Eraser (Denial; Realization)
Eraser (Polite)
Erased, Over, Out
Eraser (Instrumental)
Eraser (Beside You In Time)
"Eraser" is the eleventh track on the 1994 release The Downward Spiral. It consists of an instrumental ostinato that builds up from the odd sounds of humming and "erasers" at the beginning through heavy rhythmic drumming and very oddly tuned, distorted guitars before dropping out to the vocal area which gets progressively louder as Trent Reznor yells "Kill Me!" until it completely degenerates into noise and cuts off with a high tone. It starts in a 6/4 time signature before becoming 4/4 as Reznor's vocals increase in volume.
Contents
Song Credits
- Production: Flood and Trent Reznor
- Mixing engineer: Alan Moulder
Appearances
Halos
- The Downward Spiral
- Further Down The Spiral
- Closure
- Beside You In Time
Versions
Eraser
This is the original album version.
Eraser (Denial; Realization)
This remix contains a sample of the lyric "erase me" slowed down and repeats the phrase "kill me" throughout.
Eraser (Polite)
This remix is very soothing yet still retains the darkness of the original. The first eight lines of the lyrics are repeated three times in the entire piece. The lyric "fuck you" is the seventh line rather than the fifth.
Erased, Over, Out
This remix consists of the lyric "erase me" slowed down and repeated eight times in the entire piece.
Eraser (Instrumental)
This version of "Eraser" was only played during the Dissonance tour. It is quite different from the normal version. It starts out with a "funky" hissing bass line and the humming from the album version. Soon after, the drum beat and the opening guitar part kick in. The atmosphere builds up like in the album version, until approximately the middle of the song, where a guitar comes in playing the "The Downward Spiral"-motif. The song continues to build up like the part of the album version with the upbeat-sung lyrics. Without a loud, "explosion of noise" part found in most ostinato, the motif stops, and the song begins to wind down and fade out. The variation of the motif found here is much shorter and played as follows:
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Eraser (Beside You In Time)
This live version appears on the Beside You In Time DVD. A screen is dropped in front of the stage as images of animals hunting prey, war, and bacteria are projected.
Music Video
A music video directed by Simon Maxwell was included on Closure. It's a live performance filmed in early 1995. A screen is dropped down in front of the stage as footage of the Devil's Tower in Wyoming and other locations is shown as the song builds. The band is seen behind the screen, starting with guitarist Robin Finck sitting near the drum risers and Reznor playing guitar at the center of the stage. The light focuses more on him as the vocals begin. By the time it gets to the screaming finale, the footage consists of nuclear explosions, with the detonations timed with the song itself.
Live
Often played with screen projections of some sort. During the Self Destruct tours, these projections were of desert landscapes and microscopic "chaos". During the Live: With Teeth tours, these screens progressed from peaceful images of lush meadows and flowers to violent and disturbing images of war. During the European leg of the Performance 2007 tour, no projection has been used during the performance. However, small lamps would float directly above each band member and sway back and forth.
Lyrics
Need you
Dream you
Find you
Taste you
Fuck you
Use you
Scar you
Break you
Lose me
Hate me
Smash me
Erase me
The actual recording adds the following line that does not appear in the liner notes:
Kill me
==External Links
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