Dorkgasm Gonzo Is God

            Fans of Nine Inch Nails have come to expect a remix album after the release of any record over the last 17 years. Typically, these records are collector’s pieces, featuring crunchier sounds and unedited studio mixes that were later cleaned up. On the whole, they were fairly inaccessible to the casual fan, but this has been a banner year for Trent Reznor’s Electro-Pop-Industrial outfit. His latest album Year Zero peaked at number 2 on the Billboard Top 200 charts and is still selling well despite being leaked on the internet almost a month before its release. It was accompanied by a unique marketing effort, an ARG (Alternate Reality Game) where fans found hidden messages in concert t-shirts, websites, and leaked singles. Finally, the trailer for the biggest film of the spring, Zack Snyder’s 300, reached as big an audience as it did in large part due to the viral internet trailer featuring the band’s "Just like You Imagined" from The Fragile over the film’s explosive action. We might expect the band to falter at this stage; it is only a remix record after all, but this latest effort, Y34R Z3R0 R3M1X3D, stands alone as a testament to diversity and dance.

            The album opens with “Gun Shots by Computer” the first of two entries from Saul Williams, the hip-hop poet who’s latest album was recently released free of charge on the Nine Inch Nails website, nin.com. His spoken word poetry blends well with the otherwise wordless “Hyperpower!”. Later in the album Williams adds a methodical Drum & Bass beat to “Survivalism” that is so smooth that you’ll swear he’s channeling Tom Jones.

            As I mentioned before though, one of this album’s strengths is diversity, and along with the soul groove and poetic stylings of Williams you will find electro-pop impresarios Ladytron and English New Wave pioneers New Order adding to the mix. String quartet Kronos perform a rendition of “Another Version of the Truth” that elevates the sweet sorrow of the original track with powerful violins and a moving cello bass line. Perhaps the most surprising track on the album, however, is the remix of “My Violent Heart”. Attributed to Pirate Robot Midget, the remix is easily the most infectious dance groove this side of the mothership. You WILL dance, or maybe hump the closest pole, but either way this version will get you moving. Throw it on your iPod and press repeat for an instantaneous pimp-strut that would make John Travolta proud.

            As I mentioned, the best song on the CD is a fan-made remix, and when Y34R Z3R0 R3M1X3D hits stores on November 20 it will come in three versions. The first is a digital download from iTunes, the second is a six-disc vinyl set for the old school and the last is where the democracy of the internet will reign. The CD/DVD set available in stores will contain mutitrack files for every song on Year Zero, as well as music editing software so fans can make their own remixes. This album marks the end of all contractual obligations to any record label for Nine Inch Nails, so there will also be a new website, remix.nin.com, so fans and artists alike can share the music they create from these files unfettered by RIAA lawsuit threats. Pick up this album either way, no matter what format suits you. The infectious grooves and grinding beats can only disappoint if you aren’t human or have sold your soul to Millhouse Van Houten.