Last week, alternative rock gods Nine Inch Nails submitted an iPhone app to Apple that would allow NIN fans to listen to songs from The Downward Spiral, their seminal 1994 album. Despite the fact that The Downward Spiral is already for sale on iTunes, Apple objected on the basis of the album’s explicit material.
Let’s just say the rejection got under frontman Trent Reznor’s skin a little bit:
Thanks Apple for the clear description of the problem — as in, what do you want us to change to get past your stupid f***ing standards?
And while we’re at it, I’ll voice the same issue I had with Wal-Mart years ago, which is a matter of consistency and hypocrisy. Wal-Mart went on a rampage years ago insisting all music they carry be censored of all profanity and “clean” versions be made for them to carry. Bands (including Nirvana) tripped over themselves editing out words, changing album art, etc to meet Wal-Mart’s standards of decency — because Wal-Mart sells a lot of records. NIN refused, and you’ll notice a pretty empty NIN section at any Wal-Mart. My reasoning was this: I can understand if you want the moral posturing of not having any “indecent” material for sale — but you could literally turn around 180 degrees from where the NIN record would be and purchase the film “Scarface” completely uncensored, or buy a copy of Grand Theft Auto where you can be rewarded for beating up prostitutes. How does that make sense?
You can buy The Downward F***ing Spiral on iTunes, but you can’t allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it. Geez, what if someone in the forum in our app says F*** or C***? I suppose that also falls into indecent material. Hey Apple, I just got some SPAM about f***ing hot asian teens THROUGH YOUR MAIL PROGRAM. I just saw two guys having explicit anal sex right there in Safari! On my iPhone!
Come on Apple, think your policies through and for f***’s sake get your app approval scenario together.
The stars added are mine, obviously.
Trent Reznor is kind of a musical genius and he does have a point about Apple’s hypocrisy, but he may want to work on his conflict-resolution skills. Just a bit.
(via Techcrunch)
UPDATE: Gizmodo is reporting that Apple caved.
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What a classic rant!
But yeah, the rant might not have been the way to go.
He has a point, however it might have been in his best interest to rant in a different way. Since when does Wal-Mart care about decency?
Didn’t know Trent was light in the loafers. I guess he was talking to another guy when he said he wanted to f*ck him like an animal.
I don’t get how he’s a deceiver?
darek: I agree, I thought the point of the article was to shed light on Apple’s double talk. But the way it’s worded here it kind of looks like Trent is to blame.
I think he has a very valid point, and as a fellow Foul Mouthed person, I think he did very well. reading it out loud, I could have added many more naughty words. haha
If you have ever met Trent, he’s very well spoken but in the same breath he is very fiery and emotional. His works speak those same qualities I think about him. THis may have about as PC as you’re going to get from the “horse’s mouth.” I don’t take him for being the type who hides behind a PR rep’s suit tails.
Not only does it not make sense that you can buy The Downward Spiral from ITunes but it’s banned as an app- Apple approved the baby-shaking app that had people all up in arms. It’s called Baby Shaker- there’s a baby and you have to try to make it be quiet by shaking the phone. Here’s the description “On a plane, on the bus, in a theatre. Babies are everywhere you don’t want them to be! They’re always distracting you from preparing for that big presentation at work with their incessant crying. Before Baby Shaker, there was nothing you could do about it. See how long you can endure his or her adorable cries before you just have to find a way to quiet the baby down!” I guess Apple got rid of that app soon after they released it. Shaking babies? A-OK. Swearing? OMG NO!!!!!!
I don’t know, I kinda like his conflict resolution skills.
I may have not made my point clearly. (Apologies, I’m somewhat braindead from all the Carrie Prejean talk.) So let me clarify: Apple’s the agent of hypocrisy here. Trent Reznor going all @#$% because his work has been labeled obscene is just ironic.
Musical genius? Which word did we redefine to be able to put them together as a description for Trent Reznor?
NIN work is kind of on the dark side. Good to be sure, but dark. However, Apple do dis-allow it as an app for their overpriced phone but sell NIN on iTunes, like Holly said “is just ironic”
Rocko, unlike the people who bring you dreck like Nickelback or Three Doors Down, he’s actually a classically trained musician. You have to hear his collaborative work with Tori Amos, whose music is about as different from NIN’s as is possible and still be music. He got my undying respect for that.
