Today, exactly 27 years ago, American industrial band Nine Inch Nails released The Downward Spiral!
Today its exactly 27 years since American industrial band Nine Inch Nails released their second studio album The Downward Spiral (8th March 1994). In contrast to their first album Pretty Hate Machine, which was rather synth-pop/electro like, this album featured more distorted guitars and other heavy elements from the industrial music style.
The album was recorded at Trent Reznor’s ‘Le Pig’ studio which was actually located in the house of where actress Sharon Tate was murdered by members of Charles Manson’s cult.
The album is a concept album describing the destruction of a man, from the beginning of his downward spiral to his suicide attempt.
Two official singles were taken from the album, March of the Pigs and Closer, later followed by the promotional singles Piggy and Hurt.
Hurt was covered by Johnny Cash in 2003 to commercial and critical acclaim. Reznor praised Cash's interpretation of the song for its sincerity and meaning, even stating the song didn't belong to himself anymore.
The Downward Spiral was a major commercial success, and established Nine Inch Nails as a reputable force in the alternative music scene since.
The Downward Spiral (Tracklist)
Mr. Self Destruct
Piggy
Heresy
March Of The Pigs
Closer
Ruiner
The Becoming
I Do Not Want This
Big Man With A Gun
A Warm Place
Eraser
Reptile
The Downward Spiral
Hurt
Philadelphia-based electronic band IMBUED VAGARY has released an ambitious 6-album project called Hexalogy. The highly-inventive, genre-pushing group have made the set available both digitally in addition to limited edition CD formats. Albums are also available individually or can be bought as a set.
Originally a minimalist side project from Industrial electro-terrorists, Any Questions?, IMBUED VAGARY coalesced into being in 1989 as an outlet for the electronic experiments and sonic soundscapes that core members Ttam Troll (electronics and electronic percussion) and mC2p4 (electronics) produced which didn’t fit the Any Questions? mold. Since those early days, IMBUED VAGARY have morphed and traveled through many incarnations and now lives on as a musical collective of like minded musicians whose purpose is to explore new musical realms and technologies.
IMBUED VAGARY – Hexalogy is a 6 CD collection of new music from IMBUED VAGARY. Clocking in with over 6 1/2 hours of electronic experiments and sonic soundscapes
On this day, 33 years ago, Divine died at the age of 42 (19.10.1945 - 7.03.1988). Divine was an American actor, singer, and drag queen, born as Harris Glenn Milstead.
Closely associated with the independent filmmaker John Waters, Divine was a character actor, usually performing female roles in cinematic and theatrical productions and adopted a female drag persona for his music career. Milstead developed an early interest in drag while working as a women's hairdresser. By the mid-1960s he had embraced the city's countercultural scene and befriended Waters, who gave him the name "Divine" and the tagline "the most beautiful woman in the world, almost."
Divine joined Waters' acting troupe and adopted female roles for their experimental short films. Divine next starred in Waters' Pink Flamingos (1972), which became a cult classic and established Divine's fame within the American counterculture. Then Divine moved to theater, appearing in several avant-garde performances alongside San Francisco drag collective The Cockettes.
He starred in two more of Waters' films, Polyester (1981) and Hairspray (1988), the latter of which represented his breakthrough into mainstream cinema.
Meanwhile, in 1981, Divine embarked on a career in the disco industry by producing a number of Hi-NRG tracks, most of which were written by Bobby Orlando. He achieved international chart success with hits like ’Shoot Your Shot’ (1981), ‘You Think You're a Man’ (1984) and ‘Walk Like a Man’ (1985), all of which were performed in drag.
Having struggled with obesity throughout his life, he died from cardiomegaly, shortly after the release of Hairspray.
Described by People magazine as the "Drag Queen of the Century", Divine has remained a cult figure, particularly within the LGBT community, and has provided the inspiration for fictional characters, artworks and songs.
A worthwhile documentary film devoted to his life is I Am Divine (2013).
Today it’s exactly 38 years (7 March 1980) since English post-punk band Siouxsie and the Banshees released the 7” Happy House, the first single taken from their third studio album Kaleidoscope.
Happy House and the Kaleidoscope album marked a change in musical direction for Siouxsie and the Banshees due to the arrival of two new musicians: drummer Budgie, previously of the Slits, and guitarist John McGeoch, previously of Magazine.
When asked if "Happy House" was a cynical song, Siouxsie replied: "It is sarcastic. In a way, like television, all the media, it is like adverts, the perfect family whereas it is more common that husbands beat their wives. They are mental families really but the projection is everyone smiling, blond hair, sunshine, eating butter without being fat and everyone perfect.
The single became the band's second top 20 hit, peaking at number 17 in the UK Singles Chart
Happy House (Lyrics)
This is the happy house-we're happy here in the happy house oh it's such fun
We've come to play in the happy house
And waste a day in the happy house-it never rains
We've come to scream in the happy house We're in a dream in the happy house
We're all quite sane
This is the happy house-we're happy here There's room for you if you say "I do"
But don't say no or you'll have to go
We've done no wrong with our blinkers on It's safe and calm if you sing along
This is the happy house-we're happy here in the happy house.
To forget ourselves-and pretend all's well There is no hell.
Songwriters: Siouxsie Sioux / Steven Severin
This month it is 44 years ago since Kraftwerk released Trans Europe Express (March 1977), their sixth studio album. The album was recorded during the summer of 1976 in their Kling Klang Studios and released on their own label Kling Klang Records. Two singles were taken from this album, Trans-Europe Express and Showroom Dummies. It was the first Kraftwerk album that was recorded in two different versions. One in English, one in German. The song Showroom Dummies was also released in France and Belgium as Les Mannequins, with the lyrics sung in French. The original German title was Schaufensterpuppen.
Musically Kraftwerk again moved further away from their improvised instrumental Krautrock style, fine tuning their tracks into more melodic electronic compositions.
The introduction of the analogue and customized 32-step Synthanorma Sequenzer with 16 channels was an important game-changer on this record. Kraftwerk also went to railway bridges to listen and analyze the sound of trains passing by which they altered slight to make it more danceable.
The lyrics on Trans Europe Express refer to David Bowie’s album Station To Station and to the actual event of Rafl Hütter and Florian Schneider meeting Bowie in Germany. At that time Bowie was living and recording in Berlin with Iggy Pop (The Stooges). Ralf Hütter refered several times to Iggy Pop And The Stooges as his most favourite band.
Joy Division singer Ian Curtis introduced Kraftwerk to his bandmates and insisted Trans Europe Express was played every time before the band went on stage.
Siouxsie And The Banshees covered the song The Hall Of Mirrors on their cover album Through The Looking Glass (1987). A cover version that todays only remaining original Kraftwerk member today, Ralf Hütter, hailed in glowing terms as extraordinary version.
Many still see this album as one of the most important pop albums of the last decades.
Trans Europe Express (Lyrics)
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Trans Europa Express
Rendez-vous auf den Champs Elysees
Verlass Paris am Morgen mit dem TEE
In Wien sitzen wir I'm Nachtcafe
Direkt Verbindung TEE
Wir laufen 'rein in Düsseldorf City
Und treffen Iggy Pop und David Bowie
Trans Europa Express
Songwriters: Emil Schult / Ralf Huetter
