This Track Is Fire!

As I was driving around this weekend I was thinking about how the summer is coming to a close, fall is on its way, and the kids are back in school. Perhaps I should have done this a couple/few weeks ago, but the idea to do a "welcome back to old school"-themed week sounded like a fun idea, and honestly, I didn't want to wait until next year to do it, so here we go. Welcome back to old school! Honestly, I am a little bit embarrassed that it's been over a year since I launched this blog and I have yhet to post a single track by Front 242, let alone this one, an absolute classic of Gen-X alternative music and culture. You see, back in the late 80s/early 90s, a somewhat new genre of music (though it was already about 15 years old at that point) really started to gain in popular, called "industrial," mostly on the success of bands like Nine Inch Nails and Ministry. A lot of those early industrial bands were on the Wax Trax! label out of Chicago, so though groups ...

Note: In honor of one full year of This Track Is Fire I thought I would highlight the top 10 posts over the last year, but there's a tie in the seventh position, and a three-way tie in the tenth position, so instead you're getting the Top 12 Posts over the past year. When I had originally posted about this track last year it did not have an official name nor a release, so I referred to it as the "Nine Inch Nails 'Closer' (B Stage Remix w/Boys Noize)" but since then NIN/Boys Noize have released their collaboration album and now it's officially known as "Closer (Nine Inch Noize Version." Listen, regardless of however it's called, this, in my humble opinion, is the proper way to refurbish a classic track that is 30+ years old, keeping everything that made it great while also give it a new polish so that it sounds fresh again. Sure, there are its detractors, but for me this song, heck, this entire album and tour, reinvigorated my deep love of N...

Note: In honor of one full year of This Track Is Fire I thought I would highlight the top 10 posts over the last year, but there's a tie in the seventh position, and a three-way tie in the tenth position, so instead you're getting the Top 12 Posts over the past year. At #10 is  Perturbator "The Glass Staircase ," which, to be fair, is a strong track in an entire album of fantastic songs. It was honestly hard to pick just one, but there was something about this track that just grabbed me.  I would dare to say that Pertubator isn't anything near mainstream music, so I am tickled that this post has seen more love than some more well-established bands. If you haven't already, please do check it out !

Note: In honor of one full year of This Track Is Fire I thought I would highlight the top 10 posts over the last year, but there's a tie in the seventh position, and a three-way tie in the tenth position, so instead you're getting the Top 12 Posts over the past year. At #12 is Nine Inch Nails "As Alive As You Need Me To Be" from the Tron: Ares  soundtrack, a track that I am still enjoying on vinyl these last few weeks. Who knew back in 1989 when "Head Like A Hole" was released that NIN would still be as relevant and as on top of their game today as they were then? Love it!

Hopefully you got to see the Nine Inch Nails/Boys Noize collaboration known as "Nine Inch Noize" performing this past weekend (and the weekend before) at Coachella, either online or in person, because it was fantastic ! So, is it any surprise today that I am on my 10th full listen of this entire album? If you're interested, I had more to say about it on my main blog . I watched the feed last week on April 11 (and bit of the April 18 performance) and was blown away; I also saw this collaboration twice on the recently concluded Peel It Back  tour and they were epic each time, which I talked about last September , so I highly recommend having a listen if you have not done so already. Truly, every track on this album is a banger, but I had to go with "Vessel" because I was simply not familiar with the track prior to the Peel It Back tour, and it has now become on of my favorites, not just off of this album, but as a NIN song. Happy Monday! Enjoy!

Just a reminder that the Nine Inch Nails/Boys Noize collaboration known as "Nine Inch Noize" is performing again on Saturday, April 18 in the Sahara tent at Coachella at 8:00 PST. Their new album came out today. I watched the feed last week and was blown away; I also saw this collaboration twice on the recently concluded Peel It Back  tour and they were epic each time, which I talked about last September , so check it out!

