March of the Pigs...and Reptiles...

While not everybody will agree, I believe Trent Reznor's most musically creative time to be in the mid 1990s. After the breakthrough success of Pretty Hate Machine (1989) and the wide acclaim for both Broken (1992) and on more modest level Fixed (1992) nine inch nails had to follow up with something pretty amazing. What fans got was the incredibly popular 1994 album The Downward Spiral which yielded some of Reznor's biggest mainstream singles to date (Closer, March of the Pigs, Piggy and Hurt).

As with prior and subsequent albums, the talented singer, songwriter, and producer focused much attention on EP and single releases for the fans. They were never the kinds of discs that would appeal to a really wide audience but they still did much to bolster his discography. Each EP, single, and album (both domestic and import) is dubbed with Halo and a number that represents its chronology. I own and appreciate nearly every disc save for a few more recent singles, imports, and videos.

Halo 7, aka March of the Pigs, is one definitely worth mentioning. It hit the streets as a teaser of sorts for the forthcoming The Downward Spiral. There are a few different versions of the single--one 5-track U.S. release and two UK versions (one with four songs and the other with three). High energy but nihilistic industrial characterizes most of what is found on this little Maxi Single. It's not nearly as excellent (in my opinion, of course) as the Head Like A Hole or Closer To God treasures but it does rank on level with others including Down In It, The Perfect Drug and Further Down the Spiral. Regardless of my overall impression, the thing that I find to be the case in regards to all Reznor releases is that even the least appealing CDs have at least a handful of moments that remind me just why I continue to love nine inch nails.

March of the Pigs opens this release with an incredibly fast and rather unique sound. Proudly listed on the CD as having 269 beats per minute (BPM) the song is actually much more complex than I have come to appreciate from Reznor. This isn't to say that other songs aren't as great, but the fact that the song alternates three bars of 7/8 time and one of 4/4 time is really pretty aurally stimulating. Of course what makes March of the Pigs extra excellent is the fact that it is actually entertaining rather than just art for the sake of art. This loud, kinetic, wildly wicked arrangement is well worth the price of admission especially for fans.

Of course there is much more to this release than just a single. Also included is the Dave Ogilvie remix of Reptile re-titled Reptilian. Ogilvie, a producer famous for his work with industrial innovators Skinny Puppy, rips the song apart and reassembles it for an eight plus minute epic. First things first--I don't think any song should be that long. Regardless of quality I grow tired of any work that goes over about five or six minutes. It is loud, it is dense, and it is full of noise--all the things nine inch nails is known for. Aside from the length issue, I'm also not fond of the fact that the remix really doesn't go anywhere. Reznor's songs usually have a well-defined beginning and end. Reptilian does not.

All The Pigs, All Lined Up is a remix of the title track. Once again it is envisioned to be a heavy-hitting, fast-paced song full of densely packed synthesizers and drums. I actually think this is a decent version even if it is much too long for my tastes at over seven minutes. A Violet Fluid is not on an album and is purely instrumental. Again I'm not keen on instrumentals but I do think the booming synths and percussion work nicely. The final song is another remix, once again of Reptile and titled Underneath the Skin. It is arranged into movements or phases. Each minute brings a new and different elements into the song. It is actually much better than Reptilian and has a much more distinctive sound. Ogilvie definitely did better here than he did at other points on March of the Pigs.

As with most of the singles, EPs, and imports from nine inch nails March of the Pigs really is for fans only. If you haven't yet picked up classics like Pretty Hate Machine, Broken, The Downward Spiral, and The Fragile you need to in order to best appreciate the material on the lesser releases. I am personally not entirely sold on the purpose of this five-track single, but there are some decent moments especially on songs March of the Pigs, Underneath the Skin and even All The Pigs, All Lined Up. This is an average quality single, especially when compared to Reznor's other outstanding works.


Rating: 3/5

Track Listing:
01. March of the Pigs
02. Reptilian
03. All The Pigs, All Lined Up
04. A Violet Fluid
05. Underneath the Skin

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Related Reviews:

Down In It (1989) - Halo 1
http://www.epinions.com/content_137000029828

Pretty Hate Machine (1989) - Halo 2
http://www.epinions.com/content_98947665540

Head Like a Hole (1989) - Halo 3
http://www.epinions.com/content_30111534724

Sin (1989) - Halo 4
http://www.epinions.com/content_129330024068

Broken (1992) - Halo 5
http://www.epinions.com/content_72560119428

Closer to God (1994) - Halo 9
http://www.epinions.com/content_43962764932

Further Down the Spiral (1995) - Halo 10
http://www.epinions.com/content_109512593028

The Perfect Drug (1997) - Halo 11
http://www.epinions.com/content_41096285828

And All That Could Have Been (2002) - Halo 17
http://www.epinions.com/content_65324617348