What the Hell is wrong with Nick- Oh NICKLEback. Yeah they pretty much suck. I’d fight everyone in Nickleback right now.
Take that Nickleback guy with the huge mouth!
HEy, I like Nickleback AND Three Doors Down. I also love 80’s music, so I guess I am the chump here, huh?
Is that rant available as a ringtone?
Sounds to me like Apple is the deceiver, not Trent. And he didn’t edit his material before; if he had it would be ironic that he went all potty-mouth on Apple. Since he’s maintaining his potty-mouth persona he’s being pretty consistent all around.
Nickleback and 3 Doors Down rate right up there with…Winger and Firehouse.
AAW, it depends if “what” 80’s music you like. If it’s hair metal (some of it anyway) you’re not a chump. If it’s stuff like you would hear on pop stations or AM stations (Madonna), well, personal preference I guess.
Long Live the Metal/Punk band gods!!!
**flashes metal sign, bangs head, slams into wall**
mmmmm… trent reznor.
yeah, that’s my input.
I know. Those arms. Rawr.
Those arms? I see the musical genius now.
I’m just proud the boy got a haircut. Now, if he’d just clean up his @#$! mouth. Heh.
Deceiver has sucked me in tonight. I’ve tried to walk away three times. I have to agree that even though NIN isn’t my favorite, I respect Trent Reznor, and the fact that when NIN was new, it was different and a bit mindblowing. Nickleback, 3 Doors Down, a lot of what’s been coming out since the late 90’s, has been mediocre at best, and utter crap at its worst. Sorry fans of Nickleback and other bands like them.
AAW, there was a lot of cool music in the 80’s! When it became a parody of itself, Nirvana came along and created a musical revolution. We’re due for another one! Soon, I hope. I need a good excuse to get into a mosh pit again.
Anyhow, I’m still loving Trent’s rant. There was probably a better way to go about it, but after a second read, I’m not so sure.
Trent Reznor cursing out Apple for not allowing a curse-filled album on its iPhone apps? There’s some tasty irony right there.
Is there a reason Apple is more uptight about obscenity on its iPhone apps as opposed to iTunes, Safari or Mail?
CM, hate to disagree with you, but there was hardly any good music in the 80’s. Just really cool videos on MTV. Also grunge really didn’t get going until the early to mid 90’s time frame. IMHO, Nirvana was/is overrated but you are correct they brought the grunge genre to forefront. Best grunge/Seattle bands, Alice in Chains, Soundgarden.
Don’t mince words Trent! Tell us how you really feel! lol
Holly and MC– it’s not ironic when you realize it was extremely calculated. He was swearing up a storm like that on purpose, not because he can’t control himself.
Holly and MC–it wasn’t ironic when you realize it was extremely calculated. He was swearing up a storm on purpose, not because he can’t control himself.
You’d be surprised, Swede0319… there is a lot of music from the 80s that I wouldn’t have listened to then because I was too cool for it, and still might be “too cool” to admit who they are. You are right, though, in that there was a lot of style over substance at the time. Toward the late 80’s, though, when everyone was sick of the trite hair metal bands that were just copying the good bands that had come before, we got Jane’s Addiction, Guns N’ Roses (before they sucked), whatever happened to Faith No More (?!)and the local scene…wow… at least where I was, which at that time was Miami and summers in L.A. They were churning out bands that stood out but were overwhelmed by a lot of the crap because the crap band had a cute bassist or whatever. Any CA folks remember Spiderworks? I still love them. Nirvana, Alice in Chains (I love them better than Nirvana), Soundgarden, and the grunge/Seattle crowd came along in the 90’s, followed by Sublime and then it went to crap. One minute we were getting angsty with Alice in Chains, the next minute Creed was on. Wha…?
Sorry WUD, not Trent. I’m more of a Korn/Disturbed kind of guy. Still love the punk and metal bands though. Really into MC5, The Stooges, Motorhead, Metalica, and George Thorogood right now.
CM, if Disturbed comes to your side of the pond, GO! They really crank it up live.
CM, I remember the LA scene like it was yesterday. Whiskey, Gazaries, Troubador, Viper Room. There were so many great local bands, that for whatever reason didn’t get airplay on KROQ, KMET, KLOS. The first time I saw Metalica was at the Troubador and they got boo’d off the stage. I forgot to add Offspring to the good mosh pit bands. Saw them down in Huntington Beach many a time. Never got into Spiderworks however I did get into The Incredible Shrinking Dickies, X, and Blackflag when the Sex Pistols died.
