History NightmareFuel / TheDownwardSpiral

''[[NightmareFuel/NineInchNailsBroken Broken]]'' | '''''The Downward Spiral''''' | ''[[NightmareFuel/TheFragile1999 The Fragile]]'' | ''[[NightmareFuel/NineInchNailsGhosts Ghosts]]'' [[NightmareFuel/NineInchNailsGhosts series]] | [[NightmareFuel/NineInchNailsEPTrilogy EP Trilogy]]-]]]]]

* "Closer," one of the most aggressive takes on the IntercourseWithYou trope in music history. The lyrics alone can make one feel very uncomfortable.
** If the lyrics don’t scare you, the instrumental surely will. Just listen to it!

-->'''''[[MadnessMantra IT WON'T GIVE UP IT WANTS ME DEAD]]'''''
-->'''''[[MadnessMantra GODDAMN THIS NOISE INSIDE MY HEAD]]'''''
* Special mention must go to "Big Man with a Gun", which could be perceived as either a rape scenario, the protagonist going on a major power-trip, or him going on a [[GoingPostal violent and murderous rampage]] (according to the repeated lyrics "[[DoubleEntendre SHO]][[ShootTheDog OT]]!"). Either way, this is the point where the already dark and nihilistic album takes a turn into the supremely fucked up. The intense speed of the song, a highly distorted (and almost unrecognizable) scream of pleasure taken directly from a porn movie and the fierce distortion in the music and vocals building throughout, combined with the lyrics, make this deeply unsettling, particularly when followed immediately by "A Warm Place".

* "The Downward Spiral (The Bottom)." At roughly a minute and twenty seconds in, [[CarefulWithThatAxe a genuinely terrifying scream,]] distorted to sound like it's coming from underwater ''and then getting closer'', [[JumpScare bursts out of nowhere]]. Specially the distorted "The deepest shade of mushroom blue" in several parts throughout the track.
* "Erased, Over, Out". At normal speed it's already scary with a sound that sounds like a pained, prolonged scream repeated over the course of the track. But speed the track up. [[SchmuckBait You will see.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:[[{{Squick}} Yeah... that pig's head does not belong there...]]]]

* "Eraser". Already starts uneasy with distorted guitars and pounding drums, but gets pretty terrifying at the end as Trent screams "'''KILL ME'''" (and possibly "'''[[AndIMustScream HELP ME]]'''") over and over until his voice dissolves into the surrounding noise.

* "The Becoming" has BackgroundMusic that consists of people screaming in fear while the song twitches and jerks like a malfunctioning robot hellbent on murder. Even creepier is that during the "softer" part of the song, if you were to reverse the acoustic guitar section, you would be treated to the cries of Mickey Rourke's character from ''Film/AngelHeart'' screaming in terror "I know who I am", which can also tie in very creepily to the album's storyline as the 'machine' takes over the protagonist.

** Part 2 is a music video collection put together by Peter Christopherson but it's bookended with a weird vignette set in what can only be described as the "Closer" music video meets a decaying mad scientists' lab and torture dungeon. After each music video plays, there is a random clip of stock footage or from old PSAS. Whether it's an up-close shot of a fly spinning random objects on its legs, footage of sideshow freaks mugging for the camera, a dead rabbit being bashed around on a mechanical mechanism until its body breaks apart (synced with the beating noises from "Mr. Self Destruct"), a shot of a projector emerging from a fleshy membrane, footage from Topsy The Elephant's execution, footage of religious people ramming swords through their body among other images... It makes for an intense and haunting watch. The track "A Warm Place" opens and closes the compilation, to which a fan-made music video for the track has been made using clips Part 2's transition clips; the video can be viewed [[https://youtu.be/zkCxRz9X2aI here]].

** Part 2 is a music video collection put together by Peter Christopherson but it's bookended with a weird vignette set in what can only be described as the "Closer" music video meets a decaying mad scientists' lab and torture dungeon. After each music video plays, there is a random clip of stock footage or from old PSAS. Whether it's an up-close shot of a fly spinning random objects on its legs, footage of sideshow freaks mugging for the camera, a dead rabbit being bashed around on a mechanical mechanism until its body breaks apart (synced with the beating noises from "Mr. Self Destruct"), a shot of a projector emerging from a fleshy membrane, footage from Topsy The Elephant's execution, footage of religious people ramming swords through their body among other images... It makes for an intense and haunting watch. The track "A Warm Place" opens and closes the compilation, to which a fan-made music video for the track has been made using clips from Part 2; the video can be viewed [[https://youtu.be/zkCxRz9X2aI here]].

