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→Closer
*''[[The Definitive NIN - Quiet Tracks]]''
===Other===
====Video Games====
*''[[Use in Video Games#Guitar_Hero:_Warriors_of_Rock|Guitar Hero: Warriors Of Rock]]''
==Versions==
===Closer===
This is the original album version, found on both ''The Downward Spiral'' and ''Closer To God.'' . It begins with an electronic beat. A keyboard pattern and sixteenth-note cymbal pattern join in along with the vocals. Layers are continuously added before dropping out at the end, leaving a simple chromatic piano melody to end the song and segue into "[[Ruiner]]". The version on ''Closer To God,'' , however, allows the final piano note and background noise to ring out completely. The snare drum comes from a Roland R-70 drum machine[http://nindestruct.com/mags/KeyboardMar94.html], and the bass drum is [[samples|sampled]] from "[[Nightclubbing]]" by Iggy Pop and the synth bass is sampled from the ''A Poke in the Ear With a Sharp Stick, Vol. 2'' sample library by Rarefaction.[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hwnbjv9e-Ms] The track also features a reversed and heavily processed sample from "Take A Chance With Me" by Roxy Music, which is most easily heard during the ending (starting from 5:52.) The sample is also used as an intro when the song is played live. Being the third song on the album to contain the famous "Downward Spiral Motif," "Closer" plays the motif in similar structure to "Per [[The Downward Spiral (song)|The Downward SpiralBrian Liesegang]]on Gearspace[https://gearspace.com/board/showpost.php?p=16934256&postcount=1311]," but in the bassline on this track was done with a different key:prototype of the Oberheim OB-Mx synthesizer, called the Obermoog.
Being the third song on the album to contain the famous "Downward Spiral Motif," "Closer" plays the motif in similar structure to "[[The Downward Spiral (song)|The Downward Spiral]]", but in a different key: [[Image:Closer_(Lower)_Motif_Tab.JPG|The Downward Spiral Motif, found in the cacophony of sound in the closing seconds of "Closer"."]]
The part of the motif that segues into "Ruiner" (and played by Reznor at the end of the video) is played at a higher octave:
[[Image:Closer_(Higher)_Motif_Tab.JPG|The higher part of the motif, found on the very last seconds on "Closer"."]]
===Closer (Instrumental)===
'''''Running Time: 5:05'''''
This is a major reworking of "Closer"," and is quite different in sound and structure. The vocals were re-recorded (with a few lines of new lyrics) to fit the sound of this song:
You let me violate you, you let me desecrate you
You let me penetrate you, you let me complicate you
'''''Running Time: 6:15'''''
This is one of the lesser reworked remixes of "Closer"." It adds an interesting loop in the background the consists of what appears to be a bass guitar and a high-pitched drone. At the end it repeats the two lines "Help me get away from myself" and "You get me closer to God". The track also contains slowed-down samples from "Mountain of Needles" by Brian Eno and David Byrne, and from the intro of "Pinch" by Can.
====Song Credits====
* Manipulation: [[Meat Beat Manifesto|Jack Dangers]], Craig Silvey
'''''Running Time: 5:45'''''
This remix begins with a significantly modified drumbeat, similar to the drums heard in "[[A Violet Fluid]]"." Slowly the song picks up and a sound similar to a lion's roar is heard with the cry "I want to fuck you like an animal." Lyrics are then whispered and vocoded. A loud drum solo features, backed by the looped synth whine from the end of the original, and then the lyrics from the choruses are heard.
====Song Credits====
* Manipulation: Bill Kennedy, Scott Humphrey, John "Geetus" Aguto, Paul Decarli, Eric Caudieux
===Closer (''And All That Could Have Been'')===
This live version uses the swirling synthesizers prominent at the end of the original song for an introduction. Its ending segues into "[[Head Like A Hole (song)|Head Like A Hole]]" much like the transition between "Closer" and "Ruiner" on ''The Downward Spiral.''.
