Right Where It Belongs

Album:With Teeth

Length:5:04

Tempo:140 BPM

Versions:Right Where It Belongs
Right Where It Belongs (Instrumental)
Right Where It Belongs V2
Cages (Demo)
Right Where It Belongs (Beside You In Time)

Live:With Teeth Arena Tour
Wave Goodbye Tour

"Right Where It Belongs" is the thirteenth track on the 2005 release With Teeth. Preview copies for media had it labeled "Cages," though it's unknown whether that was a working title or just an anti-piracy measure [1].

A re-work of the track by Martin Wav was featured in a trailer for The Game Awards 2022.[2]

Appearances

Halos

• With Teeth
• Beside You In Time

Seeds

• The Definitive NIN - Quiet Tracks

Versions

Right Where It Belongs

This is the original album version. Heavily atmospheric, its opening ambience transitions from the end of "Beside You In Time" into its first quiet musical elements, a bouncing bassline and guitar riff accompanying a piano lead and soon Trent Reznor's melodic vocals. New melodies and changes join Reznor's choruses, but all of the layers seem muffled and distant throughout. The second verse is characterized by a unique sonic change only found in this NIN song: upon singing the last line of the verse, all the layers become much clearer, soon joined by a cheering crowd erupting as the second and final chorus begins. Reznor quietly and wordlessly accompanies the repeating final piano melody, which ends the song alone.

Right Where It Belongs (Instrumental)

Running Time: 5:18

Released exclusively through Apple Music.

Right Where It Belongs V2

Running Time: 5:04

This is an alternate version of the song, available on the UK and Japanese releases of With Teeth. More minimalistic than the original album version, it simply features a different vocal take accompanied by electric piano. Its structure and lyrics remain the same. This version was also available to download at remix.nin.com.

Cages (Demo)

A demo for "Right Where It Belongs" (with the working title "Cages") evidently exists on a pre-release version of With Teeth that has not been shared.

Right Where It Belongs (Beside You In Time)

This version can be found on the Beside You In Time DVD. It is much quieter than the album version, losing the slightly abrasive synthesizers in exchange for a mellow piano.

Cover Versions

Right Where I Belong

Digital single artwork

Promotional T-Shirt

In June 2019, the anthology TV series Black Mirror aired the episode "Rachel, Jack and Ashley Too", which featured versions of "Head Like A Hole" and "Right Where It Belongs" with new lyrics written by Charlie Brooker and recorded by Miley Cyrus, entitled "On A Roll" and "Right Where I Belong" respectively. Cyrus also recorded direct covers of both songs, all of which were sanctioned and approved by Reznor - a rarity for any cover of Nine Inch Nails. The songs were recorded and released under the name "Ashley O", Cyrus' character name in the episode. The band also released a collaborative t-shirt on their website, featuring Brooker's new lyrics.

Lyrics

   See me dancing on the stage that I built
   Spotlight on me shining strong
   Feel such happiness inside of my heart
   And it's all right here, right here in my song
   
   See my crew dancing around me
   Hear the audience’s screams
   Feel like I could jump right to the sky
   And just lose myself
   Lose myself inside a dream
   
   I got all these songs inside of my head
   Just creations of my own
   The rhythm in the song as I'm sleeping in my bed
   It's got me dancing on my feet
   
   See my crew dancing around me
   Hear the audience’s screams
   Feel like this whole world I love to know
   Is an elaborate dream
   And when I look at my reflection
   But it's all I wanted to be
   Feel like I could jump right to the sky
   And just lose myself
   Lose myself inside a dream

Live

"Right Where It Belongs" made its live debut on September 19, 2005. On the Fall 2005 and Winter 2006 legs of the Live: With Teeth tour, this song was the centerpiece of the 'slow section' of the concerts, as a curtain was dropped down in front of the stage, onto which video images compiled by Andrea Giacobbe were projected. It was always preceded by "Eraser" and followed by "Beside You In Time". The alternate V2 version was played very rarely on the NIN/JA Tour.

Lyrics

    See the animal in his cage that you built
    Are you sure what side you're on?
    Better not look him too closely in the eye
    Are you sure what side of the glass you are on?
    See the safety of the life you have built
    Everything where it belongs
    Feel the hollowness inside of your heart
    And it's all
    Right where it belongs
    
    What if everything around you
    Isn't quite as it seems
    What if all the world you think you know
    Is an elaborate dream?
    And if you look at your reflection
    Is that all you want it to be?
    What if you could look right through the cracks
    Would you find yourself—find yourself afraid to see?
    
    What if all the world's inside of your head
    Just creations of your own?
    Your devils and your gods all the living and the dead
    And you're really all alone
    You can live in this illusion
    You can choose to believe
    You keep looking but you can't find the woods
    While you’re hiding in the trees
    
    What if everything around you
    Isn't quite as it seems
    What if all the world you used to know
    Is an elaborate dream?
    And if you look at your reflection
    Is that all you want it to be?
    What if you could look right through the cracks
    Would you find yourself—find yourself afraid to see?

External Links

• "Right Where It Belongs V2" at archive.org
• "Right Where It Belongs" live visuals by Andrea Giacobbe from the With Teeth Tour

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