* Special mention should go to the Closure home video release. Originally planned as a big budget concert film, Trent scrapped the idea and worked alongside Jonathan Rach and Peter Christopherson to create a visceral and gritty documentation of the Self Destruct era. Tape 1 (or DVD 1 if you have the "leaked" release) features a tour documentary of the Self Destruct Tour and features quite a lot of odd moments and antics from the shows. It's mostly tame besides from a few surreal editing choices, weird subliminal jump cuts and gross out moments (Jim Rose Circus anyone?). However Tape 2 is where things get a bit more... nightmare inducing.
** Tape 2 is a music video collection put together by Peter Christopherson but it's bookended with a weird vignette set in what can only be described as the "Closer" music video meets a decaying mad scientists' lab and torture dungeon. After each music video plays, there is a random clip of stock footage or from old PSAS. Whether it's an up-close shot of a fly spinning random objects on its legs, footage of sideshow freaks mugging for the camera, a dead rabbit being bashed around on a mechanical mechanism until its body breaks apart (synced with the beating noises from "Mr. Self Destruct"), a shot of a projector emerging from a fleshy membrane, footage from Topsy The Elephant's execution, footage of religious people ramming swords through their body among other images... It makes for an intense and haunting watch. The track "A Warm Place" opens and closes the compilation, to which a fan made music video for the track has been produced using clips from Tape 2, which can be viewed [[https://youtu.be/zkCxRz9X2aI here]].

!!''Further Down the Spiral'' (remix album):

* "Eraser (Denial; Realization)", the penultimate track of the remix album (rest of the world than in US), is full of [[HellIsThatNoise disturbing synths]], distorted guitar noises and with Trent's slowed down "ERASE ME!" and "KILL ME!" being played throughout the track. And then, the other half of the track starts [[FromBadToWorse becoming even worse]] with [[SensoryAbuse loud screeching noises]] and [[LastNoteNightmare it ends with the beginning sample from the original track]].

** Tape 2 is a music video collection put together by Peter Christopherson but it's bookended with a weird vignette set in what can only be described as the Closer music video meets a decaying mad scientists' lab and torture dungeon. After each music video plays, there is a random clip of stock footage or from old PSAS. Whether it's an up-close shot of a fly spinning random objects on its legs, footage of sideshow freaks mugging for the camera, a dead rabbit being bashed around on a mechanical mechanism until its body breaks apart (synced with the beating noises from "Mr. Self Destruct"), a shot of a projector emerging from a fleshy membrane, footage from Topsy The Elephant's execution, footage of religious people ramming swords through their body among other images... It makes for an intense and haunting watch. The track "A Warm Place" opens and closes the compilation, to which a fan made music video for the track has been produced using clips from Tape 2, which can be viewed [[https://youtu.be/zkCxRz9X2aI here]].

* "Eraser". Already starts uneasy with distorted guitars and pounding drums, but gets pretty terrifying at the end as Trent screams "'''KILL ME'''" (and possibly "'''HELP ME'''") over and over until his voice dissolves into the surrounding noise.

* The fact that Trent was forced to [[CutSong cut one song out]] because it came off as ''a blatant endorsement of suicide!'' [[FridgeHorror Imagine all the depressed young people who found that album cathartic having their self-hatred validated]].
* [[HarsherInHindsight To make things even worse]], the album was released one month BEFORE [[Music/KurtCobain Kurt Cobain]]'s suicide on April 5th, 1994. And the title song obviously [[FridgeHorror has some similarities with the actual event that happened]].

* While nothing explicitly scary happens in "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PTFwQP86BRs Closer,]]" the grimy, late 19th century setting, out-of-date film stock and unsettling images makes the whole thing feel like some ancient lost silent film.

Let's be honest here. Pretty much the entirety of ''Music/TheDownwardSpiral'' is NightmareFuel, from the opening ''Film/THX1138'' samples to the noisy, droning LastNoteNightmare at the end of "Hurt" (which brings to mind flatlining ECG). Even the MoodWhiplash of "A Warm Place" manages to count, in a NothingIsScarier sorta way (it's the soundtrack to the point in the album's plot where the protagonist realizes how hopelessly fucked up he is, after all). What would you expect from a ConceptAlbum about a character's self-destruction, descent into insanity and eventual suicide (even if it wasn't successful, depending on how you interpret it)?

