Nine Inch Nails - "Closer"

If you asked me what the dirtiest song I ever heard was, I wouldn't have to think twice. In terms of creating a vivid image of dirt, grime, sin and pain, it gets no better than "Closer."

I put together my first mix in November 1995, almost ten years ago. Interspersed amongst songs by Green Day, Dave Matthews Band, Blues Traveler and Hootie and the Blowfish was this ditty from "The Downward Spiral." Even edited for the radio, it freaked the hell out of me the first time I heard it.

:00 What has to be some sort of heartbeat sounding bass drum starts us off. If you listen with headphones, you can actually hear the violin (?) strings faintly.

:21 Trent starts in, and so does a "woo wah wah wah" beat with another beat that sounds like a stopwatch keeping time. The lyrics in the first verse are of pain inflicted on another and on himself.

:43 A chorus of Trent's plead "Help me" like he's sitting in purgatory somewhere.

1:02 The first "I wanna fuck you like an animal." The tone of the song has changed. Now there is a deep, brooding keyboard. Trent's delivery in full of hate and anger. Wow.

1:48 With "You can have my isolation," we've moved to a different synth part. The next time the "Help me"s kick in its just layered onto this new sound.

2:50 The word "God" starts back to another deep synth bass, a hard "dum dum dum dum" progression, and what sounds like taut violin synth in the background. A dirty electric guitar is now complicating both sides, growing louder.

3:47 There's some obscured narration. "Through every forest, above the trees, within my stomach, scraped off my knees, I drink the honey inside your hive. You are the reason I stay alive."

4:28 We're hitting on all cylinders now. It sounds like chainsaws and themes to dirty backroom sex.

5:09 like buzzing of bees and chainsaws, it's getting progressive louder. Weed wackers, yes, weed wackers.

5:32 The comedown part has arrived, but now it's being obscured by the other layers.

5:52 The finishing touch. A keyboard/piano repeats "do dum do dum do do do do" until closeout.

I think I only liked two or three other Nine Inch Nails songs in my whole life.

4/5