Year Zero

Nine Inch Nails: Trent Reznor.

On his 2007 full-length studio follow-up to WITH TEETH, Nine Inch Nails mastermind Trent Reznor steps away from the relatively straight-ahead rock aesthetic of that record, opting instead for an intentionally abrasive sound lined with sharp shards of noise and static. Tied together by an enigmatic, X-FILES-like concept involving an apocalyptic scenario, YEAR ZERO is marked by tell-tale tracks such as "Survivalism," a fierce number that harkens back to THE DOWNWARD SPIRAL, and "In This Twilight," a bleak, distortion-filled song.

Reportedly influenced by the Bomb Squad's spare, hard-hitting production on vintage Public Enemy releases (a point driven home by the stark, stuttering "My Violent Heart"), ZERO also reveals that Reznor picked up a few experimental tricks from tour-mates TV on the Radio, as best exemplified by the guitar squalls of the aforementioned "Survivalism." Less personal and more cinematic than preceding outings, YEAR ZERO is arguably NIN's least-accessible album, and proves that Reznor hasn't abandoned his SPIRAL-era post as a sonic agitator who has infiltrated the mainstream.