Review Summary: Enough accessibility for instant gratification while hinting at greater ambitions ahead
As the only album that Nine Inch Nails released in the eighties and featuring a predominately synthpop sound, Pretty Hate Machine seems destined for awkward debut status. However, it also comes with a forward thinking attitude that keeps it from feeling too dated on arrival, balancing a mix of Depeche Mode-style hooks and aggro-industrial rooted in groups like Ministry and Skinny Puppy. One can trace its background yet it still feels like it came from out of nowhere.
Bandleader Trent Reznor already demonstrates an aptitude as a producer and performer, marrying bright patches and pulsating beats alongside creepy soundscapes and an unsettling aura. His vocals have a grounded quality to them, not a technical singer in the traditional sense but able to carry a tune with urgency and personality. It’s a very mood-driven performance as he alternates between cathartic screams and desperate whispers between the steady croons.
On the flip side, his blunt, angsty lyrics can be something of a mixed bag. At their best, a choice phrase can cut through all the bull*** and strike a chord with the listener. At their worst, they can come off too rigid and dipping into nursery rhyme territory (literally so in the case of “Down In It”). For better and for worse, you can tell a lot of nu metal frontmen were listening.
It also helps that the band put their best foot forward with the opening “Head Like a Hole.” It feels like a solid summary of the Nine Inch Nails mission statement, rooted in a mid-tempo dance beat that sees hook after hook thrown on top of it in ultra-catchy brash fashion. “Terrible Lie” follows it up nicely with a more straightforward structure that presents a tight stomp and simple but unnerving chorus.
Other songs also do well in conveying a variety of moods. You’ll hear the band’s original ***-you-like-an-animal jams as “Sanctified” rides an especially slinky bass line while “Kinda I Want To” and “Sin” are more powerfully thrusting numbers. “Something I Can Never Have” serves as the album’s most emotionally fraught point, featuring intensely vulnerable vocals set to an almost standstill pace with despairing textures.
Like any worthy debut album, Pretty Hate Machine establishes the Nine Inch Nails sound with enough accessibility for instant gratification while also hinting at greater ambitions ahead. Its professional execution never overshadows the underdog mindset as the songs are simultaneously unassuming in their intent and catchy as all hell. There may be a song or two that could be cut but as a whole, it is essential listening for pop, rock, and industrial fans across the board.
