A NIN fan has released a real version of the Strobe Light April Fool’s album. Listen here.
On April 1, 2009, the Nine Inch Nails Twitter account carried a message of a new album entitled Strobe Light. That Trent Reznor would drop a new album unexpectedly was, well, not unexpected since he’d already done that a couple of times earlier in the decade. What was surprising that this new album was produced by R&B/rap superstar Timbaland.
This, of course, was a joke–and a shot at Chris Cornell who actually had made a (poorly-received and not-well-thought-out) record with Timbaland called Scream.
Trent’s message went like this:
“To download NIN’s new full-length album Strobe Light, PRODUCED BY TIMBALAND, enter a valid email address in the fields below. A download link will be sent to you immediately. Your credit card will be charged $18.98 plus a $10 digital delivery convenience fee. Your files will arrive as windows media files playable on quite a few players with your name embedded all over them just in case you lose them. You will also receive an exclusive photo and a free email account with our partner Google’s Gmail service.
“Your email will be kept confidential and will not be used for
It came with a tracklisting, of course.
- Intro Skit
- Everybody’s Doing It (featuring Chris Martin, Jay-Z
AND - Black T-shirt
- Pussygrinder (featuring Sheryl Crow
- Coffin On The Dancefloor
- This Rhythm Is Infected
- Slide To The Dark Side
- Even Closer (featuring Justin Timberlake and Maynard James Keenan)
- On The List (She’s Not)
- Clap Trap Crack Slap
- Laid, Paid and Played (featuring Fergie of the Black Eyed Peas and Al Jourgensen)
- Feel Like Being Dead Again
- Still Hurts’ (featuring Alicia Keys)
- Outro Skit
No such music existed–until now. We’re not entirely sure where this comes from. Could be a fan. Could be Trent himself. We might never know.
About the Author
Alan Cross is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 30+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.
