Week_6_02/19/2016_Hurt

Created in the year of 1995, Nine Inch Nails realized a promotional album containing the track “Hurt”. While the interpretation of Trent Reznor’s song is often debated, the lyrics share an experience referencing severe depression and the emotional pain associated with it. The opening line of the song speaks of inflecting self-harm, and says “I hurt myself today/to see if I still feel/I focus on the pain/the only thing that’s real”.  The lyrics continue to address the pain associated with everyday life, and how if we let the pain control us, it will never end. The line “I wear this crown of ****/upon my liar's chair/full of broken thoughts I cannot repair”, shares slight insight into the artists mind.

In 2002, Johnny Cash covered the track “Hurt”. At the time, Cash was 70 years old, and this song may be attributed to Cash’s regret throughout his life. While performing this cover, Cash was in very poor health, and passed a short time after the songs release. With this cover, there was a slight change in a single line of the lyrics. The line ““I wear this crown of ****” was changed to “I wear this crown of thorns” by Cash. This change speculated Cash’s devotion to his faith. Other than the tune going from grunge-rock to a rock-country sort of mix, there is no other significant change to the sound. With Cash’s unique voice, this cover resonated amongst fans of both Nine Inch Nails and Johnny Cash.

Attempting to find the audience for these songs proves quite difficult. In Trent Reznor’s “Hurt”, I believe he is addressing no audience in particular. The style of the music, and the lyrics point to no specific demographic, other than those individuals suffering from depression and emotional trauma. Both of these artist do an excellent job of effectively portraying the message of suffering and despair. While the lyrics may be somewhat short, it’s critical that the listener looks at the underlying thoughts and messages within. Even though they may not be obvious, maybe it was Reznor’s intention to leave the words in such a way that anybody can draw their own conclusion?