'''''Ghosts I–IV''''' (also known as '''''[[Halo numbers|Halo 26]]''''') is the seventh studio album from [[Nine Inch Nails]], released March 2, 2008 over the internet, without prior information being released, and released April 8, 2008 in stores worldwide. It was the first NIN material to be independently released since leaving [[Interscope Records]] in 2007. The album is a four-volume, 2-disc release consisting of 36 [http://www.ninwiki.com/Category:NIN_Instrumentals instrumental tracks], featuring guest musicians. It is the most collaborative NIN album to date, with heavily shared songwriting and performance credits.
Deluxe and limited edition versions were sold through [[nin.com]]. Initial response was very positive, with heavy traffic causing servers to crash and all limited edition copies being sold in just over a day. [[Trent Reznor ]] confirmed on May 6, 2010, during the [[Htda Questions|HTDA Q&A]], that more ''Ghosts'' volumes are to come, most likely featuring the Swarmatron that was present during the ''[[How To Destroy Angels (album)|How To Destroy Angels]]'' recording. Numerous tracks from this album were used in the television docuseries ''The Vietnam War'', which was also scored by Reznor and [[Atticus Ross]].
==Tracklisting==
<blockquote>"This music arrived unexpectedly as the result of an experiment. The rules were as follows: 10 weeks, no clear agenda, no overthinking, everything driven by impulse. Whatever happens during that time gets released as... something.
<br>
The team: [[Atticus Ross]], [[Alan Moulder]] and myself with some help from [[Alessandro Cortini]], [[Adrian Belew]] and [[The Dresden Dolls|Brian Viglione]]. [[Rob Sheridan]] collaborated with Artist in Residence (A+R) to create the accompanying visual and physical aesthetic.
<br><br>
We began improvising and let the music decide the direction. Eyes were closed, hands played instruments and it began. Within a matter of days it became clear we were on to something, and a lot of material began appearing. What we thought could be a five song EP became much more. I invited some friends over to join in and we all enjoyed the process of collaborating on this.
More volumes of ''Ghosts'' are likely to appear in the future."
<br><br>
- [[Trent Reznor]], March 2, 2008</blockquote>
==Formats==
Later, the following message was posted to nin.com:
<blockquote>"The new Nine Inch Nails record is available RIGHT NOW! (for real this time) <br>Sorry again about the hassle. Somebody kicked the plug out of our internets, but we're all set now. <br><br>P.S. DIGG THIS <br><br>posted by Trent Reznor at 8:00 PM pst, from hong kong."</blockquote> NIN's PR firm, [http://www.nastylittleman.com/index.html Nasty Little Man], announced that ''"barely a day after going on sale, the $300 Ultra-Deluxe Limited Edition of Nine Inch Nails’ Ghosts I-IV has completely sold out"'' and ''Ghosts I–IV'' was at #1 at the Amazon mp3 store. On March 12, it was reported by various sites that nin.com had amassed a first week total of 781,917transactions (including free and paid downloads as well as orders for physical product), resulting in a take of $1,619,420 USD. [http://www.sohood.com/1/content/view/3817/41/] Reznor expressed his pleasant surprise over the response in a post on nin.com that read: ''"We are all amazed at the reaction for what we assumed would be a quiet curiosity in the NIN catalog. My faith in all of you has been restored - let's all go have coffee somewhere (my treat)!"'' ==Touring== ''For more information, see [[Lights In The Sky Tour]]'' The album (as well as ''[[The Slip]]'', which was released the same year) was supported by a tour that visited North and South America. This tour was notable for having the most ambitious production of any NIN tour up to that point, using groundbreaking lighting and video technology. The middle portion of the set, referred to as the "Ghosts" portion, utilized some of that album's unorthodox (for NIN) instrumentation such as marimba, banjo and small percussion. ==Film Festival==''Main article: [[Ghosts Film Festival]]'' On March 13, 2008, Reznor announced a partnership with YouTube to host a "film festival" around ''Ghosts,'' writing on nin.com: <blockquote>"The concept is for you to take whatever tracks you feel inspired by from Ghosts and create what you feel should accompany them visually. You will be able to see all of the submissions, and a team of us (including me) will be sorting through them and setting aside ones we feel are exceptional. Eventually (within a couple of months?) we will present a virtual "film festival" with me and some special guests presenting selections of your work.<br>This isn't a contest and you don't win elaborate prizes - it's meant to be an experiment in collaboration and a chance for us to interact beyond the typical one-way artist-to-fan relationship. We've discussed some interesting ways this could go, including multiple installments of the online "film festivals," to broadcast TV specials, to a one-time live performance of the entire Ghosts record with your visuals involved. It really depends on how this progresses and develops."</blockquote> ==External links==*[http://portraitofdecay.net/ghosts.nin.com/ The official ''Ghosts I-IV'' site (archived at Portrait of Decay)]*[http://www.flickr.com/photos/nineinchnails/sets/72157604051114463/ Photos from the recording of ''Ghosts I-IV'']*[http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/news/article_display.jsp?vnu_content_id=1003718389 "New Nine Inch Nails Album Hits The Web"] from Billboard.com News*[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0AcGtmJoJOI Spend the day with us: Watch this 2500 times.] Reznor signing Limited-Edition books.*[http://www.nin-au.com/halo26le/ Halo 26 LE Owner's Lists] at [http://www.nin-au.com/ nin-au.com]*[http://nincatalog.com/ghosts-i-iv/ ''Ghosts I-IV'' at nincatalog.com]*[http://www.amazon.com/gp/redirect.html?ie=UTF8&location=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.amazon.com%2Fs%3Fie%3DUTF8%26x%3D0%26ref_%3Dnb%5Fsb%5Fnoss%26y%3D0%26field-keywords%3Dnine%2520inch%2520nails%2520ghosts%2520i-iv%26url%3Dsearch-alias%253Daps&tag=thniinnawi-20&linkCode=ur2&camp=1789&creative=390957 ''Ghosts I-IV'' at Amazon] *[http://rover.ebay.com/rover/1/711-53200-19255-0/1?icep_ff3=9&pub=5574848848&toolid=10001&campid=5336384580&customid=&icep_uq=nine+inch+nails+ghosts+i-iv&icep_sellerId=&icep_ex_kw=&icep_sortBy=12&icep_catId=&icep_minPrice=&icep_maxPrice=&ipn=psmain&icep_vectorid=229466&kwid=902099&mtid=824&kw=lg ''Ghosts I-IV'' at eBay] {{Halo|number=26|before=[[Y34RZ3R0R3M1X3D]]|after=[[The Slip]]}}[[Category:NIN Discography]][[Category:Ghosts]]rea