Haste Isn't Waste For NIN

Written by Ricardo Baca

Trent Reznor enjoys taking his time between records, with five to six years between albums. So fans should note that "Year Zero," his fifth full-length CD, arrives less than two years after his last outing, "With Teeth."

Nine Inch Nails fans’ learned behavior – that of waiting – was disrupted months ago when Reznor and his friends started a mostly online campaign advancing "Year Zero" with a complex back story. And although that was fascinating, the music is even more engrossing – as it should be.
While "With Teeth" was a return to form for Reznor, "Year Zero" is an exploration of minimalistic electronic programming. Instrumental opener "Hyperpower!" recalls "The Downward Spiral’s" uber-percussion heyday, and the album’s lead single, "Survivalism," takes that unique approach to drums/programming and adds to it. Reznor experiments with his vocals, adding hiccuplike breaths, meditative spoken word heavy on the downbeat, and slides into his upper register.
The result is a classic NIN track, something that will fit naturally into his live sets alongside "Terrible Lie" and "Into The Void." The rest of the album is solid with a few standout tracks.

The Denver Post
April 22nd 2007