Customer Reviews

Fixed

5 star:		(39)
4 star:		(22)
3 star:		(13)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

Whenever I think of Broken and Fixed, I want to make a "If it's not broke..." joke, but I'll restrain myself. I always thought Fixed was an interesting name for the remixes of Broken. Granted, "Fixed" is the opposite of "Broken", but these are anything BUT fixed.

Trent and company DEMOLISH six tracks from Broken (Gave Up, Last, Wish x2 and Happiness In Slavery x2). These tracks all have a few things in common: you will be hard-pressed to identify the original song if you don't have the tracklisting in front of you, and they tend to be repetitive. Some tracks just drone on at points, but they always pick up again. Don't even attempt to listen to this while going to sleep; there are MANY layers to these tracks, and there's weird stuff going on in the background that will make you jump.

Some songs, one of the Wish remixes for example, have samples in them that will COMPLETELY catch you off guard, and you might even chuckle about them later. NIN obviously had a lot of fun putting this together, but this definitely is the hardest-to-swallow NIN album to date. A lot of my friends who listen to NIN don't like this because it's just "too weird."

I love this album purely for it's creativity. I must reiterate, though, that if you LOVED Broken just because it was a good thrash album, and nothing more, then stay away from this; it will give you a bad taste for NIN. This is their most extremely divergent album, but if you just give it a try, it will grow on you. On a final note, this is the domestic release. There is NOTHING track-wise different between it and the import version. May I suggest buying the US version first? If you're not sure if you'll like it or not, this is the way to go. If you DO end up liking it, and are the completist, you can always get the import later.

I've heard people bitch and I've heard people praise "Fixed" the 1992 follow-up to NIN's EP "Broken". Here's the straight poo on what it's all about. "Fixed" is the closest to pure industrial music Trent has gotten to. It's not experimental, main-stream, or even understandable. It is an album about sound and emotion. "Broken", when compared to other NIN albums, sticks out like a sore thumb due to its abrasive guitar, drums, and a noticeable absence of industrialized components which NIN is associated with. I happen to love Broken, it might very well be my favorite NIN album, but I must say "Fixed" is a musical masterpiece, not a flop. In all sense, the titles of the two albums should have been flip-flopped, for "Broken" sounds much more like a "Fixed" version of the songs. Maybe that's what Trent had in mind when he named them. Always playing with our heads is he. However, this album is NOT for everyone. In order to appreciate this album you must also appreciate an abstract manipulated noise. This is the emotion Broken just couldn't get across. It is a fine blend of mayhem meets harmony. I recommend "Fixed" to anyone who enjoys being taken into the music, not just listening.

Despite warnings about 4 years ago from a friend who told me not to buy it, I'm glad I blocked him out. This is quite a far cry from the normal NIN sound, but it's quite an amazing trip. It's extremely harsh and brutal. Coil's mix of "Gave Up" speeds the whole thing up and adds an extreme amount of anger, which is wonderful. Thirwell aka Foetus' remix of "Wish" is the longest track here, adding up to a whopping 9 minutes, and never loses it's intensity. The Paul Kendall remix of "Happiness in Slavery" is my personal favorite here. Not much remains from the original song, but it's a frenzy of wailing synth and screams with the everpresent beat still thumping away. The album takes a strange turn on "Throw This Away". It's INCREDIBLY subdued, well as far as this album goes anyways :), and then just erupts into a remixed ending of "Last" from Broken. "Fist F*ck" is where Thirwell gets another shot at deconstructing "Wish" into such an incredibly bizarre entity of it's own. "Screaming Slave" is one of those tracks you either love or extremely hate. It's that simple. It's a pure deconstruction of "Happiness in Slavery".

This is definitely not an album for the casual NIN listener. The whole album, if you can believe it, has a much rawer angrier feel than Broken. It's probably a good album for someone into harsh abrasive sounds or industrial music. If you were into such NIN fare as "Closer" or "Head Like A Hole", best odds are for you to stay away from this one and get "The Downward Spiral", a much tamer excursion. Ahh... just listening to it brings back such memories...

