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| live = [[Self Destruct Touring Cycle]]<br>[[With Teeth Fall Arena Tour]] through [[Wave Goodbye Tour]]
}}'''"Mr. Self Destruct"''' is the first track on the 1994 release ''[[The Downward Spiral (halo)|The Downward Spiral]].'' Its loud and abrasive verses and choruses as well as the contrast in the quiet bridge and use of samples combine to make a comprehensive introduction to the sonic characteristics of the entire album.
===Song Credits===
*[[In_pop_culture#Film|''Man On Fire'']] (2004)
==VersionsAbout=====Mr. Self Destruct===This is The song's title seems to be one of several references to Soft Cell, a cited influence for NIN, as a song of the original same name opens their 1994 album version''This Last Night in Sodom. It begins with a restructured sample from '' Other references may include the film reference to their album ''THX 1138,The Art of Falling Apart'' and immediately picks up with very fast and aggressive verses and choruses, Reznor's casual vocal delivery contrasting with in the noisy cacophony around it. remixes titled "The bridge is in stark contrast: quiet, subdued and atmospheric, it is the only section Art of the song to feature bass. A return to cacophony for the final verse and choruses gives way to manipulated Self Destruction" and looped guitar noises made by Adrian Belew, which cuts off suddenly and leads into NIN covering "[[PiggyMemorabilia]]". Its call-and-response style verses are later recalled by those of "[[While I'm Still HereSex Dwarf]],"though the latter remains unreleased and/or incomplete.
In the April 1994 issue of ''Guitar World'', Reznor was asked about the circumstances behind the guest appearance of guitarist Belew:
:REZNOR: His name just popped into my head. I called my manager and two days later he was here. As it turned out he was already in L.A., working on something else... The songs were pretty much arranged, but we thought, "What would it be like if we got someone in here who could really play his ass off? Let's see what happens." We basically told Adrian, "Just play whatever you want and we'll piece it together however we see fit. Maybe stuff from one song will fit into another." We did about six or seven songs with four or five passes each. One time we'd tell Adrian something like, "Concentrate on a rhythmic part." Another time, "Think in terms of countermelody." Or, "Think in terms of no pitch at all, just noise." He pulled out a bunch of great sounds that he never gets to use. Flood and I were definitely intimidated when he first came up. We were sitting in the living room of Sharon Tate's house--our studio--with this guy who's played with Paul Simon and David Bowie. The first song we played him was "Mr. Self Destruct"--the hardest-sounding one we had. I said, "Play whatever you want." He said, "What key is it in?" And I had to say, "Uh, I don't remember. It's probably in E." It's a real fast track. For a moment he thought, "What the fuck?" Then he kicked in and it was just the most awesome thing.
==Versions==
===Mr. Self Destruct===
This is the original album version. It begins with a restructured sample from the film ''THX 1138,'' and immediately picks up with very fast and aggressive verses and choruses, Reznor's casual vocal delivery contrasting with the noisy cacophony around it. The bridge is in stark contrast: quiet, subdued and atmospheric, it is the only section of the song to feature bass. A return to cacophony for the final verse and choruses gives way to manipulated and looped guitar noises made by Adrian Belew, which cuts off suddenly and leads into "[[Piggy]]". Its call-and-response style verses are later recalled by those of "[[While I'm Still Here]]".
===Mr. Self Destruct (Instrumental)===
===The Art of Self Destruction, Part One===
'''''Running Time: 5:41'''''
This remix appears on ''Further Down The Spiral.'' In contrast with the vocals prominent in the original, a re-recorded vocal in a quiet and whispered style is used. In fact, most of its non-linear structure builds using elements of the quiet bridge.
====Song Credits====
===Self Destruction, Part Two===
'''''Running Time: 5:37'''''
This remix, also on ''Further Down The Spiral,'' features the guitar work by [[Adrian Belew]] and samples [[David Bowie]].
====Song Credits====
===Self Destruction, Part Three===
'''''Running Time: 3:28'''''
This version is on the UK edition of ''Further Down The Spiral'' in place of Part Two, and follows the original structure of "Mr. Self Destruct" with only minor changes in the mix and the removal of the sample and concluding guitar scramble.
====Song Credits====
===Self Destruction, Final===
'''''Running Time: 9:52'''''
This is the last remix on the US edition of ''Further Down The Spiral''. It also features the guitar by Adrian Belew and samples David Bowie, in particular the lyric "wanking" repeated many times, originally from Bowie's "Time."
====Song Credits====
===The Beauty of Being Numb===
'''''Running Time: 5:06'''''
The first part of this track is a version of "Mr. Self Destruct" played in reverse and remixed by NIN, Beavan and Pollack. The second part is an entirely new composition created by [[Aphex Twin]], which eventually crossfades with the opening straw blowing sounds from "[[Eraser]]."
====Song Credits====