On this day in music history: March 8, 1994 - “The Downward Spiral”, the second studio album by Nine Inch Nails is released. Produced by Trent Reznor and Flood, it is recorded at Le Pig in Beverly Hills, CA, The Record Plant in Los Angeles, CA, and A&M Studios in Hollywood, CA from Mid - Late 1993. Following Nine Inch Nails successful stint on the first Lollapalooza Tour in 1991 and release of the Grammy winning EP “Broken” the following year, Trent Reznor begins writing material NIN’s second full length release. Having gone through a long and ardous battle to extricate himself from his former label TVT Records as well as struggling with drug addiction, Reznor channels his emotions and the raw, aggressive energy of the bands live performances into the new material. The follow up to the Double Platinum selling EP “Broken”, “Spiral” is a concept piece chronicling the “downward spiral” of a man, ending with his attempt at suicide. Part of the recording takes place in the home (10050 Cielo Drive in Beverly Hills, CA) that actress Sharon Tate and four others are murdered by the Manson Family in August of 1969. Not long after Reznor moves out of the residence, it is demolished and a new home is built on the site. Reznor keeps the front door from the house as a souvenir. Spinning off two singles including “The March Of The Pigs” and “Closer”, it is a commercial and artistic triumph, not only becoming Nine Inch Nails most successful release, but in time is regarded as a landmark Industrial Rock album. In 2004 to commemorate the tenth anniversary of its release, it is reissued as a two hybrid SACD deluxe edition with remastered versions of the original stereo mixes, remixed into 5.1 surround sound, and extended remixes. It is also issued as a double sided DualDisc with one side being a DVD-A with the multi-channel mix and and music videos for “The March Of The Pigs”, “Closer” and “Hurt”. “The Downward Spiral” debuts at number two on the Billboard Top 200, and is certified 4x Platinum in the US by the RIAA.
