May 19, 2004 That Sinking, Hollow Feeling In what may or may not be the last update for at least a week, nin.com, our favoritest website in the whole wide world, updated with some more answers to your stupid, stupid questions for Trent Rasner. While he failed to touch upon really interesting questions like "lolz y u got so fat", he did address some issues that we'd never heard him talk about before. Did you know that Trent is less than happy with today's disposable pop music scene? Well, now you do. One of the more notable quotes is in response to a question regarding how Trent feels about artists selling their songs for TV commercials: "I wonder if Dylan could understand the sinking, hollow feeling I had when I heard his music in that context. How much money does Led fucking Zeppelin need? ... Do they understand the significance of what their music once held for people - or is it really all about how many units you can sell and commerce at any cost?"  I'm glad Trent finally addressed this issue, as it's something I also feel pretty strongly about. I wish I could listen to Led Zeppelin's "Rock And Roll" without picturing a spoiled CEO driving a gas-guzzling behemoth SUV, or Iggy Pop's "Lust For Life" without thinking about a Carribbean cruise, but it's now physically impossible. Music is an art form, and deserves to be treated thusly, not just thrown around and used out of context to make something look cooler than it really is. I know that sinking, hollow feeling all too well.  One of the new nin.com questions, however, brings up something that I've been meaning to talk about here. Many of you may have noticed that there are a number of links to politically-based websites on the "resources" page. That is, if you weren't too distracted by the sheer awesomeness of the Meathead Perspective link. Someone named "mademoiselle" had the cajones to ask Trent about this, and this is what he had to say: "Today's political climate does not allow the luxury of apathy." I've gotten several emails from people who feel somewhat upset by the recent political leanings of nin.com, and I have to say that I agree 100 percent. I honestly don't understand what's going through Trent's mind these days. He obviously thinks that because he's rich and famous, that his opinions are more important than everyone else's. That's the only logical conclusion you can really come to after seeing those links on his website. See, it's okay for me to express my distaste with the current administration because I'm not rich or famous. But if I were to somehow -- oh, I don't know -- become one of the most well-known names in modern music after years of hard work, that would therefore mean I'm no longer qualified to speak out about such things. That should go without saying. Trent needs to save his opinions for tamer topics, like Filter sucking. The above quote obviously means that the new NIN record will be preachy and condescending, and will make Rage Against The Machine look like The Monkees. Sure, other artists such as A Perfect Circle and Radiohead have commented on today's political situation in a tactful, creative manner without being overbearing, but that's no reason to think Nine Inch Nails will do the same. BLEED THROUGH will doubtless be nothing more than a collection of twelve hamfisted attacks on President Bush and Republicans in general. Sure, I haven't actually heard the thing yet, but it's not hard to connect the dots here. I wish Trent would jump off the Bush-bashing bandwagon already and just go back to writing about how much of a bitch that one girl was back in college. I really think that he could squeeze a few more songs out of that subject if he really tried.  One "interesting" question was brought up by someone whose name is apparently ddidigaltal. Tront has mentioned previously that there is a strict "NO CHORDS!!!!!1" rule on the new album, but what are other rules that he has imposed upon himself? He responded in the traditional evasive Reznor fashion: "Perhaps because I don't have a 'band' to arrange material, sometimes it helps me to create guidelines or rules to follow. Limitations to narrow the focus on the particular situation ? too many options can be bad." Since Trent obviously doesn't want to tell us (or maybe just ddidigaltal) what specific rules he's using this time around, it's up to me to speculate. And I'm all about speculation, man. Trent may not like you enough to properly answer the question, but I'll do it (although that doesn't mean I like you either). Besides, the chance that my answer is bullshit isn't that much higher than it'd be if Trent was answering it. Here we go! REZNOR'S RULES OF RECORDING • Mouth must be completely empty of pretzels before singing • Absolutely no references to how totally badass Metroid Prime II is going to be • Jerome not allowed to play drums with butt cheeks like last time • No running • All lyrics will be sung in binary • Don't forget to use cuss words • Leo must wash hands before returning to work • Make sure not to accidentally put the songs in the KaZaA Shared Files folder, ATTICUS. • "Nah nah nah"s and "yeah yeah yeah"s strictly forbidden, unless nothing else will fit there • Each song will sound raw and imperfect, even if it takes us weeks • No more Pantsless Thursdays • Give the railing against God a rest, save it for next album • No songs that Meathead won't like Speaking of vague, noncommittal answers, how about these gems:      I suddenly have an idea for a drinking game.
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