Reptile
Underneath The Skin
Reptile (live, AATCHB DVD)
Liar (Reptile Demo)
Contents
About
Reptile is the twelfth song from the 1994 release, The Downward Spiral. This song is characteristic of the band's early 90s "industrial" sound, as it opens with an eerie, quiet machine-like sound collage that transitions into a nearly identical-sounding musical composition. Allegedly, it is a sample of a machine that slaughters pigs, though no sources have been found that indicate this.
The lyrics seem to be directed towards an old cohort of Trent Reznor's, probably female and probably a romantic relationship turned sour, or a prostitute.
A demo version of this song, entitled Liar (Reptile Demo), was included on the 10th anniversary re-release of The Downward Spiral.
This song was also featured in the Boston, MA radio performance, (Peter Murphy, Reznor, Atticus Ross, and Jeordie White) on June 23, 2006.
Versions
- Reptilian (March Of The Pigs, track 3)
- Underneath The Skin (March Of The Pigs, track 5)
- Liar (Reptile Demo) (The Downward Spiral DE, disc 2 track 11)
- Reptile (live, And All That Could Have Been DVD, disc 2 track 5 chapter 3)
Song Credits
- Production: Trent Reznor
- Mixing Engineer: Alan Moulder
Live
The song has always been performed with the beeps as an introduction. During the breakdown, Trent sings "please don't hurt me" followed by a desperate cry. Recently on the Year Zero Warm-Up Tour, the intro is further extended with a more articulate sound and Trent whispering over it.
Lyrics
She spreads herself wide open to let the insects in
She leaves a trail of honey to show me where she’s been
She has the blood of reptile just underneath her skin
Seeds from a thousand others drip down from within
Oh my beautiful liar
Oh my precious whore
My disease my infection
I am so impure
Devils speak of the ways in which she’ll manifest
Angels bleed from the tainted touch of my caress
Need to contaminate to alleviate this loneliness
I now know the depths I reach are limitless
Oh my beautiful liar
Oh my precious whore
My disease my infection
I am so impure