Just a reminder that the Nine Inch Nails/Boys Noize collaboration known as "Nine Inch Noize" is performing on Saturday, April 11 in the Sahara tent at Coachella at 8:00 PST (moved a day back since the original announcement). Oh, and they have an album coming out next week, which they announced on the NIN Instragram account . I saw this collaboration twice on the recently concluded NIN tour and they were epic each time, which I talked about last September , so check it out!

In late January my friend Jeff sent me a link to an Instagram post from KEXP and the band Chalk  and since then I have posted here about them twice, so three times in two months is probably a bit much. And yet, here we are. Chalk are playing a handful of US dates before jetting off to Europe, so after much hemming and hawing I decided to grab tickets for their Chicago show (I knew I wanted to go, but I had to make sure I had someone to go with). I mean, listen to "I Can't Feel It" and tell me it doesn't tickle your synthpop pleasure centers (if you have them; I do!). Their entire debut album is great, but I've gone back to this track more than a few times now. Enjoy!

I struggle with this blog sometimes in that I don't want to keep posting the same artists over and over, but also, I want to be true to the music I am currently obsessing over, the tracks that I currently believe to be fire. Consider this an example of the latter, because ever since seeing NIN back on February 22 this song has re-entered my daily playlist. Seeing it live again reminded of how good this song is, and me being slightly obssessive, I have to listen to it it with regularity. At any point in time there are many NIN tracks I can post here, and while I am mindful about how much  I post about Trent and company, for the last couple of weeks I can't deny that this track is fire. Enjoy!

This past year has been a bit of a NIN resurgence for me. I never stopped liking them or listening to them, but I saw them in August with old friends and it was an amazing experience. So much so that I am going to see them again this Sunday with another group of old friends. On top of that, just a couple of weeks ago we went to go see a Depeche Mode cover band do a full DM set, and then immediately followed that with a NIN set, billed as "DM vs NIN." They played "Ringfinger" that night and it reminded of how much I really loved that song. Do I expect NIN to perform it this Sunday? Who knows, they've been full of surprises this tour (speaking of Depeche Mode) . If I am being honest with myself, no, I don't think they will play it. It's an almost 37-year-old song now (and we all know they're going to play "Head Like A Hole"), but it's back in my rotation. Why? Because this track is fire! Enjoy!  

It's only been two weeks since I first posted about Chalk, so I probably should give it more time before I post about them again. The thing is, since first posting about "I.D.C." I have since purchased their three EPs and have become properly obsessed. There's not a bad song in the lot, but of particular appeal to me of late is the track "Afraid." A song like this make me want to turn it up loud and drive fast.  I don't, but I want  to. So, drive fast and listen to Chalk (only don't, because that's dangerous)! Enjoy! Conditions III by Chalk

I've been listening to Sleek Teeth for a couple of years now and they always bring the EBM goodness. Like your music electronic and especially stompy? Then LA-based Sleek Teeth are for you! Enjoy! The River by Sleek Teeth

Last week my friend Jeff sent me a link to an Instagram post from KEXP and the band Chalk thinking I might like their music and boy, he was not  wrong.  I think I was hooked within the first minute, and by the end of the two songs I was full-on obsessed, so much so that I had already started looking for their live dates. I am now debating if I want to go see them in March in Chicago. To say that I was immediately impressed with this band in a very short time is an understatement. Their debut album, Crystalpunk, debuts on March 13, but they've released "I.D.C." as one of its singles. I fucking love it! Enjoy!

I'm going to the NAIAS this weekend with dear friends of mine so I thought to myself, "let's do a week or car-themed posts!" Rock stars have been singing about cars since rock'n roll was invented, but I was an Gen X alterna-teen, so for me the greatest car song will always be Ministry "Jesus Built My Hotrod." Come August this song will be 35 years old but for me it feels as vibrant as it did when when I was in high school. There's only one thing left for me to do, momma: I gotta ding a ding dang my dang a long ling long! I've included the original, long version of this song because it's the best, pure and simple. Enjoy!

