Discipline (Nine Inch Nails song)
Encyclopedia
"Discipline" is a single by American industrial rock
act Nine Inch Nails
. It is the band's first single since the severing its ties with Interscope Records
and publishing music independently. Unlike previous NIN singles, no physical release of the song was issued. The song was first released to radio stations on April 22, 2008, sent by Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor
.
The MP3 download contains an embedded album art image, full lyrics, and the comment: "Go to www.nin.com May 5". Subsequently on May 5, 2008 a new Nine Inch Nails album, The Slip
, was revealed for download. "Discipline" charted on Billboard
' s Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks and Hot Modern Rock Tracks charts, and was Nine Inch Nails' sixth consecutive top ten single on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart.
announced in 2007 that the band had completed its contractual obligations to its record label, Interscope Records
, and would no longer be working with the company. Reznor also revealed that Nine Inch Nails would likely distribute music independently. Since the announcement, Nine Inch Nails released the 36-track instrumental album Ghosts I–IV
in March 2008 on Reznor's independent label The Null Corporation
. After the release of Ghosts, Reznor began writing and recording what would become the next full-length album, The Slip
.
During recording sessions for The Slip, Reznor sent the track "Discipline" to radio stations himself on April 22. The track was sent before the remainder of the album was completed, and less than 24 hours after the track had been mastered by Alan Moulder
. On the same day, the track was also made available for download at the official Nine Inch Nails website for free, as well as multitrack files
of the song for remixing. Reznor reflected on the quick turnaround by saying "that was fun [...] you never could have done that before", referring to his past career on major record labels. "Discipline" was the first Nine Inch Nails single to be released independently via The Null Corporation.
, Bauhaus
, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Giorgio Moroder
. Rolling Stone
magazine described the track as "the closest Reznor has ever come to disco, right down to a splashing high-hat, boosted way up in the mix". Eric Harvey of Pitchfork Media
also compared the song to disco
, saying that the song "eschews a typically monstrous chorus for an airtight industrial disco grind ventilated by an airy piano and falsetto cooing."
Lyrically, Spin
magazine wrote that "As is true of nine out of every ten NIN tracks, 'Discipline' is about submission and domination". Harvey compared "Discipline" to one Nine Inch Nails's first singles, "Head Like a Hole
", saying "['Discipline'] comes from a long-established and now label-free artist trying to reflexively reassert his position in the pop landscape, on his own terms. [...] 'Discipline' evinces Reznor's desire for some sort of framework [...] In relative terms, 'I need your discipline/ I need your help' is sure a long way from the nearly 20-year-old 'Head Like a Hole' refrain 'I'd rather die/ Than give you control'."
. The ID3
tag of the downloadable track came with the message "Go to www.nin.com May 5", the day that The Slip would eventually be released as a free download.
"Discipline" was only made available for airplay and download; a physical release was never issued. Though no music video was created for the song either, retail versions of The Slip included a DVD
featuring a live-rehearsal of the song by the Nine Inch Nails live band. The rehearsal video has since been posted on the band's official Vimeo
and YouTube
pages. The song was written and composed by Trent Reznor, and produced by Alan Moulder and Atticus Ross
. Like the entirety of The Slip, "Discipline" was released under a Creative Commons
attribution-noncommercial share-alike
license, in effect allowing anyone to use or rework the material for any non-profit purpose, as long as credit is provided and the resulting work is released under a similar license.
"Discipline" reached number six and number 24 on Billboard
' s Hot Modern Rock Tracks and Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks charts, respectively, and failed to top any charts. The song was the band's sixth consecutive top ten single on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart, but had no involvement at Top 5. The song also charted at number nine on Billboard' s "iLike Libraries: Most Added" chart, which tracks total downloads over the iLike
online service.
Pitchfork Media's review of The Slip called the track "another solid pop song about constraint from the guy who, following Prince
, brought kinky sex odes to strip-mall bars." Spin
magazine's review of the album called "Discipline" "the most conventional tune" from The Slip.
Industrial rock
Industrial rock is a musical genre that fuses industrial music and specific rock subgenres. Industrial rock spawned industrial metal, with which it is often confused...
act Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails is an American industrial rock project, founded in 1988 by Trent Reznor in Cleveland, Ohio. As its main producer, singer, songwriter, and instrumentalist, Reznor is the only official member of Nine Inch Nails and remains solely responsible for its direction...
