Nine Inch Nails-anyone else a fan?

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Trent Reznor is a musical genius! I own every NIN album (excluding the remix albums). When I'm feeling really low, I put the Downward Spiral on, and I can relate to it so much.

I like the Downward Spiral a lot, but I don't know much of their other stuff that well. Do you have any particular recommendations, or albums/songs that you think would be good for moving on from that to other NIN stuff? (Sorry if that sounds stupid)

I liked the songs that they make for the Quake II soundtrack

With Teeth has lot of great songs.

For a long time, NIN was an obsession of mine. I don't listen to them as much as I used to, but I'm definitely a fan. Granted, I like their early albums (from Pretty Hate Machine to The Fragile) a lot more than their newer stuff.

As for what releases of theirs I'd recommend, it depends on what your tastes are. If you like their noisy, aggressive material, I'd go with Broken, Fixed, and of course The Downward Spiral. If you're into electronica and soundscapes, check out The Fragile and Ghosts I-IV. If you're in the mood for something resembling dark 80s new wave/synthpop, you can't go wrong with Pretty Hate Machine, or the Sin single. If you want something lighter and poppier, try With Teeth and the Purest Feeling bootleg, as well as Hesitation Marks. If you're into the mid-late 2000s alternative rock sound, go with Year Zero and The Slip. Finally, if you want an awesome dark ambient album, listen to the soundtrack for Quake.

My personal favorites would probably have to be:

- The Fragile
- The Downward Spiral
- Pretty Hate Machine
- Sin
- Broken
- Fixed
- Purest Feeling
- Quake
- Further Down the Spiral

Also, another note, the original 1989 edition of Pretty Hate Machine and the 2010 remaster have some significant differences. The 2010 version is mastered louder, has much less dynamic range, the samples from the film "Midnight Express" are missing on the song Sanctified, and the bass line for Sanctified was altered as well. Needless to say, it is vastly inferior to the terrific 1989 edition, in my opinion. The 1989 version is noticeably "quiet" compared to NIN's other albums, but the dynamic range on it is quite good, and it sounds amazing when you turn up the volume.

Ever since I read this thread a few days ago, I have been on a major NIN kick. I've mainly been listening to the Further Down the Spiral and Fixed EPs, which contain tracks remixed from The Downward Spiral and Broken respectively. I've also been listening to some of NIN's other TDS-era stuff, including this amazing cover of Soft Cell's Memorabilia from NIN's Closer to God EP

(warning, kind of NSFW, though oddly for a NIN song there's no swearing)
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KG8Y1dF5zWU[/youtube]

I don't know much however I think Terrible Lie is a really great song, I am still slowly going through the rest of their catalog to although I find some of the studio recordings to be a bit much. There doing a tour with Soundgarden this year so I am looking forward to seeing NIN live, I will reserve final judgement until then.

Terrible Lie is an absolute classic. I think it was actually one of the last tracks written for Pretty Hate Machine if I'm not mistaken, as it's nowhere to be found on the Purest Feeling bootleg.

Their earlier albums can be quite intense, though they started mellowing out more around the With Teeth era, and Hesitation Marks has almost no "heavy" tracks whatsoever. In fact, I'd say Pretty Hate Machine, the album that's drawn so many Depeche Mode comparisons, is a heavier album.

Did I mention NIN is an obsession of mine?

NIN encapsulates an era for me, but I don't listen to much anymore. I do have How to Destroy Angels on rotation right now, which Reznor also formed. I stumbled across Pretty Hate Machine in my teens, and played that sucker out.