The title of a tribute album to Nine Inch Nails.
Cleopatra is well-known for releasing these tributes
with a mix of artists both popular and unknown (e.g.,
Dark Treasures, A Saucerful of Pink), mostly from
their stable of gothic, industrial, punk, and
related bands. This is the second volume of this
series, after Covered In Nails.
- Günter Schulz & En Esch
(formerly of KMFDM):
Terrible Lie
[Pretty Hate Machine]
- Razed in Black:
Sin
[Pretty Hate Machine]
- The Electric Hellfire Club:
Heresy
[The Downward Spiral]
- Synical:
Burn [Natural Born Killers]
- Inertia:
Sanctified
[Pretty Hate Machine]
- The Filmstrip:
We're In This Together
[The Fragile]
- The Lucifer Scale:
Last
[Broken]
- Necromantik Sunshine with Oko Jumu:
Hurt
[The Downward Spiral]
- Nova Mortuba:
Ringfinger
[Pretty Hate Machine]
- Stun Gun:
Gave Up
[Broken]
- GodBox:
The Only Time
[Pretty Hate Machine]
- Porcupine Defense:
Reptile
[The Downward Sprial]
- Goteki:
Suck
[Broken]
It's interesting to note that the majority of the
covers are of NIN's earlier work (Pretty Hate Machine
and Broken). I was glad to hear at least a few of
the more obscure tracks being covered, too.
I found the whole album enjoyable. Trent Reznor has
always made extremely catchy songs, which probably
shocks people who haven't listened to much of his work.
These covers all stay true to their origins; the best
add enough of the player's flavor to make them new and
intriguing. I couldn't pick out just a few tracks for
descriptions, so I thought I'd comment on all of them:
The KMFDMized version of
Terrible Lie is a great start to the album,
then
Razed in Black puts a late-1990s eurodance spin
on Sin . The Electric Hellfire Club makes
Heresy even more violent than it was
originally. Synical's take on Burn strikes
me as being very Marilyn Mansonesque (and I don't know
if that's a good thing or a bad thing).
Inertia doesn't stray far from the original
Sanctified , which is a bit disappointing.
The version of We're In This Together concocted
by The Filmstrip has a much more tribal or
aggressive trance than NIN's, and develops an
entirely different atmosphere.
The Lucifer Scale's Last is almost
subversive in how close it stays to the original, with
just enough change to make sure you know you're
not in Kansas anymore.
Hurt is shifted up a few gears by
Nekromantik Sunshine, making the build of the original
somewhat frantic as well as terrifying.
Nova Mortura takes Ringfinger for a spin by
taking this relatively obscure track, deconstructing it
a bit, and reassembling with some entertaining club
beats and breaks.
A grittier Gave Up from Stun Gun keeps the
tension of the original while scratching us with a
garage band chorus.
Godbox gives us a techno-lounge rendition of
The Only Time , with the added bonus of a breathy
female vocal version of
while
the devil wants to fuck me in the back of his car .
Spiky guitars and sharp synths help Porcupine Defense
live up to its name on Reptile , with the song's
contrasts played up for all they're worth.
The album closes with Goteki's big, dramatic, yet still
strangely minimalist club version of Suck .
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