. It is the band's first single since the severing its ties with Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
and publishing music independently. Unlike previous NIN singles, no physical release of the song was issued. The song was first released to radio stations on April 22, 2008, sent by Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor
Trent Reznor
Michael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...
.
The MP3 download contains an embedded album art image, full lyrics, and the comment: "Go to www.nin.com May 5". Subsequently on May 5, 2008 a new Nine Inch Nails album, The Slip
The Slip (album)
The Slip is the seventh studio album by American industrial rock act Nine Inch Nails, released on July 22, 2008. It was the fourth consecutive Nine Inch Nails release to be produced by frontman Trent Reznor with collaborators Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder...
, was revealed for download. "Discipline" charted on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
Recording
Nine Inch Nails front man Trent ReznorTrent Reznor
Michael Trent Reznor is an American multi-instrumentalist, composer, record producer, and leader of industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. Reznor is also a member of How to Destroy Angels alongside his wife, Mariqueen Maandig, and Atticus Ross. He was previously associated with bands Option 30,...
announced in 2007 that the band had completed its contractual obligations to its record label, Interscope Records
Interscope Records
Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group that currently operates as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-History:...
, and would no longer be working with the company. Reznor also revealed that Nine Inch Nails would likely distribute music independently. Since the announcement, Nine Inch Nails released the 36-track instrumental album Ghosts I–IV
Ghosts I–IV
Ghosts I–IV is the sixth studio album by American industrial rock act Nine Inch Nails, released on March 2, 2008. The team behind the project included Nine Inch Nails front man Trent Reznor, studio-collaborators Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder, and instrumental contributions from Alessandro Cortini,...
in March 2008 on Reznor's independent label The Null Corporation
The Null Corporation
The Null Corporation is an independent record label which releases the work of Nine Inch Nails and How to Destroy Angels. The Nine Inch Nails albums, Ghosts I–IV and The Slip, have been released in physical formats under the Null Corporation imprint...
. After the release of Ghosts, Reznor began writing and recording what would become the next full-length album, The Slip
The Slip (album)
The Slip is the seventh studio album by American industrial rock act Nine Inch Nails, released on July 22, 2008. It was the fourth consecutive Nine Inch Nails release to be produced by frontman Trent Reznor with collaborators Atticus Ross and Alan Moulder...
.
During recording sessions for The Slip, Reznor sent the track "Discipline" to radio stations himself on April 22. The track was sent before the remainder of the album was completed, and less than 24 hours after the track had been mastered by Alan Moulder
Alan Moulder
Alan Moulder is one of Britain's premier alternative rock record producers. He has worked with such artists as Depeche Mode, Erasure, Elastica, Gary Numan, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Curve, Ride, Lush and My Bloody Valentine, Lostprophets, Shihad, Ivyrise and Placebo, as well as with many American...
. On the same day, the track was also made available for download at the official Nine Inch Nails website for free, as well as multitrack files
Multitrack recording
Multitrack recording is a method of sound recording that allows for the separate recording of multiple sound sources to create a cohesive whole...
of the song for remixing. Reznor reflected on the quick turnaround by saying "that was fun [...] you never could have done that before", referring to his past career on major record labels. "Discipline" was the first Nine Inch Nails single to be released independently via The Null Corporation.
Music and lyrics
The largely electronic instrumentation of "Discipline" has been compared to Depeche ModeDepeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic music band formed in 1980 in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
, Bauhaus
Bauhaus (band)
Bauhaus was an English rock band formed in Northampton in 1978. The group consisted of Peter Murphy , Daniel Ash , Kevin Haskins and David J . The band was originally Bauhaus 1919 before they dropped the numerical portion within a year of formation...
, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and Giorgio Moroder
Giorgio Moroder
Hansjörg "Giorgio" Moroder is an Italian record producer, songwriter and performer based in Los Angeles. When in Munich in the 1970s, he started his own record label called Oasis Records, which several years later became a subdivision of Casablanca Records...
. Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
magazine described the track as "the closest Reznor has ever come to disco, right down to a splashing high-hat, boosted way up in the mix". Eric Harvey of Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
also compared the song to disco
Disco
Disco is a genre of dance music. Disco acts charted high during the mid-1970s, and the genre's popularity peaked during the late 1970s. It had its roots in clubs that catered to African American, gay, psychedelic, and other communities in New York City and Philadelphia during the late 1960s and...
, saying that the song "eschews a typically monstrous chorus for an airtight industrial disco grind ventilated by an airy piano and falsetto cooing."
