Episode 1338 marks the beginning of a long-form Nine Inch Nails deep dive, built around a simple guiding principle: full albums, played as albums, in sequence. For the most part, this series will stay rooted in the studio records — because that’s where the real story lives.
That said, sometimes the rules bend. And when they do, there’s a reason.
This opening chapter focuses on Pretty Hate Machine, Broken, and The Downward Spiral — a run of releases that don’t just define an era of Nine Inch Nails, but chart a clear escalation. What begins as tightly controlled tension eventually breaks apart under its own weight.
Pretty Hate Machine still surprises when heard front to back. Beneath the hooks and club-ready structures is a record already pushing against its limits. The sound is precise, almost elegant at times, but the pressure is unmistakable. It’s not rage yet — it’s compression.
That compression snaps with Broken. Yes, it’s technically an EP, and yes, that breaks the “studio albums only” rule. But Broken isn’t optional. It’s the hinge point. This is where restraint disappears and Nine Inch Nails fully commits to confrontation. Leaving it out would leave a hole in the story.
The Downward Spiral follows as the inevitable result. Not just heavier, but more deliberate and more corrosive. Played in full, it remains unsettling — not because of shock value, but because of how methodically it dismantles itself. The violence, the isolation, the quiet moments that feel worse than the loud ones — all of it lands harder because of the path that leads here.
To close the episode, the set pulls back from words entirely with selections from Ghosts I–IV. This is another intentional deviation. These pieces aren’t meant to advance the narrative so much as process it. Skeletal, unresolved, and often uncomfortable, they function as aftermath — space without relief, calm without comfort.
Episode 1338 is the foundation. The first movement of the deep dive.
Before continuing, Episode 1340 will serve as a deliberate palate cleanser — a reset designed to break the intensity and clear the air. The Nine Inch Nails deep dive will then resume in Episode 1341, where The Fragile will be given the space it demands: uninterrupted, complete, and treated as the full statement it is.
Even decades later, the weight of this material hasn’t faded. That longevity was underscored recently by a Grammy win, a reminder that Trent Reznor’s work has traveled from underground clubs and cultural panic to long-term artistic relevance without ever losing its edge.
Episode 1338 isn’t about nostalgia.
It’s about the moment the pressure broke — and everything that followed.
This is where the deep dive begins.
Hour 1
Artist – Song – Time – Album – Label – Year
Nine Inch Nails – Something I Can Never Have – 05:54 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Head Like a Hole – 04:59 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Terrible Lie – 04:38 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Down in It – 03:46 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Sanctified – 05:48 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Something I Can Never Have – 05:54 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1989
Nine Inch Nails – Kinda I Want To – 04:33 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Sin – 04:06 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – That’s What I Get – 04:30 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – The Only Time – 04:47 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1998
Nine Inch Nails – Ringfinger – 05:40 – Pretty Hate Machine – TVT Records – 1989
Hour 2
Artist – Song – Time – Album – Label – Year
Nine Inch Nails – Mr. Self Destruct – 04:30 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Piggy – 04:24 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Heresy – 03:54 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Heresy – 03:54 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – March of the Pigs – 02:58 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Closer – 06:13 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Ruiner – 04:58 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – The Becoming – 05:31 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – I Do Not Want This – 05:41 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Big Man With a Gun – 01:36 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – A Warm Place – 03:22 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Eraser – 04:53 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Reptile – 06:52 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – The Downward Spiral – 03:56 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Hurt – 06:13 – The Downward Spiral – Nothing Records – 1994
Nine Inch Nails – Gave Up – 04:08 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Help Me I Am in Hell – 01:56 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Last – 04:44 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Physical – 05:29 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Suck – 05:07 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Happiness in Slavery – 05:21 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Pinion – 01:03 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Nine Inch Nails – Wish – 03:46 – Broken – Nothing Records – 1992
Hour 3
Artist – Song – Time – Album – Label – Year
Nine Inch Nails – 1 Ghosts I – 02:48 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 2 Ghosts I – 03:16 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 3 Ghosts I – 03:51 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 4 Ghosts I – 02:13 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 5 Ghosts I – 02:51 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 6 Ghosts I – 04:18 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 7 Ghosts I – 02:00 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 8 Ghosts I – 02:56 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 9 Ghosts I – 02:47 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 10 Ghosts II – 02:42 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 11 Ghosts II – 02:17 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 12 Ghosts II – 02:17 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 13 Ghosts II – 03:13 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 14 Ghosts II – 03:05 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 15 Ghosts II – 01:53 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 16 Ghosts II – 02:30 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 17 Ghosts II – 02:13 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 18 Ghosts II – 05:22 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 19 Ghosts III – 02:11 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 20 Ghosts III – 03:39 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 21 Ghosts III – 02:54 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 22 Ghosts III – 02:31 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 23 Ghosts III – 02:43 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 24 Ghosts III – 02:39 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 25 Ghosts III – 01:58 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 26 Ghosts III – 02:25 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 27 Ghosts III – 02:51 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 28 Ghosts IV – 05:22 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 29 Ghosts IV – 02:54 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 30 Ghosts IV – 02:58 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 31 Ghosts IV – 02:25 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 32 Ghosts IV – 04:25 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 33 Ghosts IV – 04:01 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 34 Ghosts IV – 05:52 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 35 Ghosts IV – 03:29 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008
Nine Inch Nails – 36 Ghosts IV – 02:19 – Ghosts I–IV – Nothing Records – 2008 [fade out]
Rolling with Scissors airs live every Tuesday from 2–5 AM on 89.9 FM in Madison and streams at wortfm.org. Missed it? You can catch the episode for two weeks after broadcast at archive.wortfm.org or at rwsradio.com.
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