form albums within the 90s. Between 1994’s The Downward Spiral and 1999’s The Fragile, Kurt Cobain left this mortal coil, the grinning and gurning world of pop-punk emerged as a world power, and a world that after noticed Primus, Ministry, and White Zombie go Platinum was now worshipping on the altar of Limp Bizkit and Korn. This was an period through which Child Rock was about to shift over 11 million copies of his new album within the US.
Maybe probably the most vital shift pertaining to 9 Inch Nails noticed Trent Reznor’s former protégé Marilyn Manson develop into probably the most recognizable rock star of his era. NIN’s “Closer,” with its loin-swelling, gusset-moistening ode to the world of S&M, and its surreal and trippy Mark Romanek-directed video, had been changed within the black hearts of the PVC-clad lots by spiritual and ethical outrage, the destruction of extra Bibles than a barbecue at Devil’s place, and retreading rock histrionics within the extra conventional vein of KISS and Alice Cooper from the person born Brian Warner. What was Trent Reznor’s place in all of this? Trent Reznor gave not one solitary rattling concerning the world round him as a result of Trent Reznor was at all times his personal island.
Whereas The Downward Spiral was an album that primarily traded in spiteful, nihilistic self-destruction, The Fragile was one thing altogether bleaker. Extra morose. Extra melancholic. As an emotion, anger is much simpler to take care of than the claustrophobic feeling of drowning in a sea of melancholy, narcotics, and resignation, and it’s that feeling that runs via the veins of the likes of the ambient, saturnine “Even Deeper,” the ominous and threatening restraint proven on “The Wretched,” and the eerie, unsettling nature of instrumental nearer “Ripe (With Decay).” Extra private and cathartic, there have been additionally outpourings of grief over the demise of Reznor’s grandmother on the gut-wrenching “The Day The World Went Away” and “I’m Looking Forward To Joining You, Finally.” Even throughout its most business second, the jaunty electro-rock stomper “Into The Void,” the music’s lead hook contained the lyric “Try to save myself/But myself keeps slipping away.” See? Bleak.
The Fragile additionally had moments of fireplace and fury, akin to “Starf__kers, Inc,” however produced nothing that achieved the mainstream rock anthem standing of the likes of The Downward Spiral’s “March Of The Pigs.” However appeasing folks has by no means been Trent’s sport, and that wasn’t The Fragile’s goal in any respect. As such, the success and legacy of this album is one thing of a sizzling speaking level.
When it comes to business success, The Fragile soared straight to the highest of the Billboard charts to offer 9 Inch Nails their first No.1, shifting nearly 230,000 copies of the album in its first week (a feat made all of the extra spectacular contemplating the additional value of a shopping for a double-album). But whereas you’ll have learn 1,000,000 glowy items about Fairly Hate Machine and The Downward Spiral, The Fragile is one thing of a black sheep by way of basic reward from the entire common retailers, even whether it is as beloved by a faithful fanbase as any of Reznor’s albums.
Double-albums are additionally more durable to digest in a world that grows extra ADHD with each passing 12 months. And but the counterargument is that the label “genius” solely comes with the extent of ambition and craft that it took to invoke such a variety of feelings throughout the album’s assorted 103 minutes. When you find yourself an artist with an extremely extensive ability set and also you make the choice to place your all right into a physique of labor, not everybody goes to have the ability to be a part of you on the journey. And but, even after a long time of intense listening, The Fragile offers again on repeated listens. Difficult and rewarding in equal measure, in a profession of engrossing experimentation and musical dexterity, The Fragile is likely one of the most spectacular albums by one of the spectacular musicians of his era.
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