Lyrically, Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
magazine wrote that "As is true of nine out of every ten NIN tracks, 'Discipline' is about submission and domination". Harvey compared "Discipline" to one Nine Inch Nails's first singles, "Head Like a Hole
Head Like a Hole
"Head Like a Hole" is a song by the American industrial rock project Nine Inch Nails. A song influenced by industrial metal group Ministry, it was released as the second single from the group's debut album Pretty Hate Machine...
", saying "['Discipline'] comes from a long-established and now label-free artist trying to reflexively reassert his position in the pop landscape, on his own terms. [...] 'Discipline' evinces Reznor's desire for some sort of framework [...] In relative terms, 'I need your discipline/ I need your help' is sure a long way from the nearly 20-year-old 'Head Like a Hole' refrain 'I'd rather die/ Than give you control'."
Release and reception
"Discipline" was released on April 22, 2008, and was the first and only single from The Slip. The song was also the first single released from the band under Reznor's newly-formed independent label, The Null CorporationThe Null Corporation
The Null Corporation is an independent record label which releases the work of Nine Inch Nails and How to Destroy Angels. The Nine Inch Nails albums, Ghosts I–IV and The Slip, have been released in physical formats under the Null Corporation imprint...
. The ID3
ID3
ID3 is a metadata container most often used in conjunction with the MP3 audio file format. It allows information such as the title, artist, album, track number, and other information about the file to be stored in the file itself....
tag of the downloadable track came with the message "Go to www.nin.com May 5", the day that The Slip would eventually be released as a free download.
"Discipline" was only made available for airplay and download; a physical release was never issued. Though no music video was created for the song either, retail versions of The Slip included a DVD
DVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
featuring a live-rehearsal of the song by the Nine Inch Nails live band. The rehearsal video has since been posted on the band's official Vimeo
Vimeo
Vimeo is a video-sharing website on which users can upload, share, and view videos. It was founded by Zach Klein and Jake Lodwick in November 2004...
and YouTube
YouTube
YouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
pages. The song was written and composed by Trent Reznor, and produced by Alan Moulder and Atticus Ross
Atticus Ross
Atticus Ross is an English musician, composer and producer. Ross, along with Trent Reznor, won the Academy Award for Best Original Score for The Social Network in 2011.-Early career:...
. Like the entirety of The Slip, "Discipline" was released under a Creative Commons
Creative Commons
Creative Commons is a non-profit organization headquartered in Mountain View, California, United States devoted to expanding the range of creative works available for others to build upon legally and to share. The organization has released several copyright-licenses known as Creative Commons...
attribution-noncommercial share-alike
Creative Commons licenses
Creative Commons licenses are several copyright licenses that allow the distribution of copyrighted works. The licenses differ by several combinations that condition the terms of distribution. They were initially released on December 16, 2002 by Creative Commons, a U.S...
license, in effect allowing anyone to use or rework the material for any non-profit purpose, as long as credit is provided and the resulting work is released under a similar license.
"Discipline" reached number six and number 24 on Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
ILike
iLike is an online service that allows users to download and share music. The website makes use of a sidebar that is used with Apple's iTunes or Microsoft's Windows Media Player. The program and sidebar are not required in order to use the site but allow for ease in discovering new artists....
online service.
Pitchfork Media's review of The Slip called the track "another solid pop song about constraint from the guy who, following Prince
Prince (musician)
Prince Rogers Nelson , often known simply as Prince, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. Prince has produced ten platinum albums and thirty Top 40 singles during his career. Prince founded his own recording studio and label; writing, self-producing and playing most, or all, of...
, brought kinky sex odes to strip-mall bars." Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
magazine's review of the album called "Discipline" "the most conventional tune" from The Slip.
Chart positions
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks | 24 |
| Hot Modern Rock Tracks | 6 |
| iLike ILike iLike is an online service that allows users to download and share music. The website makes use of a sidebar that is used with Apple's iTunes or Microsoft's Windows Media Player. The program and sidebar are not required in order to use the site but allow for ease in discovering new artists.... Libraries: Most Added |
9 |
External links
- Official album website
- The Slip at the Internet ArchiveInternet ArchiveThe Internet Archive is a non-profit digital library with the stated mission of "universal access to all knowledge". It offers permanent storage and access to collections of digitized materials, including websites, music, moving images, and nearly 3 million public domain books. The Internet Archive...