* "Eraser". Already starts uneasy with distorted guitars and pounding drums, but gets pretty terrifying at the end as Trent screams "'''KILL ME'''" (and possibly "'''HELP ME'''") until his voice dissolves into the surrounding noise.
* Sometimes when performing "Reptile" live, Trent will in the middle add "Please, don't hurt me", which is followed by a horrific crying scream. The most scariest case of this would have to be the one from "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJ-w0TAE-mQ Woodstock 94 performance]]", where it sounds like Trent is genuinely miserably screaming. Chilling. (4:33)

* The TitleTrack itself, what with the detuned guitar riff, the flies buzzing, the muffled screaming "[[BigNo NOOOOOOOO-]]", the thunderous drumming, and the protagonist's SplitPersonality taunting as the poor bastard [[DrivenToSuicide tries to take his own life]]. It sounds like it's rotting and falling apart.
--> "He couldn't believe how easy it was"
--> "[[DrivenToSuicide He put the gun into his face]]"
--> "BANG!"
--> "So much blood for such a [[PrettyLittleHeadshots tiny little hole]]"
--> "Problems do have solutions, you know"
--> "[[NiceJobBreakingItHero A lifetime of fucking things up fixed]]"
--> "In one determined flash"
--> "Everything's blue"
--> "Everything's blue in this world"
--> "The deepest shade of mushroom blue"
--> "All fuzzy"
--> "'''SPILLING OUT OF MY HEAD!'''"
** It's [[FridgeHorror even worse]] if you consider the "NOOOOOO" to be the [[AndIMustScream rational part of him left desperately pleading and failing to prevent the suicide.]]
* "Hurt" is equal parts terrifying and tearjerking, but its LastNoteNightmare is nothing short of chilling... [[SugarWiki/MostWonderfulSound depending on your perspective]].

Let's be honest here. Pretty much the entirety of ''Music/TheDownwardSpiral'' is NightmareFuel. From the opening ''Film/THX1138'' samples to the noisy, droning LastNoteNightmare at the end of "Hurt" (which brings to mind flatlining ECG). Even the MoodWhiplash of "A Warm Place" manages to count, in a NothingIsScarier sorta way (it's the soundtrack to the point in the album's plot where the protagonist realizes how hopelessly fucked up he is, after all). What would you expect from a ConceptAlbum about a character's self-destruction, descent into insanity and eventual suicide (even if it wasn't successful, depending on how you interpret it)?

Let's be honest here. Pretty much the entirety of ''Music/TheDownwardSpiral'' is NightmareFuel. From the opening ''Film/THX1138'' samples to the noisy, droning LastNoteNightmare at the end of "Hurt" (which brings to mind flatlining ECG). Even the MoodWhiplash of "A Warm Place" manages to count, in a NothingIsScarier sorta way (it's the soundtrack to the point in the album's plot where the protagonist realizes how hopelessly fucked up he is, after all). What would you expect, from a ConceptAlbum about a character's self-destruction, descent into insanity and eventual suicide (even if it wasn't successful, depending on how you interpret it)?

** Tape 2 is a music video collection put together by Peter Christopherson but it's bookended with a weird vignette set in what can only be described as the Closer music video meets a decaying mad scientists' lab and torture dungeon. After each music video plays, there is a random clip of stock footage or from old PSAS. Whether it's an up-close shot of a fly spinning random objects on it's legs, footage of sideshow freaks mugging for the camera, a dead rabbit being bashed around on a mechanical mechanism until it's body breaks apart (synced with the beating noises from Mr Self Destruct), a shot of a projector emerging from a fleshy membrane, footage from Topsy The Elephant's execution, footage of religious people ramming swords through their body among other images. It makes for an intense and haunting watch. The track "A Warm Place" opens and closes the compilation to which a fan made music video for the track has been produced using clips from Tape 2 which can be viewed [[https://youtu.be/zkCxRz9X2aI here]].

** The studio version doesn't skimp on the nightmare fuel, either. A seething, looming track with mechanical screeches and creaks punctuated throughout, the instrumentation is sinister and the vocals have an almost-incantatory lilt to them as the protagonist begins to realize the true extents of his self-destruction and muffled screams bleed through in the last minute.

* The fact that Trent was forced to [[CutSong cut one song out]] because it came off as ''[[UpToEleven a blatant endorsement of suicide!]]'' [[FridgeHorror Imagine all the depressed young people who found that album cathartic having their self-hatred validated]].

* Special mention must go to "Big Man with a Gun", which could be perceived as a rape scenario, or otherwise the protagonist going on a major power-trip, or actually him going on a [[GoingPostal violent and murderous rampage]] (according to the repeated lyrics "[[DoubleEntendre SHO]][[ShootTheDog OT]]!"). Either way, this is the point where the already dark and nihilistic album takes a turn into the supremely fucked up. The intense speed of the song, a highly distorted (and almost unrecognizable) scream of pleasure taken directly from a porn movie and the fierce distortion in the music and vocals building throughout, combined with the lyrics, make this deeply unsettling, particularly when followed immediately by "A Warm Place".

* "The Becoming" has BackgroundMusic that consists of people screaming in fear and the song twitches and jerks like a malfunctioning robot hellbent on murder. Even creepier is that during the 'softer' part of the song if you were to reverse the acoustic guitar section, you would be treated to the cries of Mickey Rourke's character from Film/AngelHeart screaming in terror 'I know who I am', which can also tie in very creepily to the album's storyline as the 'machine' takes over the protagonist.