Bad Witch LP, out June 22 (thread pt 3) SPOILERS

[Haysey_Draws]

Whilst i don't think this is the end of NIN, i do think this'll be the last new NIN for awhile...at least until TR has someone he wants to say/do with it. The last 3 EP's have been freaking solid, each in their own right, whilst catering to many different tastes and have been many fan's best NIN material for some time (not to say stuff hasn't been good, just not THIS good for awhile) so i except they'll take another break after the tour to work on the other mountains of projects they have...but they will be back eventually.

[REPLICA]

Man... I keep checking my email, hoping to find either a download link to the album or at least my shipping info for that deluxe edition. I've been enjoying GBDTD and have watched the crowd footage of Ahead of Ourselves a few times.

I'm hungry and the hunger will linger.

[simonn]

Is there some weird notion that this is the last album or something?.

It's mentioned several times in this thread I believe, only as a possibility, and probably more likely than not just due to the track name and the fact that this was the end of the Trilogy. I think it's unlikely, to be honest, thank god.

[Swykk]

I will just have to wait for Friday. While I have an understanding of torrent tech, I am not very efficient at using it (like all technology lol) nor do I know which places to trust.

I’ve got the new ohGr to listen to and I’m enjoying reading everyone’s thoughts in the meantime.

[spahn]

wow, just wow! blown away by how original and artistic this LP turned out. the comparisons to quake, lost highway and the industrial landscapes of reptile are spot on. to be able to release an album of this nature after 30 years of making music is a testament to the fact we are experiencing the modern day Mozart. the instrumentals on this album may be the best they've ever put out. how can you not listen to this on repeat!?!

unlike other opinions, i see this as a catapult to new NIN. i don't see this as the end of NIN despite the melancholy nature of Over and Out instead i believe its the end of this chapter/trilogy/story.

[Amaro]

I absolutely cannot stand Trent emulating Bowie's vocals on the two tracks here. Completely takes me out of the song each time.

I gotta agree here. Everything else about them is more than listenable, but the vocals (in those very moments) just do not work with me. -__-

This EP (IT'S NOT A TUMOR/LP/ALBUM!) just helps cement that Trent (and Atticus) still has good shit up the sleeves. I didn't scour every bit of the score work (I really probably should), but the soundscapes explored on this release feel fresh, and yet, of course, totally NIN-sounding. Pretty goddamn dark, really. Quake? Oh, for sure. But this all sounds right together. Sequence/Pacing is good... It could indeed have been one track longer and it'd only really help, but whatever. (And no fucking way it's the last NIN release. o_O)

That all said, I've been pretty split on the songs that make up the whole trilogy. There are only a few songs I'm actually into. I don't hate anything, but I'm not sure I'd ever buy one of the EPs... I'll take any of the songs performed live over Year Zero songs though. >_<

[Bachy]

“I’m Not From This World” is fucking bone chilling.

I do hope we get at least one more music video out of this album. “Shit Mirror” would be great.

Side Note: I realize this is a long shot, but I’d totally be content with a Not The Actual Events/Add Violence/Bad Witch setlist.

[mostlymad]

Holy Sweet Jesus Fuck. "Play the Goddamned Part" and "Over and Out" have all my attention.

[PhoenixML]

I can't enjoy this album as it is. The two first songs sound like shit in my "cheap" headphones, the two instrumentals I couldn't care less (but they are not bad), and the two other songs I'm neutral.

[GFGohmann]

Holy smokes.... Couldn't avoid the leak — what an incredible album!! Just purchased the vinyl.

[cdm]

Not quite sure how to articulate this thought but listening to Play the Goddamned Part...the influences of the musical score process / composition are so direct and obvious. I feel like this is the first song where the influence crept from the score side to the NIN side in such a noticeable way and I fucking love it. Toss in the jazz / noir aspect...fuck...there is so much depth.

[GulDukat]

I'm doing this old-school and waiting until the CD arrives Friday. Can't wait to hear it!

[Haysey_Draws]

I'm really digging this EP, it's very good. Not sure i'll listen to much it on a random playlist of different tracks (bar Shit Mirror and Ahead of Ourselves) but as an EP playing in one go it's VERY good.

Still, for me Add Violence is the best of the 3 EP's (hell it's the best thing NIN have made since i got into them back when Still came out, and that's not to knock anything, i've loved it all...Add Violence is just THAT DAMN GOOD) but it's a great way to cap off the trilogy!

Hopefully TR and AR enjoy this releasing smaller, more experimental, EP format and knock one out every 12 -18 months...i'd be super happy with that!

