Review Summary: Experimentation and intensional divergence from self-influence make Welcome Oblivion one of Reznor's most distinguished works, and one of the most creative albums in the 2010s.
This album is three years old, and I don't hear a peep from anyone about what this album was and what it had to offer in the realm of modern music. This is How to Destroy Angels.
Trent Reznor (of Nine Inch Nails fame) helms this musical project - I’m using that term because the band is a culmination of art and music alike - with co-producer and longtime collaborator Atticus Ross. Nine Inch Nails’ art director Rob Sheridan takes up his typical role for this project as well. And finally, Reznor’s wife Mariqueen Maandig is the lead vocalist. There’s a lot of talent, creativity and innovation to be had here, and with this project. Following two EPs, the first of which felt more like a Nine Inch Nails EP with guest vocals (not a bad thing in the least), Welcome Oblivion proved to be its declaration as something completely different from any of Reznor’s previous work, as well as something completely different from current music as a whole. What did we get with the final album? Pretty much exactly that: an extremely innovative, creative and unique listening experience. It’s not perfect by any stretch of the imagination, but it’s definitely an overlooked work. I think there are a few reasons behind this, between lack of marketing from Columbia Records, a small but palpable fan-following, and the fact that the release was overshadowed by the news of the reunion of Nine Inch Nails.
And Welcome Oblivion proves to be better than Nine Inch Nails’ safe return Hesitation Marks. While that wasn’t a great album for Reznor, it certainly wasn’t bad, but I think its main detriment was its lack of innovation and evolution, which is what Reznor is famous for. Each of Nine Inch Nails’ albums have a distinct sonic footprint and each of the albums seem to progress in some direction. If Hesitation Marks proved to be a mild regression of NIN’s previous work, I think it’s because Reznor wore himself thin between Welcome Oblivion and Hesitation Marks. It’s easy to tell which one Reznor spent more time on, and that’s Welcome Oblivion.
With Welcome Oblivion, we have some of the most textured music ever created: in some songs, layers subtilely build until the listener is in up to their waist in thick black liquid sound. And that metaphor isn’t far from the feeling that one gets from listening to Welcome Oblivion; it feels like a tar pit that moves and ensnares the listener. It’s truly unique. There’s looped drums and synths that blare on in the background at times, and then there are things that aren’t picked up until the 5th, 6th, 10th listens. It’s a mixture of industrial roots and alternative electronic rock, but honestly there really isn’t anything like it.
Mariqueen here has the task of proving herself as a vocalist when put up against the textured and varied instrumental flavors on this album. And after an EP where it felt as if she was just placed in the mix, she really stands out on most of the tracks in Welcome Oblivion. She also proves to have a range in this record, from the screams on the title track to the croons in the chorus of the same tune. She whispers throughout and even has an operatic moment on the track “And the Sky Began to Scream,” a highlight track.
The album kicks off with quite a banging opener, aptly named “The Wake Up,” in which loud and simple percussion precedes deep distorted bass synths and high-pitched robotic digitized sounds. Mariqueen and Trent alike shout and repeat “is anybody listening?” Asking the audience perhaps? This is an honest question, and a slight warning for what’s to come, which is a challengingly different album. “Keep it Together” switches things into a mellower gear, with low and fast-paced bass drum kick hits. The reverb on here is incredible and unique; it’s truly absorbing. Mariqueen comes in with a breathy and fittingly haunting vocal performance that centers within a lower octave than most female vocals. The uniqueness already is astounding.
“And the Sky Began to Scream” brings things back up, and the amount of layering of the sounds in this track is intimidatingly intricate. Everything feels performed rather than simply looped, and that’s something that can be said about most of the tracks on here. The hip-hop inspired beat and unique timbre of synths and instrumentation used here is interesting, and the reverb once again is used really well. It requires multiple listens, and it’s easy to oblige and indulge further because of how stylish and lavish the production is. This is truly some of Reznor’s best work since the ‘90s.
The title track following right after is loud and quite awesome in the beginning but feels half-finished: two verses, two chorus and a repetitive coda that extends for more than half the track. It honestly becomes tiresome after the second verse, but the guitar riff in the chorus that almost sounds synth-like is stellar. “On the Wing” is significantly mellower and downbeat, with soft layered and synchronized vocals from Reznor husband and wife.
Welcome Oblivion is extremely experimental, not with song structure but rather with sound design. It sounds like a mixture of mediums, textured like an oil painting, layered like a typical Reznor production and immersive like a good film. The atmosphere is stellar and most of the songs deliver and benefit greatly from Reznor and Ross’ experimentation. Highlights of songwriting triumphs here include “Ice Age,” a very cool and almost tribal exercise in minimalism; “And the Sky Began to Scream,” which is an amazing crescendo into an ocean of noise that doesn’t seem to end; “How Long,” a very catchy and interesting pop-like iteration that features Mariqueen’s best vocal performance here; “Strings and Attractors,” which almost sounds like New Order with its synth lines and fantastically disorienting bass-heavy chorus; “Too Late, All Gone,” which has some of the coolest synthesizer sounds especially in the long and winding coda; and “The Loop Closes,” which kind of cashes in on Reznor’s infamous repetition in the best way.
Some of the experimentation doesn’t sit very well, however. “Recursive Self-Improvement” is redundant and overlong, “Hallowed Ground” is cool and brooding enough but its a weak closing track, and one of the vinyl bonus tracks titled “Unintended Consequences” seems half-assed and put in there to warrant buying the vinyl (which is the format that should be bought anyway). That’s three weak tracks, but ALL of the tracks have their merits.
Welcome Oblivion is easily in the top five most creative albums in the 2010s, and it was truly overlooked. The news of Nine Inch Nails reuniting overshadowed the release of the album, though HTDA did have a very successful limited tour. No one really talks about the extremely innovative performance and light show that they had for that tour, more so than even NIN’s Tension tour. Welcome Oblivion is flawed yet powerful, and experimental but accessible, if you let yourself be absorbed in its sinister world.
8.5/10
p.s. Rob Sheridan’s art is also under-appreciated. The art serves as a visual complement to the sonic landscapes that the music paints quite vividly. Easily his best work with Reznor...until the Fragile reissue comes around.