Oh wow, Swede0319…wow. The summers of my youth… my parents were strict, so most of the time, I had to sneak out of the house with my fake ID to go to any of these shows. Good times. I was stuck on Jane’s Addiction and Suicidal Tendencies, though. Still am. I’ve seen Jane’s about four times since 1988, and in ‘91, I saw ST open up for them at Bayfront Park in Miami which was like… the marriage of peanut butter and chocolate for me.
I’ll have to give Disturbed another chance, really. I don’t think I’ve listened to them enough, honestly.
Still into the old school stuff. Maiden, ZZ Top, old Metallica pre black album, and I still throw on less than stellar but still beloved Tesla and Badlands.
But my guilty pleasure these days? Shhh… that would be Hole. Courtney Love is a lot of things I don’t want to be or be around, but I can’t help it. I love her.
I personally hate the F bomb………..it just sounds so overused for shock value nowadays. I think he used such language to make a point. It is ironic of Apple to sell the very thing they don’t want to offer as an app……..but then, look how many young elementary school age kids have cell phones. According to my 12 year old, they ALL have one.
Naturally, to him they all have one, since he doesn’t…..LOL
Hole? Hmm, not sure on that one. I missed this tour, Alice in Chains got a new front man last year and from what my friends told me, they were just as good when Lane was alive. In Cal, they were touring with Jane’s Addiction. Damn the missed opportunities!
Mother of pearl, I’m old enough to be y’all’s mama. I still listen to Bryan Ferry/Roxy Music, the Smiths, Duran Duran, the Police, and old Aerosmith. It’s like living in “The Wedding Singer” over here.
Trent Reznor. <3
Good god, I love that man. SO excited to catch the NIN concert in June.
…is it bad that Trent Reznor–who is the same age as my father–is my number one celeb crush? XD
@ MC Mom
Apple doesn’t have any parental controls on the iPhone/iPod Touch as they do on their computers and in music side of iTunes. Hence why they may be more strict with that device as opposed to others. Supposedly they’re working on that for the next OS update.
My Walmart sells Hooter’s food and plays Marilyn Manson over the intercom, as well.
And no, Psych, my celebrity crush – besides Jon Stewart – is Alan Rickman. He is 62. I am 21.
Beige, no way you’re as old as my mom. I’ll date myself…I saw the Sex Pistols live (before Nevermind the Bollocks) in South London when I was in 7th grade. That was so COOL! I also got taken by my uncles to see the Doors, on a school night. Out for the count by 9:00pm. But I saw the Doors.
So Beige, you can’t be that old.
Anagram.. i was just scrolling down to leave a comment and let me say your comment was what i was thinking when i was looking at his pic
yum!
lol. he’s just finally announced that he’s engaged. yes, to a hot chick. he’s not “light in the loafers”. (that phrase makes me want to punch things.)
my boyfriend was ranting about this very issue several days ago, pre- the rant you see here. it makes me happy to see that TR himself finally spoke out about it publicly.
and yeah. the cursing was ironic. if you know anything about NIN and where they’re going these days, or that TR is a pretty witty guy himself, you’d have gotten that.
The explicit anal sex part made me lol.
I was so glad to see someone mention the good bands. But you are forgetting the best of the best, The Clash. And you can’t mention the Clash without the Ramones. Angst ridden music started way before Nirvana, look at Joy Division.
Sadly though I, like Beige, am really feeling my age when you mention growing up to some of those bands. I was all grown up at that point.
well then I am a chump as I love all 80’s music, except for Prince. Love Winger, Whitehouse, Def Leppard, Police, Foreigner, Boston, ASIA, Journey, etc. Since I was in high school in the 80’s it is about the nostalgia more than anything. Never got into Nirvana in College or NIN. Never was my thing. I also love Toby Keith and Garth Brooks so I am way out there from you guys!
Beige, I too am old enough…never mind. And I too still listen to the Smiths, Duran Duran, Roxy Music, 80s Prince (sorry AAW, but he’s freakin’ brilliant) and Echo & the Bunnymen. Not all 80s music was, you know, the Hooters and Mr. Mister.
Rocko, thanks for the explanation on iPhone apps. I’m guessing you’re right. And by the way, Apple parental controls are *awesome* – my husband and I have total management over what my 6-year-old can do and see on her computer.
