Happiness in Slavery
"Happiness in Slavery" | ||||
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Promotional single by Nine Inch Nails | ||||
from the EP Broken | ||||
Released | November 1992 | |||
Recorded | 1992 | |||
Genre | Industrial metal | |||
Length | 5:21 | |||
Label | ||||
Songwriter(s) | Trent Reznor | |||
Producer(s) | Trent Reznor | |||
Nine Inch Nails singles chronology | ||||
|
"Happiness in Slavery" is a song by American
Nine Inch Nails' performance of "Happiness in Slavery" at Woodstock '94, included on the concert's compilation album, won the Grammy Award for Best Metal Performance in 1996. The song's music video was almost universally banned for its depiction of Bob Flanagan being tortured by a machine.
Music video
The music video for "Happiness in Slavery", directed by
Later in the video, large grinders emerge from the machine to cause extreme injury to the man's skin. As he continues to scream in a mixture of pleasure and pain, the machine begins to disembowel him, ultimately killing him. It then engulfs the man's body in a metal cask and minces it into fertilizer for the garden below. At the end, Trent Reznor, who had been singing the lyrics inside a cell at the beginning of the video, enters the room and begins to perform the same ritual that the previous man had performed, the video fading to black as he lights a candle.
The video was almost universally banned once released, but was later included on the
Reznor commented that the video was not created for
Track listings
- US promotional CD single (PRCD 4795)[5]
- "Happiness in Slavery" (LP version) – 5:26
- US promotional CD single (PRCD 4827)[6]
- "Happiness in Slavery" (Flaccid edit) – 4:17
- "Happiness in Slavery" (LP version) – 5:26
- US promotional 12" single[7]
- A1. "Happiness in Slavery" (Fixed version) – 6:09
- A2. "Happiness in Slavery" (Sherwood Slave Mix) – 2:17
- B1. "Happiness in Slavery" (PK Slavery Remix) – 5:41
- B2. "Happiness in Slavery" (Broken version) – 5:21
Charts
Chart (1992) | Peak position |
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US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[8] | 13 |
Samples
The track was sampled for "Centipede" by Canadian extreme metal band Strapping Young Lad, appearing on their 1997 live album No Sleep 'till Bedtime.
References
- ^ "Pursuit Of Happiness - Happiness Tips". Retrieved March 14, 2012.
- ^ "NSFW: Nine Inch Nails' Happiness In Slavery". teamrock.com. November 6, 2015. Retrieved June 29, 2017.
- ^ a b Mark Blackwell (February 1995). "Revolution No. Nine". huH.
- ^ Deborah Russell (December 1992). "Reznor Nails Down Extreme Clip". Billboard.
- ^ "Happiness in Slavery" (US promotional CD single). Nine Inch Nails. Interscope Records. 1992. PRCD 4795.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Happiness in Slavery" (US promotional CD single). Nine Inch Nails. Interscope Records. 1992. PRCD 4827.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Happiness in Slavery" (US promotional 12" single). Nine Inch Nails. Interscope Records. 1992. DMD 1941.
{{cite AV media notes}}
: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Nine Inch Nails Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved December 27, 2016.