The Becoming

Album: The Downward Spiral

Length:5:31

Tempo:{{{BPM}}} BPM

Versions:The Becoming
The Becoming (Still)

Live:Dissonance tour
Performance 2007

"The Becoming" is made from many loops of industrial sounds, showcasing the hard sound from The Downward Spiral. The main body of the song is in a 13/8 time signature before switching to a 6/8 time signature at the breakdown. It then goes back to 13/8 before ending in 6/8, leading into "I Do Not Want This."

A more acoustic version (with Trent Reznor on piano, Danny Lohner on guitar, Jerome Dillon on drums, with drum machine and samples) can be found on Still, with an accompanying video on www.nin.com (YouTube upload).

Meaning

The lyrics describe a man fighting against himself, trying to avoid his "becoming," transforming him into a machine without human characteristics and feelings.

This is a rare example of Reznor directly referencing a name ("Annie") in his lyrics. Usually, he uses ambiguous pronouns. This expresses the need for attachment, the need to interact intimately with another human despite the narrator's extreme attempts to detach himself from the world.

The song begins with industrial noises such as those from a drum machine and what appears to be distorted screams. At the 3-minute mark it mellows into swooshy sounds with ahhing from more emotive voices. There is a final outburst of noise and screaming before fading out with the ahhs again. This song structure is indicative of the struggle between the narrator and the noise/machine.

Song Credits

• Production: Flood and Trent Reznor
• Mixing Engineer: Alan Moulder
• Ring Mod Guitar: Adrian Belew
• ARP2600: Flood

Appearances

Halos

• The Downward Spiral (1994)
• And All That Could Have Been (Deluxe Edition CD; 2002)
• Still

Versions

The Becoming

This is the original album version.

The Becoming (Still)

This version appears on the Still CD, which was Disc 2 of the Deluxe Edition CD of And All That Could Have Been and is currently available through NIN.com.

Song Credits

• Performance: Trent Reznor, Jerome Dillon
• Mix engineering: Alan Moulder
• Engineering: Alan Moulder
• Second Engineering: Leo Herrera
• Programming: Keith Hillebrandt

Lyrics

    I beat my machine it’s a part of me it’s inside of me
    I’m stuck in this dream it’s changing me I am becoming
    The me that you know had some second thoughts
    He’s covered with scabs he is broken and sore
    The me that you know doesn’t come around much
    That part of me isn’t here anymore
    
    All pain disappears it’s the nature of my circuitry
    Drowns out all I hear no escape from this my new consciousness
    The me that you know used to have feelings
    But the blood has stopped pumping and he’s left to decay
    The me that you know is now made up of wires
    And even when I’m right with you I’m so far away
    
    I can try to get away but I’ve strapped myself in
    I can try to scratch away the sound in my ears
    I can see it killing away all my bad parts
    I don’t want to listen but it’s all too clear
    Hiding backwards inside of me I feel so unafraid
    Annie, hold a little tighter I might just slip away
    
    It won’t give up it wants me dead
    Goddamn this noise inside my head