Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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41 of 43 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
It is your duty to support courageous music, January 23, 2002
One of the drawbacks to live performances of electronics-heavy music is that much of it simply isn't live--it's prerecorded loops. "And All That Could Have Been" does suffer a bit from this, but the intensity of the live instrumentation (including Reznor's singing) makes up for that deficit in spades. "The Fragile," while a masterpiece, was overproduced; in contrast "And All That Could Have Been" retains a raw feel that is glorious, lacerating. It's particularly great to see how NIN have kept the early songs alive and vital. "Head Like a Hole" and "Terrible Lie" (from "Pretty Hate Machine") are fully updated.Do whatever you can to get the deluxe edition. The "Still" CD (a tip of the hat to Joy Division?) is a startling contrast to "And All That Could Have Been." Whereas the former is a loud, cathartic mass event, the latter is accoustic, intimate, and works primarily by layering tension. The sound and feel of a clear winter dawn--just after your world fell apart. The live CD will exhaust you. The accoustic one will burst your heart.
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23 of 24 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Buy Only for Disc 2, February 23, 2004
I don't usually feel compelled to write up NIN reviews only because there are so many already and mine would get lost in the sea. Though I think all Trent's records are genious I found this one to be the one I'll recommend the most.
The 2 disc set comes with one live performance (not the same performance as on their "All That Could Have Been" DVD) and one "unplugged" studio release of some earlier works, including a few new songs.
I already have heard a buttload of live NIN discs I've purchased over the years at independent stores, so the live performance, though played very well, wasn't anything new. NIN always seems to play almost the same lineup at every concert, so I really don't ever listen to the first disc. If you've never heard any NIN live stuff, then this disc 1 is a must. It's cool to see how the band performs the highly technical synth-laden songs live. At some points, trent can add his own flare to every song and makes it sound a lot better then the studio version, which is something a whole lot of musicians can't do. This really is the only reason I took off a star, for my personal taste.
Disc 2 is the shining moment here. The only reason to buy this, so don't settle for the 1 disc version, even though the limited edition is harder to find. I can't think of any other way to describe the acoustic versions of trent's music except with 2 words: Absolute Beauty. The remade songs (there are a couple of remakes of already remade songs) are completely piano driven. Sure there are synth effects thoughout, but the piano really helps develop the bleakness, and beautiful vulnerability of the whole record. Highlight tracks are; the piano ballad "Adrift and At Piece," which is so gorgeous it can bring a tear to your eye, "And All that Could Have Been," which makes one think of sunlight underwater in a snow colored forest, and "The Day the World Went Away," a remake of a remake which is so story like you can't help but be enchanted by the ending and hitting the repeat button. The final track "Leaving Hope" is an instrumental full of goregous synth effects and piano, leaving a saddened feeling to the listener. I don't care what type of music you are into, anything from Junk like Nora Jones all the way up to brilliant power metal like Blind Guardian, there is no denying the beauty of this record. I have a few friends into all different types of music like Tori Amos, Michelle Branch, Matchbox 20, Pink Floyd, Metallica, Rhapsody, etc and all of whom think this record is good or just plain great. This is PERFECT to listen to if you're trying to write a poem, or you're just relaxing on a rainy weekend evening. This is a MUST BUY for EVERYONE!
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11 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
All it can be - an EXCELLENT concert recording, January 23, 2002
DISC 1:
Live concert albums used to stink; the sound quality never came close to a studio recording. Like Metallica's "S&M," NIN's "And All That Could Have Been" is so well mastered and mixed that it sounds like a studio album, with a cheering crowd added just for effect.Reznor's live vocals are as good as in the studio. He ...(really abuses his voice) on each release, and this is no exception. He finally gives himself a break on "The Great Below," dropping the key from A to A-flat. The band is tight, and it SHOULD be, since most of the songs are at least half-mechanized. Here again, I've gotta praise the mixing - the instruments and keyboard tracks are distinct and crystal-clear. Though I would've liked to hear "Ruiner" and "No, You Don't" live, the classics ("Head Like a Hole," "Closer" "Terrible Lie," "Something I Can Never Have") are all here. If you're even reading this review, you're probably familiar with NIN's songs. On the off chance you've lived on Blarrgon VI since 1989: industrial rock with influences as diverse as David Bowie and Einsturzende Neubauten. Let the It's Not Industrial debate begin! DISC 2:
This is a real departure from any prior CD. It's like "A Private Evening With Trent Reznor." His gentler songs, with mostly piano and his voice. Very intimate. He throws in a couple of new pieces that don't really tell you where he's going with the next album, but they have an intriguing movie soundtrack quality. Get the double CD. Don't cheat yourself out of his "softer side" on the bonus disc. "All That Could Have Been" offers complete atonement for the half dozen or so lame "remix" haloes Reznor has put out over the years. All in all, this is a necessary addition to any NIN library. Besides, it's Halo Seventeen; the haloholics know what I'm talking about.
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