Sixteen years since Trent Reznor brought industrial music to the masses with the release of Pretty Hate Machine, the mastermind of Nine Inch Nails proves he’s content to stay within his niche on NIN’s latest album, With Teeth.
Reznor’s blend of dark, ferocious lyrics and industrial rhythms on Pretty Hate Machine and its follow-up, The Downward Spiral, was hugely influential on heavy-metal and alternative-rock bands. (Fans mostly overlooked NIN’s last album, 1999’s The Fragile, even though it had some of Reznor’s best work in recent years.)
However, on With Teeth, Reznor seems to be reaching out to a broader audience, creating a sharper, more focused sound. Although it features some of Dave Grohl’s bone-jarring drumming on the tracks “Getting Smaller” and “The Collector,” With Teeth doesn’t have any great, gut-wrenching songs like “March of the Pigs” and “Head Like a Hole” that previously made NIN’s reputation.
Instead, the highlights of With Teeth are some of the mellower tracks, such as “Only” and “All the Love in the World.” Reznor does not break new ground, but his use of the synthesizer on “Only” and “Sunspots” and the slow buildup and ultimate explosive conclusion of “All the Love in the World” show that Reznor is evolving into a slightly less abrasive artist.
