Something about NiN songs...

“Only” (from ‘With Teeth’)

An angry song about self-reliance, Trent Reznor’s “Only” is the song you want when you’re at the end of your rope and you’re trying to psych yourself up to face the jerks one more time. Deceptively pop in its structure, the With Teeth track boasts a bouncy drumbeat and ‘80s-style keyboards before the gathering storm clouds start to appear. Reznor sounds discouraged, but his disillusionment has left him with only one thing he knows for sure: “There is no you/There is only me.”

“Hurt” (from ‘The Downward Spiral’)

Many notable artists have covered “Hurt” over the years – including Johnny Cash – but none have come close to matching the disturbing power of the original. Is it a song about someone taking his own life? Or is it a final plea from a self-mutilating junkie who’s reaching out to his soul mate? No matter how many times you hear “Hurt,” you can’t say for sure, making it a great song about that hazy line between hope and despair where no one wants to reside.

“Closer” (from ‘The Downward Spiral’)

Massive radio airplay may have minimized this song’s extraordinary design, but “Closer” remains NIN’s crown jewel. A perfect synthesis of romantic need and debilitating self-hatred, the song’s push-pull lyrics are superbly complemented by the music, which is somehow simultaneously euphoric and bleak. If you’ve only heard the abbreviated single, you owe it to yourself to savor all six minutes of the album version – especially with headphones. Trent Reznor’s studio mastery never resulted in a stranger, more gripping tune.