With Teeth
by: Nine Inch Nails
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Music : With Teeth |
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Rating:  - * Exploration of Mainstream Music Subject B: NIN: Album #4: With Teeth: Thoughts: With Rotten Yellow teeth from the sound of it... ... ...it's a very common trend for bands to state that their style has changed or that they proclaim this is "More different but still the same thing"...some people think it's a sign of maturity of a band while others think it's simply a band selling out...in this case it's not as simple as that... ...Pretty Hate Machine was an album that helped break the boundaries of pop and industrial and was still a very solid album of critical acclaim...the Downward Spiral brought it a step forward with dark if a tad childish concepts and intense and dark beats and samples...the Fragile unfortunately I had to skip during this experiment due to the fact that there's no way I'm reviewing every track in a double album... ...With Teeth however is not exactly different it's just...much more bland...the same concept that they had with their debut is still there...it's just less hypnotic...less interesting...and almost completely emotionless due to polished production and the lack of intensity...I'll go through every track... All the Love in the World 7/10: A drum machine with Trent singing...his falsetto is very cringe worthy because I can hear his voice cracking if I listen hard enough and it doesn't feel pure nor wanted...this track actually reminds me of the album Kid A by Radiohead...I'm unsure who came first but I have more respect for Radiohead...but after I found the Kid A similarities it was hard to take seriously...think of the song "Everything in its right place" with some slightly more groovy bass lines and overuse of drum machines...oh how I miss Thom Yorke's awkward falsetto...I can't listen to this song without thinking of Radiohead now...and whenever I think of another band when I'm listening to a song...it just loses its credibility... You Know What You Are 7/10: Fast "real" drums combined with some weird synthy sounds...nothing new and then Trent starts talking rather falsely manically...the structure is all their at this point...it explodes into a synthed bass line in the chorus...but this has all been heard from Trent before and more interesting...also echoing the "S" word Trent doesn't really increase shock value...at all...do you know what you are Trent? It modulates key after the second chorus which is nice and goes into a nice synthy interlude which seems to be more enjoyable...I fear Trent's amazing vocals are starting to become a weak point...besides that the layered patterns of this song aren't any different...just plopping in a random piano and guitar every now and then... The Collector 7/10: This one is an odd one...at times it sounds like it's going somewhere...the bass line is good but I wish it was further at the front of the mix in front of Trent's vocals like on "Mr Self Destruct"...because Trent and the guitar just completely dominate the sound of the bass...drums are real this time and really uninspiring...come on Trent...use your magical drum machine again...Trent's vocals are uninspiring this time round...what's happening Trent? Is this sober Trent? Oh dear oh dear...the piano solo however is a delight...it adds a sinister neo-classicism air to it...but the thing is...throughout this album Trent does overkill the use of random piano... The Hand That Feeds 5/10: I simply can't dislike this song enough...such a ridiculously simple bass line...repetitive real drum track...guitars added pointless chords and uninspired lyrics the structure follows basic ABABCB structure...if you like those annoying bands that all sound like each other only with a synthesiser solo near the end then you might like this song...I however know that Trent can do much MUCH better than this song...what's more all the stuff about staying on your knees...I'm sure that this was a topic in "Head Like a Hole"...why again Trent? WHY!!? Love Is not Enough 7/10: Another real drum track...along with some real bass entering...it starts off pretty good...Trent's new talky vocals aren't entirely awful...the chorus kind of kills the buzz however with it's annoying poppy and simple happiness...it just sounds too happy in contrast with the verse...shame shame...I've got nothing against happiness it's just in this track it doesn't add up...it gets an extra mark however because at least they tried some experimentation with synthesised voices...it makes a change...on this album of mediocrity... Every day is exactly the same 7/10: Again this starts well and the bass has a very good melodic ostinato...the synthesisers don't really add much to it though otherwise for the sake of just being there...yet again...the chorus blows it for me...it's not as bad as the previous song but it's just such a predictable key change and I could have predicted that change due to the bass's melodic pattern...and the fact that Trent...who would be at this point a well known Celebrity...is complaining that every day is exactly the same...I can't accept that he can empathise with the basic civilian with all that money...not to say that it's impossible for him to do so...but he needs to be honest with himself and his audience...I could be annoying and say every song is exactly the same as a pun...but it wouldn't work and would sound stupid... With Teeth 6/10: The title track...the rotting yellow teeth of this nurse shark of an album...starting with a simple build up of bass and guitar and drums as usual...the samples seem to be very lacking in this album...it's just the primary instruments...and it's annoying...Trent is singing about a relationship of some kind...to be honest it's pretty boring for a title track...just explodes very lightly in the chorus (barely increasing by a decibel) and then carries on...maybe the tooth fairy will come and yank this track out...haha...look how annoyingly clever I'm trying to be...it then has an annoying whisper near the middle and the piano just quietly plays to itself failing to sound sinister and then really predictably comes back to what it was playing before...thank you for being so obvious Trent... Only 7/10: This song isn't as awful as people say...it is by no means brilliant...but in contrast to the other stuff on this album I can pick this out as the latter that is slightly above the other stuff...Trent talks about something and the bass goes on and on and on and on in the same thing...Trent goes on and on and on and on and on and on...the drums go on and on and on and...