I need to counter the mediocre and bad reviews of Fixed. This CD is absolutely worth getting. Broken is about as pure Trent Reznor as you can get and Fixed is a step beyond that. If you like Broken and Fixed, you like the real NIN.

Gave Up is fantastic, perfectly disjointed yet still driving and aggressive. Then there's Wish. It alone is worth the price of the CD. The original was great, this remix is life-altering. It's violent, shrill, jarring, it takes everything that makes NIN what it is and cranks it up to the highest level.

After Wish, the songs get more quirky and less "song-like". This isn't a bad thing, this is Trent Reznor. If you like things even more off-the-wall, the last few tracks might just be your favorites.

Regardless, I consider Fixed and Broken to be the most NIN of all the NIN CD's. If you really want to get inside Trent's head and see just what the world looks like to him, buy these, jack up the treble, jack up the volume, then listen 'til your ears bleed.

One of the more odd remix-EP's NIN has done, but a very cool one that fits within the era in which it was created and released. Diehard fans will end up with this album just to collect the halos, and fans of a certain age, starved for NIN releases in the 90's, own it simply because it came out.

Older fans, and by that I mean actually older, not just longtime fans, might enjoy this more if they came at NIN from the Ministry/Skinny Puppy angle. There's a lot to appreciate in the configuration and chaos of this release, that make it, in some ways, as deep as Broken.

For the casual fan it may be a bit to stomach, and I question how much the casual fan might actually listen to this beyond the first few spins.

That being said, there is a lot of meat to this EP, inso much as it is truly a thematic and textured being of measured chaos, which stretches the limits of sound, noise and pace to really interesting places. This CD is mean for gulping all at once, not parsing into songs, and it will succeed for those curious and interested in experimental works, particularly in perspective on existing machinations like those found on the sister EP Broken.

I own NIN's entire discography (and then some), and for whatever reason, I find myself listening to this the most... it was probably my least favorite early on, but after 8+ years of owning it.. there is something so abrasive that once you ease to it there is little to tire of. I listen to the final track (the only one amazon doesn't let you sample) maybe three times a week. my favorite NIN track of all time (with one possible exception, but right now, I'll say it's above it's otherwise #2 slot in my heart). the lack of any real structure actually increase's it's replay value; there is no easy pattern to 'conquer', or wrap your mind around, to just move on. it isn't easily absorbed, but there's alot of aesthetic noise to really keep it advancing in terms of liking it, with each listen, that is.

the other tracks, have too much rhythm once you get used to Screaming Slave, there is no replacing it.

I wouldn't say it's generally 'more hard' than broken. just more 'seething', more twisted and more "insane", it does have a softer, more unconcerned, feel; but it's in the same manner as dementia would be... the last track, however, is much louder than anything on broken. the last track, is truly "broken", and evokes that meaning more than any NIN release.

If you dig blood curdling, pound for pounding of metallic clashes, bangs and eardrum ripping sounds (throw in some lyrical mayhem) you'll enjoy this disc.

Halo six re-introduces the then brand new sounds from 1992. An altogether new sound since the release of Pretty Hate Machine, this remix disc is the rebirth of it all. A few haloes short from a fall into the downward spiral.

A breakdown of Broken remixes-track to track
1. Gave Up- {at first view of the cd back, you'll notice three song titles remain the same as the Broken ep} this starts off with industrial sounds and contains a line from the original. then the song picks up momentum from that point on. Using a special recording method, the lyrics in this Gave Up are the same from the song only sped up and piled upon each other, causing a jumble of lyrics being spat out in such a way that is catchy and awesome. The song carries with it the pounding of destruction and the beat of many drums.

2. Wish-The Fixed version is made up of three different Wishes all in one tightly rolled track. Featuring a 3 minute instrumental introduction, featuring backwards drumming and sounds of total destruction. The second verse, which is the third or fourth minute starts with the actual song. More violent drum beats, reptitive explosions carry it through to the third verse. This verse is the song again only with an almost feeling of 'emptiness'. Less bass, more treble seems to be route this verse takes. Continues on with the bashing and crashing of drums.