CM- That Suicidal show was awesome! Infectious Grooves made the 90’s worthwhile as well. Maiden in FTL this past April was fantastic as well. Nirvana is overrated. Best thing Kurt did was blow his brains out.
Most underrated band of all time though: Fishbone
LN, thanks for correcting me. You’re right, I did forget The Clash and the Ramones. I got the opportunity to see The Clash right before London Calling came out. That is one of my top ten albums. Never got to see the Ramones. Bet that was a great show. Never heard of Joy Division. I guess I need to look them up on iTunes.
AAW, I would never call you a chump. Come to the Dark side and bang your head with the other mis-guided youts :>
MC mom, I agree, Prince is a genius. Older stuff better than his new stuff.
Fishbone! Hurricane, they played a school dance of mine in the 80s before they got famous. I went to kind of a crazy public high school, and we got some kickin’ bands somehow.
Swede, Prince’s older stuff is better but ‘Musicology’ kicks it pretty hard. Hard to believe he (and other rock stars I idolized as a teenager) are now 50 and over.
Hurricane, you were there?! How cool is that?! To this day, that is probably one of my favorite concerts ever, and I’ve been to a lot of great shows. Were you one of the lucky ones that got to go to the Snortotorium, I mean Sportatorium before they tore it down? I’m not trying to weasel your age out of you.
And if by some far off chance, you were the guy at the ST/JA show in ‘91 that picked me up so that I could see better, thanks.
Even when you are in row 23, it’s hard to see sometimes when you are five foot two.
And yes, must include The Clash and The Ramones.
Don’t worry, AAW, I love Def Leppar and I don’t care who knows it… and Whitesnake, and Boston, and I’m one of THOSE Journey fans.
I like old Def Leppard. Like On Through the Night and High and Dry. This is back when they really rocked hard.
I’ve seen Jouney once. They were an opening act for the Stones. It as George Thorogood, Journey (starts to rain), GT (rain stops), Journey (rain starts again), GT (rain stops), Stones (Mick tells crowd “I guess we know who can rock the rain away”).
If anybody gets a chance and have never seen him, go see George Thorogood and the Destroyers. If you like really good blues based guitar rock, this is the show that should not be missed.
dudes don’t know the definition of “irony”
You may make the case that he was being clever. I fail to see how it was ironic for someone who swears in an album to swear about the swears being censored. That is completely expected.
CM- Saw AC/DC Blow Up Your Video tour at the Sportatorium. I was 15. First time I ever got a contact high. 9th row on floor. Bought the ticket the day before the concert at Spec’s in South Miami. Got lucky as hell.
Yeah sure, that was me who lifted you up. You said you’d paty me $20 but I never got it. You still owe me!
Aw, man, I’ll get it to ya Friday, Hurricane!
Next Friday.
Aw, wow, AC/DC is one of my favorite bands that I haven’t seen live. Seeing them at the Sportatorium, which I never got a chance to go to, sadly, but heard way too much about over the years, must have been priceless.
I admit that Prince was good in the 80’s, but I never got into his stuff like I did with Bruce Springsteen. And I agree, there is some corny 80’s music out there, but I still jave CD’s of the greatest stuff ever produced during that time. “Faithfully” was the song at my Sophomore prom and I still get that feeling when I listen to it
Oh, and I cannot wait until this summer when we have our local “Summerfest” This year is “Loverboy”, “Scandal”, and “38 Special”. Let’s get ready to rock!
CM- simply put, you should do yourself a favor and make an effort to see AC/DC even if they are 80 years old by the time you do. Life’s too short not to scratch that itch!
Next Friday I’m sending Moose and Rocco to your house to collect.
AAW, you’ve got to go to Summerfest, if only for the nostalgia factor. And to see if the lead singer from Loverboy can still fit into those tight leather pants.
And I finally came out last year and admitted to a (non-ironic) love for Journey. That’s what comes of marrying a boy from Upstate. That boy and I went to an 80s dance party on vacation last summer and bawled our way through the “Faithfully” slow dance.
Hurricane, I am not allowed to die until I see them live. My husband saw them live just before I moved to England and he still talks about that show.
I’ll have Rico and Machete Loco talk to Moose and Rocco as I may be out of the country.