[HurtinMinorKey]

Shit Mirror: My favorite track upon the first listen. Classic NIN sound with an interesting dichotomy of lo-fi (it's really just distortion) and hi-fi elements. (9/10)
Ahead of ourselves: This is the type of song that would probably end up as filler on an album, but here TR has added just enough novel elements to make it interesting. (7/10)
Play the Goddamned Part: One of my favorite instrumentals in recent memory. It sounds like a schizophrenic cousin to Procedural from Gone Girl and makes me feel sorta looney toons. (9/10)
God Break Down the Door: I still don't know what to think of this song, I was look warm on it at first, but I think it is slowly growing on me. (7.5/10)
I'm Not of This World: I would bet a lot of money that this song started as a Gone Girl outake (also sounds a bit like Great Bird of Prey from GWTDT). That doesn't take anything away from it, as I think it's a great song. I agree with everyone else that the creepy atmosphere it creates is fantastic. My only gripe is that is goes on a bit too long. (8/10)
Over And Out: Mixed feelings about this one. Underneath everything I hear a lot of Ghosts. It's very jammy, and perhaps the fact that it meanders so much with out reaching a climax is somewhat disappointing. I do like TR's singing style here, I just feel like I wish he could have organized this song more. There is also a lot of dead space at the end of the track, as if he was trying reeaaaaly hard to get to a 30 minute run time for the album. (6.5/10).

Overall I'd rate this is probably the best overall of the 3 mini-albums, but nothing here reaches the heights of Background World, which I think is the best of the songs from the trinity. Individually, I'd rate this as below every true LP (calling this an LP borders on fraud, IMO) except Hesitation Marks, but mostly that's a function of the short length.

[ComradeCornhole]

This is fucking bananas.

The fearless experimentation and boundary-pushing at work here makes an album like Hesitation Marks (an album I love) seem almost pedestrian. The shadow of Bowie on the album seems apt, given not only the personal connection, but that few other artists have so completely thrown themselves into late career artistic growth with such satisfying results. Easily one of NIN's most interesting pieces of work.

Goddamn.

[sweeterthan]

Is there some weird notion that this is the last album or something?.

I saw two shows of the Wave Goodbye Tour 10 years ago and I have tickets for December, so

It’s been suggested earlier in the thread and then I brought it back up. I don’t see why he’d stop making nin albums but the song is powerful in a last song on the album kinda way.

[cdm]

This is fucking bananas.

The fearless experimentation and boundary-pushing at work here makes an album like Hesitation Marks (an album I love) seem almost pedestrian. The shadow of Bowie on the album seems apt, given not only the personal connection, but that few other artists have so completely thrown themselves into late career artistic growth with such satisfying results. Easily one of NIN's most interesting pieces of work.

Goddamn.

^^ This. 110.5% this. Wonderfully put.

[ComradeCornhole]

Having heaped well-deserved praise, I now want to mention that I think Ahead of Ourselves might be the low (but still very high in absolute terms) point. Not sure it'll have the staying power of the rest of the tracks, despite that awesome chorus.

Maybe.
Still digesting, of course.

[BrokenSpiral]

I’m pleasantly surprised by this album. They manage to create a sound like some lost broken/TDS era tracks while sounding completely fresh. There are shades of some older work I hear, YZ and Ghosts specifically. Musically the best work from NIN in a long time.

Some quick initial thoughts:

Shit Mirror- good song. The first half is decent. But after the pause, holy shit that’s good.
Ahead of Ourselves- WOW. Killer fucking song. When the OBSOLETE INSIGNIFICANT part kicks in HO-LEE Fucckk. Great job.
PTGDP- love it. Was hoping for some solid instrumentals. This doesn’t disappoint.
GBDTD- I love the music. The vocals don’t quite do it for me. But certainly has grown on me
INFTW- soundtrack vibe here. But a soundtrack for a space horror film. The atmosphere it builds is excellent. Creepy and suspenseful
Over and out- love the groove. Starts off a bit reminiscent of ‘The Warning’. Bowie-ish vocals work for me way more here than GBDTD. Awesome closer.

edit: someone else mentioned it also, but that odd drum fill in Ahead of Ourselves. Wonder what that’s about. It happens a couple times and then the ones that follow are in time.

[ComradeCornhole]

I love that off-time drum fill! One of my favorite little tricks on the song.

[Zazzaro703]

Trents music is the only music I buy physical copies of anymore. Really happy that he and whomever he is collaborating with still have the passion and inspiration to continue dabbling around putting out great music.

[tony.parente]

Listened to the record this morning. It is absolutely not for me.
It's not bad, but its just....not for me.