Full disclosure, I found out about this album because of this article and I figured I should check out some of these acts and their respective albums. I am still making my way through the list, though there are a few acts listed that I already know very well. This track, however, jumped out at me immediately and I am glad that it did. One listen and I knew immediately that it was my happy place. Hopefully you like it as well. Enjoy!  Don't Become The Thing You Hated by Rotersand

What do I know about this band? Almost nothing. Hell, I don't even know how to say their name other than to spell it out. But my friend Holly texted me if I had ever heard of them, which, I had not, but I threw on some tracks and now I am hooked! I try to stay away from posting the same genre of music for each post, unless there's some special reason, like Thanksgiving (thus all the songs about being thankful), or that week we were in Canada so I highlighted only Canadian artists, but God damn, this track is just so good that I had to make an exception even if it is a bit similar to Perturbator. What can I say, I like what I like and this track is FIRE!

It was the final Bandcamp Friday of 2025 three days ago, and yes, I made several purchases (more on that later), but one of the standouts is this track by Perturbator. I think the best way I can describe this track, and the entire album, is that it's the soundtrack to a badass sci-fi/action movie that does not yet exist. After making my purchases that afternoon I was listening to them as I drove to/from my friend's house for our weekly poker game when this track came on and I was like, "DAMN!" It's already a solid track, but then at about the 1:15 mark it shifts to this sinister, throbbing beat. Dark Wave, indeed! I love it! Age of Aquarius by PERTURBATOR

This is a young blog, so I am hesitant to highlight a band more than once, but at the same time I want this blog to naturally reflect those songs that I am currently enjoying. So, while I've already linked to multiple songs by Pixel Grip ,  Nine Inch Nails, and Boys Noize already this year, we can add HEALTH to that list now . I think one of the things that I like about HEALTH in particular is that they are so hard to pigeonhole. Are they metal? Are they industrial? Are the electronic? Are they noise rock? The answer is an emphatic YES to all of the above, and more. This is the first single off of their forthcoming album Conflict DLC  and if the entire album is like this I will be a very happy man indeed. I can feel my face melting already, and for me, that's a good thing. Enjoy! CONFLICT DLC by HEALTH

Whatever your favoite Halloween song is, I respect your choice, but for me, as a member of Gex X, but more so, as a former alterna-teen, this is the be-all, end-all of Halloween tracks. I remember when I was in my 20s I would put the VHS (yes, the VHS!) of Ministry's In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up (Live) on the TV in the background and trick-or-treaters came to my parents' house. While this track is not on that VHS, the live visuals from that show fit well with the Halloween asthetic. I mean, this was well before GWAR, so I had limited options. This track still sends a chill up and down my spine, but also speaks to the nerdy kid I was in high school wearing black jeans, a black t-shirt, chunky black shoes, and a partially shaved head. While I was not a full-blown Goth (I would say I am more Goth-adjacent), I could relate to some degree that every day was Halloween as I was not a completely "normal" kid. Happy Halloween!

Updated (04.24.26): since NIN/Boys Noize have since released Nine Inch Noize  I have updated this post with the official version of the track below. At 30+ years old I think we can all agree that "Closer" was a hit that was about as perfect as it could have been, and has since become a classic.  But ever since I saw NIN in Detroit, and even before, thanks to YouTube, I have been obsessed with this remix of the track. I thought maybe that would fade, but here we are weeks later and I am still impressed with not only the audacity to rework such a well-known, iconic song, but I'm equally astounding as to how well it works. And now, with the Coachella lineup announced  (see above as well), it's obvious that this NIN/Boys Noize collaboration is going to continue as Nine Inch Noize. Personally, I love it, and am hopeful to get an official release of this version so I can buy it and listen to it to my heart's content. Welcome to Monday! Enjoy!