Have you ladies seen a picture of the guy from Loverboy? I saw a clip on VH1 One-hit wonders and the dude is way over weight, male pattern bald and still wears that stupid headband. It was way scary. That Summerfest sounds like it would be sort of fun though.
The guy from Loverboy never did anything for me, but I was totally going to marry Joe Elliot, and if that didn’t work out, I was going to marry Robert Plant even though he’s a million years older than me. And if THAT didn’t work out, I would marry Bruce Dickinson because girls didn’t like him as much but I thought he and Maiden were sexy because they weren’t all about nailing groupies and getting high in their songs.
True story: When I was 17, I had my 10 year old sister convinced that I had secretly married Bruce Dickinson and that we would announce it when I was of legal age.
CM- Bruce Dickenson is the shit! You could have done a lot worse! One of the greatest vocalists metal ever had. Plus, he’s about your height to boot!
H, Bruce is in my top six. In no particular order:
Bruce Dickenson (Iron Maiden)
Rob Halford (Judas Priest)
Lemmy Kilmeister (Motorhead)
Ronny James Dio (Black Sabbath/Dio/Heaven & Hell/Rainbow)
Ozzy (nuff said)
James Hetfeld (Metalica)
Hurricane, my sister still calls me Mrs. Dickinson sometimes just for a laugh. Perfect height, one of the most amazing voices in rock and roll, and he can fly a plane.
Swede, great list. I would have to add another vocalist to it, though, and that’s Freddy Mercury. I always thought he had the most amazing voice. So much so, that when I was really little, I would ask Mom if God was on the radio everytime we heard Queen come on.
Now it’s out there for real. I was a weird kid.
Swede – I have, actually. That was Mom’s celebrity crush when she was young. It’s the entire reason she doesn’t tease me over mine, no matter how ridiculous.
Sometime when you get the chance, check out Journey’s video for “Separate Ways” on YouTube. FURIOUS air keyboarding. I just about wet my pants laughing every time.
Swede- great list indeed. I’m a fan of Geoff Tate as well. Great pipes.
I’d leave Freddie Mercury out of it as Queen wasn’t really metal. That said, I think Freddie Mercury is arguably the greatest frontman of all time. If I was going to put a band together (no matter the type of music) I think I’d have to go with Freddie.
Freddie and Queen were awesome in their prime. A few months back, I saw them in a concert video during a PBS fund drive and wondered how we didn’t realize back then that he was gay. It seems so obvious in retrospect.
Maybe it was just me who didn’t realize it. I had a crush on Rupert Everett at 16, fer pete’s sake.
You didn’t catch on to that? I thought everyone knew, MC Mom. I must have a good gaydar, though because I lived with a gay man when I was single and between him and my dad’s youngest brother, I’ve always been good at picking it out. Naming your band Queen is another big clue.
Good point, Hurricane. Queen wasn’t metal, even though they were metal approved. I’ve been listening to a lot of their early stuff today. What a voice that man had. And his stage presence was second to none.
I had forgotten Geoff Tate. Awesome voice.
Thanks everybody for the props. I thought about adding Freddy and while some of Queens song were heavy, as a whole, just good rock opera and what a stage presence. I then thought about Paul Rodgers, same thing. I would put Paul in the top five for best rock voice.
Question, who does Geoff Tate front?
Swede… Geoff fronts Queensryche.
And I agree about Paul Rodgers. One of the best rock and blues voices around. A sexy man-voice.
Not a fan of Rodgers’ past bands, I can take them or leave them, but he has agreat voice of course. I won’t say it’s a sexy voice though..heh.
Last year’s Summerfest Rocked! They had Howard Jones, Scandal, Survivor, Taylor Dayne, Romantics,John Waite, ASIA, Flock Of Seagalls and Night Ranger. All in one day! We are going to Summerfest this year. 3 bands for $20! Unheard of.
AAW, I love Howard Jones and Flock of Seagulls. I don’t care if that hurts my metal cred. I also love Huey Lewis and Duran Duran.
Hurricane, I was not a big Paul Rodgers until I started to listen past “All Right Now” and “Shooting Star” and listened to Free and all the Bad Company that wasn’t being played to death on classic rock stations.I don’t know how it happened, but over not so very long, I kind of fell in love because he’s one of those people that really can SING the blues. I don’t think he’s hot or anything, but that voice would go a long way.
“Sing for me, Paul! Don’t touch me! Sing, bitch!”