[Ghosty23]

My initial thoughts:

Shit Mirror: this and branches/bones feels like a pleasant new direction for NIN in terms of openers. Really fun rock n roll vibe and the production really sets the tone (that phase effect feels like going upside down on a rollercoaster)
Ahead of Ourselves: not sure about the studio version but from what I’ve seen in live videos it sounds great. It feels gritty and spontaneous and that’s surely a good thing for NIN
PTGDP - where it really starts to kick off. The two instrumentals on Bad Witch feel like some of Trent’s darkest, most claustrophobic work. Compliments GBDTD very nicely.
GBDTD - initially skeptical, has definitely grown on me but wish I’d heard it fresh with the entire album for better context.
INFTW - probably my favourite NIN track of the entire trilogy already. Just absolutely relentless, jet-black and quite unnerving. Hope to see more intense instrumentals like this from Trent in the future. I actually wouldn’t mind if NIN became a purely instrumental project, as his lyrics have never really been his strong point for me.
Over and Out - currently my least favourite. It doesn’t feel like much of a change to The Background World and not a big fan of the vocals, but the start and finish are great - I love the way the song takes forever to dissolve into vapour, feels appropriate.

Im gonna say the whole era has been very different to Hesitation Marks; much less filler and much more experimental. The Cold, Black & Infinite trilogy gets 8/10 from me! Thanks Trent

[renton44]

NIN is my Star Wars if you will. I cannot wait for Friday. Avoiding the leak and will start my day listening to NTAE, AV and finally (once it arrives at my doorstep) BW. Going to be a great day.

[IndyJ]

Been dodging all the spoilers waiting for the 22nd...did anyone’s preorder get delayed? I haven’t received any shipping confirmations and contacted the store and got a reply from Live Nation about them running into a ‘slight production delay.’ Has anyone else gotten the same thing?

[ItsChrisRoss]

No idea whats going on with the shipping of the album. I received a UPS notification on thursday 6/14, then another notification yesterday. Both notifications say it was supposed to arrive by EOD yesterday, but when I check tracking, it still says that only the label has been created.

At this rate, i wont have it by friday.

[Haysey_Draws]

Not sure if the UK is any different, but i ordered the Vinyl with FLAC today (the leak pushed me to do it) and got shipping confirmation within an hour (apparently should be with me by Saturday!)

[Zazzaro703]

NIN is my Star Wars if you will. I cannot wait for Friday. Avoiding the leak and will start my day listening to NTAE, AV and finally (once it arrives at my doorstep) BW. Going to be a great day.

Not sure how to take this statement seeing how 2018 Star Wars is the smoldering ruins of a tire fire.

[Shadaloo]

I can't subscribe to this being the end of NIN. I mean, TR just officially added Atticus as an official NIN member (notwithstanding their long history together). This whole trilogy is clearly a concept work of some kind with a structure or narrative which has reached its end. That's all 'Over and Out' signifies - someone signing off, or 'going to sleep'.

I'm just going to describe the impressions I get from I'm Not From This World a little, and what it makes me feel and envision because it's really rare that I can be unnerved like that by music anymore; the last time that happened was Consummation off Gone Girl. The comparisons to Quake and TGWTTT or Gone Girl are spot-on, but there's a very sinister feeling going on here that reminds me of AVOTT from Year Zero in a way, like something awful is happening and is being communicated without words. This is reinforced for me by the presence of the two simple sentences embedded in the file - I'm Not From This World / Not Anymore.

It evokes claustrophobia, the sense of being in a really dark and terrible place and the feel of having a nameless something slowly and inexorably pursuing you, dragging on the floors, very steadily catching up without real effort. Something that feels mechanical, raw and artificial. You turn to face it and -

It's gone. Not visible.

You keep going, but the grinding and dragging noise has become closer, louder. There's suggestions of electricity (I kind of wonder if the darker aspects of Twin Peaks didn't influence this one in some way). And then there's this steady, low bang. Like whatever's there is starting to hammer on the walls you're passing in this awful place. You keep going but the atmosphere becomes more oppressive. Charged. Again, you stop and the atmosphere is full of buzzing, the walls around you humming with this malevolence and again you turn around and-

Again, nothing. But you listen into the darkness and you can feel something there.

And one more time you flee, running now, and there's this horrible crescendo of nastiness, the walls are closing in and the noise is everywhere now, it's everything, because whatever's there has finally caught up with you and it's all around you and creeping into you and the banging keeps going, the noise is louder, the energy is everywhere, drilling into your head, lunacy is the only escape, and now maybe it's you banging against the walls, you're a part of that awful presence and now you're hammering away in the dark forever. Swept away into a place you don't want to be and can never, never escape from.

[Ryan Tollefson]

You really should buy a real phone. It helps. In this case it helps a lot.

No problem unzipping on my iPhone. Just download it to “files app”


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