Hesitation Marks is the eighth studio album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released on September 3, 2013. It is their first album since 2008's The Slip, and first release on Columbia Records, making this their first album released on a major label since 2007's Year Zero. The album title is derived from "hesitation wounds", marks that are produced by testing a bladed weapon before attempting suicide or self-harming.
If it seems upon first listen that Evan Marks' snappy, fluid electric lines are vaguely reminiscent of Steve Laury's, the connection makes perfect sense; Marks subbed in Fattburger's guitar chair for a few years after Laury left the group. While select ballads on the Cleveland native's stellar debut ease through that band's familiar laid-back ideals, Marks seems more comfortable darting in new and daring directions as both composer and jam-happy player. Label connections work wonders, with Jeff Lorber's synth rack and Art Porter's funky delicacies punching up groove after funk-filled electronic groove. For example, "Racer X," with its burning blues rock bravura, is one of the most unpredictable genre tracks ever. Marks has the vision of an edgy contemporary instrumentalist, but there is also a healthy dose of jazz seasoning in his mix…
Written by eccentric French composer Erik Satie in 1893, the extraordinary score for Vexations is just three lines long, yet a complete performance (840 repetitions) may last for anything between 14 and 28 hours. First performed under the supervision of John Cage in 1963, this radical yet enigmatic work is now recognized as a significant milestone in avant-garde music. This meditative 70 minute recording features 40 repetitions of the motif, performed by Alan Marks on piano.