Most Popular
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How Progressive insurance lost what made it progressive
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An ancient Apollo statue landed in Cleveland and touched off an international outcry
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Joe Cimperman hopes to tear down his former hero, Dennis Kucinich
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Justice Maureen O’Connor says campaign money doesn’t affect her
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At Indie-Rock Singles Night in Cleveland, an event for hipsters lacks one key ingredient: Hipsters
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How Progressive insurance lost what made it progressive (33)
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At Indie-Rock Singles Night in Cleveland, an event for hipsters lacks one key ingredient: Hipsters (22)
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$100 Bounty on That Kid (19)
Copley-Fairlawn finds a way to keep the impostors out.
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Dennis Kucinich’s brave talk about working and fighting — from the safety of the officer’s tent (10)
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An ancient Apollo statue landed in Cleveland and touched off an international outcry (4)
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Years after he gave up on rock music, Bob Mould plugs back in
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Boozing through St. Patrick’s Day with Bono, Van, and the Pogues
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Beer, BBQ, industry schmoozing: Rounding up SXSW 2008’s local delegates
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Summery pop bands brave Cleveland’s harsh weather and reputation
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Avril Lavigne has had a bitch of a year, but she hopes a new tour will bring back the fun
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Get country with Lawless at Brooklyn's Hall of Fame tonight
02:01PM 03/26/08 -
Countdown to Opening Day: An alarmingly long interview with Tom Hamilton, voice of the Indians and guy we’re sorta obsessed with
01:32PM 03/26/08 -
WTF?: 20 years later, Sam Miller finally gets his wish
01:23PM 03/26/08 -
Rover explains Morning Glory's move to WMMS
12:08PM 03/26/08 -
R&B songstress Conya Doss to promote record on WVIZ’s Applause, at Borders and the Beachland
11:54AM 03/26/08
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- Cleveland art
- Cleveland dining hotspots
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- country
- Dennis Kucinich
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Recent Articles By D.X. Ferris
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Rover’s morning show moves to WMMS
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O'Death
Opening for Murder by Death and Kiss Kiss. 9 p.m. Fri., March 28, $10 ADV/$12 DOS (all ages). Grog Shop, 2785 Euclid Hts. Blvd., 216-321-5588.
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Grand Buffet
With Sammy Slim. 9 p.m. Tuesday, April 1, $7 (all ages). Beachland Ballroom, 15711 Waterloo Rd., 216-383-1124.
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Conya Doss
Still . . . (ConyaDoss.com)
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Akron’s Matinee club starts Cleveland outpost
National Features
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Village Voice
A Long Way Wrong?
Another celebrated memoir threatens to blow into a million little pieces.
By Graham Rayman -
LA Weekly
Hoop Dawg
Billionaire Donald T. Sterling owns the L.A. Clippers and loves the ladies. And those are just two of his problems.
By Patrick Range McDonald -
The Pitch
Children of the Porn
Elvin Boone's sex-shop empire crumbles as his offspring feud.
By Justin Kendall -
Westword
The Good Soldier
When the Army tried to take down Andrew Pogany, they messed with the wrong coward.
By Joel Warner
Subject(s): Trent Reznor, alt-rock, Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails mainman Trent Reznor makes the most of his recent hard-won freedom on the two-disc, all-instrumental Ghosts I-IV. It's the kind of record Interscope probably wouldn't have allowed Reznor to release when he was under contract — not only because it lacks vocals, but also because it sounds a little like The Fragile, NIN's unjustly slagged masterwork from 1999. In fact, most major labels would balk at Ghosts' content. They would also positively spaz over Reznor's Radiohead-like decision to release the album as a $5 download. (A CD version came out this weeek.)
Ghosts' 36 untitled cuts cover most of Reznor's rarely matched areas of proficiency. Even if nothing here tops The Fragile's most elegant zeniths, "La Mer" and "Just Like You Imagined," the songs scrape and lull — spanning toothy pop (track 16), droning interludes (2), '80s homages (24), the wankerish, disposable digital noise from the remix albums (7), and mostly, cinematic scenes that turn your earbuds into a personal transport system to charred landscapes beneath a gray sky.
As with most double albums, some of Ghosts' songs are forgettable, but there are many great ones here as well. Fans of Reznor's underheralded, minimalist piano prowess will be delighted from the start. They'll also likely wear out the tuneful suite that includes tracks 12 and 13 by the end of the next overcast day.