*yawn*...on...the synths are in there to liven things up but they just don't do enough special things to rise it above to the holier-than-thou NIN state that the fans loved...the intro to the track is then repeated which is the part I liked of the song due to the piano's addition being a very nice eerie melody...but Trent kills it...completely...and it's upsetting me... Getting Smaller 5/10: Starts with some simple guitar noodling but of course the drums have to come in so that means they have to play something "proper" and all the magic goes...Trent says "FLOP FLOP FLOP FLOP!!!" And it just makes me think...yes Trent...yes...they try and go into this mainstream alt-rock guitar riff in the chorus and it just puts me off and irritates me...this is not the same band I heard with the Downward Spiral...I am so so so so irritated now...even Slipknot during this experiment did better than this... Sunspots 7/10: Starts with a nice plodding sinister bass line...Trent singing quietly and dissonantly...it reminds me slightly of the first album...and it starts off very well...Trent sings falsetto and they return back to this album's sensibilities...the verses are great...nice and evil...yet again these mainstream "We're trying to make an alternative anthem" just ruins it completely...the synths actually do something slightly more different but if you've heard the other albums you'll know it's nothing new nor interesting... The Line Begins to Blur 8/10: Starts very well...electronically altered bass and drum stop that sounds very mechanical...Trent's voice is shoved in the background but that doesn't stop it sounding very very mainstream and annoying...I never thought I'd want Trent to shut up...but I do now...the chorus is rather bearable this time though...the evil piano and droning synths help create a nice and dark atmosphere with the electronic stop of the bass contrasting with it very well...but that's all there is to it...and that's all there can be to it with only 3 minute tracks... Beside you in time 6/10: Starting by taking the end note of the previous track and making a rhythm out of it...other melodic synths are added and Trent sings like he's depressed about something or other...and on...and on...and on...and on...and on...they just take the drone and add slightly more layers to it with Trent saying...and on...and on...and on...he pretty much sums up the track for me...it just goes on and on in a mainstream manner...it layers with more higher melodic instruments later on it the track but it doesn't change anything...it's still a bland track that has no value of interest...take a lesson from Sunn O))) if you want to know how to make good drones... Right Where It Belongs 7/10: So how's the grand finale of this disappointing album? As we start with simple synthed notes...Trent sings about an animal in its cage...and then I think to myself "Is he trying to make a new hurt? NO TRENT!! DON'T DO IT!!! IT'S NOT POSSIBLE!!!" So I listened in the hop that it would turn into some crazy industrial beat so he could save the credibility of hurt...but then I heard the key changes and as it carried on I just thought "He's really going to do it...oh dear"...and then the track ended...it's not an awful song...just emotionless...he sang well...but with no empathy or any kind of concept that I could believe... ...my advice? Skip this album unless you heard "The Hand That Feeds" and want to buy an album filled with songs like that...if that's the case you won't be disappointed...if you're into old Nine Inch Nails...you might like it but if you're anything like me (but why would you want to be?) you'll see this as a social decline and not worth your time pondering over... ...now I move on to Year Zero...this album is meant to apparently be an impressive come back...I hope it is because I don't think I can take another With Teeth... Rating: - * Hardly any gaps ... If his most critically concise work can also be cited as his worst, Reznor can do no wrong. At this point there were just too many factions to appease but make no mistake, the studio wizard reigns supreme, merging straightforward industrial radio-ready rock with seamless production the likes few mainstream artists today get away with both critics and audiences simultaneously appreciating. Rating:  - * [With_Teeth] !!!!!! Excellent!!!!!! ... Year Zero was actually the 1st Nine Inch Nails cd I had ever listened too! I was highly impressed with the music! I did know that NIN's previous and older work was much heavier and intense than the newer material! So, I went backwards an album and bought [With_Teeth] and played it from cover to cover and was amazed! There are some heavy tunes!!!! But, If you are a fan of Industrial rock like I am, You will like this album! Songs that I liked primarily: "Hand that feeds" "With Teeth" "Only" "Getting Smaller" "Sunspots" "Right Where it belongs" Rating: - * Nine Inch Nails rocks ... Try samples of Reznor's NIN album and make believe that power of this awesome music can fly inside of the body and it's powerful. In my central european country Poland NIN is known as a masterpiece of industrial sound. That's why I recommend NIN's With_Teeth. This music drives me almost nine years. Go with it, U won't regret. It always smells fresh. Rating:  - * Bland and generic rock with some mildly catchy tunes ... That's the best way to describe this album. I am not a die-hard Nine Inch Nails fan, but I was utterly captivated by The Downward Spiral and The Fragile. The Fragile also includes some of my favorite songs of all time, number one being "The Great Below" So it seems Reznor's abandoned the innovative, haunting style of The Fragile for something more upbeat, down to earth, and average. There's very little in the album beyond typical guitar, bass, drums, which is the standard for rock, but after the sort of things Trent Reznor has done before, comes as a disappointment---with greater style and innovation comes greater expectations. And the album is about as MTV-friendly as a NIN album could possibly be, with very little substance to any of the songs to make them in any way remarkable from one another. "The Hand that Feeds" has a very catchy beat, but when you break it down, it amounts to little more than the exact same 5 note guitar riff repeated throughout the entire song paired with some mostly unintelligible and droning lyrics. In my previous experience, NIN seemed to be a fusing of art, music, and innovation. This album seems to pull back on all three of them, perhaps for the money. |
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While last-minute heroics tend to be the standard by which we define excellence, there are many other moments that have left an indelible impression, many of them highlighted here. The video clips fall into 10 categories: Dunks, Alley-oops, Assists, Steals, Blocks, Teamwork, the Clutch Shot, Moves, Hustle, and Buzzer-Beaters. At the beginning of each section is a brief introduction. Before showing the top 10 dunks of all time, for example, we learn about the evolution of the dunk--from the first slam to the man who could fly, Michael Jordan--and we hear background commentary from NBA legends such as Magic Johnson, Charles Barkley, Dr. J, and Bill Russell. This video recalls familiar moments of NBA lore that you will want to own for countless repeat viewings. --Jeremy Storey