3. Happiness In Slavery- Starts off with an awesome, continuous drum beat (sounds very much like a later released song, "Heresy"), and is accompanied by screaming (by late Bob Flanagan; star of the HIS video). By tracks' midsection, a vibrating, bassy noise is made which really catches attention when the bass is cranked. The screaming slave continues through out.

4. Throw This Away- is basically a remix of songs Last and Suck. The track starts off with a reoccuring bass, really dark yet mellow. Builds up to a crescendo of slashing pounds. The first few moments is accompanied by a whispering line from Suck, "I am so dirty...on the inside" more so over a line from Last which is repeated; "I want you to make me, I want you to take me, I want you to break me, and I want you to throw me away!".
The song changes direction severely with a pounding of drums and guitars. In the second half of the remix, the Last lines are heard more predominantly.

5. Fist Fu++- a remix of Wish. Contains the backwards masking of the Wish drum line, a devilishly spooky voice speaking through out, mentioning something about a "Tissue corridor". Along with the backwards drumming, there is a bass line that pushes it's way through the mess. Sounds real satanical. There is a sound that makes ya think "Oh, is this why it's called Fist Fudge...really original and creative. Amidst the crowding drums and bass and devil voice, the song breaks out with a peaceful (out of nowhere line from a show/movie) 'I want to feel that way too','I bet you will someday." but it's cut off too quickly with a return of the music. A spine stretching, skull popping end finishes this one off.


6. Screaming Slave-yes, the end all be all of Fixed. The 'track' you either LOVE or HATE. I love it. I think it's a creative onslaught of idustrial/metal bending/automotive catastrophe music. Starts off with something that sounds like my old LTD, when it wouldn't start properly. A few beats with audible music from the original. Twice, the music stops, once for an instant of peace, tranquility with birds chirping, then the next silence is the entire screaming slave edit piece with B. Flanagan, you can almost hear someone else speaking to him, either directing him or really torturing him. There is a sense of music with it all.....just buy this disc and find out...

over all, in its brutal darkness and realm of goth sprouting electronicism, Fixed along with it's twin, Broken...is all very much so creative, original and artsy in a way. When metal fights back. Very good music.

Fixed[EP] contains different unique interpretations of songs found on Broken[EP]. After hearing Broken, it's difficult to imagine a recording that surpasses or even matches up to its intensity and cutting edge. As if Broken couldn't get any heavier, Fixed is even less commercial and harder to swallow than its original studio counterpart. The sound is more experimental, captivating yet meaningful. With more layers piled on, the music is less unimaginative and more compelling than before.

Coil's remix of "Gave Up" is more provocative with Trent's voice segmented and recorded backwards while juxtaposed against innovative dance rhythms. "Happiness in Slavery" remix also shines through its intoxicating beats and dark progressive techno approach. My personal favorite is the 9 minute remix of "Wish". With help from J.G.Thrilwell, the song which won Reznor a grammy has been reassembled with a new perspective and purpose. While this track stands out in length, it also stands out in creativity and musical brilliance.

The intention of Fixed was mainly done due to the success of Broken. Even though it comes in an appealing blue package, it's definitely more than meets the eye. Halo 6 is not for the average listener and may be too much to digest initially. However, if given the chance, Fixed will indeed grow on you. I recommend it to all NIN fans or any music lover who will listen to it with an open mind. Although it is portrayed as a remix CD, Fixed has become a personal favorite and is capable and worthy of standing upon its own two feet.

Anyone who thinks that NIN is too mainstream and mocks them for "popularizing" industrial music probably has this album hidden away as a guilty pleasure. NIN is usually calmer than this - this in my opinion ranks with the best of hardcore industrial/noise recordings. It's just a huge splattering of noise with really great,erotic, throbbing beats underneath and it's fabulous. If you can listen to this without wanting to explode, I wonder about you. Well, if you don't enjoy having your ears assaulted in a very harsh and rude way, don't buy this. If you do you're in luck.

If you liked "Broken" then you will love this CD as your own child. It has amzing remixes of the amazing songs that were on the broken cd. I never knew and never will know how Nine Inch Nails can write this kind of music, but it is purely AMAZING. If you are going to get this CD which I highly suggest then you should get the imported version :-)