===Closer (''Beside You In Time'')===
The aesthetic, atmosphere, and images in the video were inspired by the works of Man Ray, Francis Bacon, George Tooker, the Quay brothers, James Van Der Zee, Giorgio de Chirico, Rudolf Hausner, and, most notably, Joel-Peter Witkin.[https://www.kerrang.com/a-deep-dive-into-nine-inch-nails-nsfw-video-for-closer][https://thequietus.com/articles/28355-into-the-never-nine-inch-nails-and-the-creation-of-the-downward-spiral-adam-steiner-playlist][https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bUhDywzfkQM] It was filmed using three-color film and hand-cranked cameras, to make it look much older. Additionally, there were more modern devices included in the video, such as a television.
Romanek has said that Reznor was pretty much tortured throughout the shoot, yet he never once complained. Reznor seemed to know that what they were making would be phenomenal and would push the proverbial envelope of the music video format. Romanek stated in commentary on the video that the monkey was not harmed in any way, as it had been trained by an animal trainer to stand and hold onto the nails in the crucifix, and the binding holding its wrists was loose enough that the monkey could have freed itself at any time.
Initially, there was a plan to film two versions of the video: an uncensored director's cut, and an edited version for MTV. This idea would save money on editing because of the costs of editing the film that was used. Reznor objected to shooting a censored version, stating that he didn't care whether or not MTV would show the video. MTV would show the video, but not before edits were made. The network censors objected to imagery they felt was blasphemous (a crucified monkey and a crucifix on a nude woman's blindfold), too risqué (Reznor gagged in front of a wall covered with sado-masochistic paraphernalia and writhing from a chain while blindfolded), or too overtly sexual in nature (the nude woman and a diagram of a vulva). Ultimately, the video was edited for MTV, with offending images either blurred or blacked out, zoomed in to avoid objectionable content, or replaced by a screen reading SCENE MISSING. Some innuendo did make it past the censors, such as the shape of the microphone in some scenes, and what the hanging beef carcass appeared to resemble in addition to wings. Despite the heavy editing on MTV, "Closer" would go on to become one of the network's most popular videos in 1994 and 1995.
The uncensored director's cut can be seen on the ''Closure'' video as well as the DualDisc re-issue of ''The Downward Spiral.'' . It can also be found on a compilation DVD of Mark Romanek's work (''Director's Series Vol. 4: The Work of Director Mark Romanek'') along with footage from the making of the video. A further five Over four hours of additional behind-the-scenes footage eventually surfaced on eBay and was liberated and spread around freely by the NIN fanbase.
Over the years, "Closer" has been included on many greatest video lists. In 2006, it was voted the greatest video on VH1 Classics' "20 Greatest Music Videos of All Time." It has also been placed in the permanent collection at the Museum of Modern Art in New York City.
==Live==
"Closer" has been regularly performed live since 1994. Starting from [[Live: With Teeth]] tour, the instrumental breakdown of "The Only Time" was incorporated into the breakdown of "Closer". Also, the second to last line of the song has been sung as "I am the honey inside your hive" instead of "I drink the honey inside your hive." An example of this can be seen on ''Beside You In Time.''. After being in setlist rotation for 14 years, Reznor stated in a web interview that the song was "nowhere on the setlist" for the [[Wave Goodbye Tour]], despite it later being played a handful of times on that tour, with Reznor playing the breakdown from "The Only Time" instead of [[Alessandro Cortini]]. During the [[Tension 2013 Tour]], "Closer" was referenced during some live performances of "[[All Time Low]]".
==Covers==
==External Links==
*[httphttps://vimeo.com/3554226 "Closer" (uncensored) music video (NSFW)]*[httphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8F_KaILW6g "Closer" (censored) music video]*[httphttps://vimeo.com/3704806 The making of the "Closer" music video]*[httphttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tdXaR0dnH-M "Closer" live from ''Beside You In Time'']*[httphttps://archive.org/details/remix-nin-com-audio-00139 "Closer" (Thrust Remix) " at archive.org]
*[https://archive.org/details/remix-nin-com-audio-02897 "Closer" (Instrumental) at archive.org]
*[http://ninlive.com/audio/NiNterviews%20Set%201/1995_02_09%2006%20Recording%20Process.mp3 Interview] disc mentioning the source of the bass drum sample*[httphttps://www.soundonsound.com/sos/sep12/articles/classic-tracks-0912.htm Sound On Sound article about "Closer" and ''The Downward Spiral'']
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