The secret recording of a record label feud in the house of a murder,
In short: In 1992, Trent Reznor recorded Nine Inch Nails' 'Broken' under pseudonyms to evade a hostile record label. The project was so clandestine it moved through six different studios and into a home where Sharon Tate was murdered—a location that sparked a haunting confrontation with the victim's sister.
The production of 'Broken' was defined by industrial sabotage. After his first album, TVT Records CEO Steve Gottlieb pressured Reznor to replicate its synth-pop success. Refusing to surrender creative control, Reznor entered a public feud with the label, even demanding they terminate his contract. To protect his intellectual property from being confiscated or released without permission, Reznor secretly recorded 'Broken' using various monikers and pseudonyms, eventually presenting the finished work to Interscope Records in September 1992.
The recording process was physically nomadic and aurally aggressive. The EP moved through six studios across New Orleans, Wisconsin, Florida, and California. Produced by Reznor and Flood, it traded 'Pretty Hate Machine's' synth-pop for a 'super-thick chunk sound' influenced by Ministry and Skinny Puppy. Reznor aimed for an 'ultra-fast chunk of death' that would make listeners' ears 'scratchy,' utilizing heavy distortion, software synthesizers, and even his dog Maise’s barks to create non-traditional sounds.
The project is also tied to a chilling piece of American folklore. Reznor used the house at 10050 Cielo Drive—the site of Sharon Tate's 1969 murder—as a studio, renaming it 'Le Pig.' In December 1993, he was confronted by Patti Tate, who questioned if he was exploiting her sister’s death. Reznor later admitted the encounter made him realize the human weight behind the history he was inhabiting, leading to an emotional reckoning regarding his use of the space.
The EP serves as a permanent middle finger to TVT Records. The packaging includes the cryptic warning, 'no thanks: you know who you fucking are,' and Reznor even whispered 'eat your heart out, Steve' during the track 'Physical.' This defiance helped propel Nine Inch Nails into mainstream popularity, eventually earning two Grammy Awards for 'Wish' and 'Happiness in Slavery.'
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- Summary by Intellect · source: Broken (Nine Inch Nails EP)
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