How to Format Lyrics:

  • Type out all lyrics, even repeating song parts like the chorus
  • Lyrics should be broken down into individual lines
  • Use section headers above different song parts like [Verse], [Chorus], etc.
  • Use italics (<i>lyric</i>) and bold (<b>lyric</b>) to distinguish between different vocalists in the same song part
  • If you don’t understand a lyric, use [?]

To learn more, check out our transcription guide or visit our transcribers forum

About

Genius Annotation

One of the final songs on The Downward Spiral and an extraordinarily disturbing treatise on suicide. The song notably features stripped-down instrumentation with a sole piano playing the “Downward Spiral” motif drowned out by heavily distorted samples.

Lyrically, the evil alter-ego of the protagonist is encouraging suicide; this robotic voice has “taken over” the protagonist’s rational, human side. It is the final descent into madness before the album closer “Hurt”.

It is also worth noting that the main acoustic guitar riff is a cleaner, more slowed down version of the piano outro from “Closer”.

Credits
Produced By
Written By
Instrumentalist
Sound Designer
Arranger
Mastering Engineer
Mixing Engineer
Recorded At
Le Pig, Benedict Canyon, Los Angeles, California
Release Date
March 8, 1994
Songs That Sample The Downward Spiral
Songs That Interpolate The Downward Spiral
View The Downward Spiral samples
Tags
Comments