Year Zero
Year Zero is the fifth studio album by Nine Inch Nails, released on 17 April 2007. Trent Reznor wrote it while touring With Teeth (2005) and recorded it in late 2006, producing with Atticus Ross. It was the first Nine Inch Nails album since The Downward Spiral not co-produced by Alan Moulder. Rather than the inward-looking songwriting of earlier records, it is a concept album that imagines a dystopian America in 2022 and takes aim at the government policies of its day.
The album was one part of a wider Year Zero project, which also took in a remix album, a conceived television or film adaptation and an alternate reality game. The game stretched the story across websites, recorded phone messages and murals. "Survivalism" and "Capital G" were the singles. Critics praised the concept and production, and it reached number 2 in the US and number 6 in the UK. It was the band's last album for Interscope until the Tron: Ares soundtrack in 2025.
Year Zero: tracklist, credits and charts
16 tracks · 1:03:50Tracklist
- 1HYPERPOWER!Trent Reznor1:42
- 2The Beginning of the EndTrent Reznor2:47
- 3SurvivalismTrent Reznor4:24
- 4The Good SoldierTrent Reznor3:23
- 5VesselTrent Reznor4:53
- 6Me, I’m NotTrent Reznor4:52
- 7Capital GTrent Reznor3:50
- 8My Violent HeartTrent Reznor4:14
- 9The WarningTrent Reznor3:39
- 10God GivenTrent Reznor3:51
- 11Meet Your MasterTrent Reznor4:09
- 12The Greater GoodTrent Reznor4:52
- 13The Great DestroyerTrent Reznor3:19
- 14Another Version of the TruthTrent Reznor4:08
- 15In This TwilightTrent Reznor3:34
- 16Zero SumTrent Reznor6:14
- Produced by
- Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross
- Recorded at
- Capitol Studios
- Recorded
- September–December 2006
- Mixed by
- Alan Moulder
- Mixed at
- Chalice Recording Studios
- Engineered by
- Brett Bachemin, Alan Mason, Alan Moulder, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Doug Trantow
- Label
- Nothing Records
- Length
- 1:03:50
Line-up
- Josh Freese · drums (drum set) · guest
- Trent Reznor · vocals
- Saul Williams · background vocals · guest
- Will Artope · trumpet · guest
- Matt DeMerritt · tenor saxophone · guest
- Double G · baritone saxophone · guest
- Elizabeth Lea · trombone · guest
Singles
- “Survivalism” · 13 March 2007
- “Capital G” · 11 June 2007
Peak chart positions
| Chart | Peak |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 · 2007 | 2 |
| UK Albums Chart · 2007 | 6 |
| UK Rock & Metal Albums · 2007 | 1 |
| US Top Rock Albums · 2007 | 1 |
| Canadian Albums (Billboard) · 2007 | 3 |
| Austrian Albums · 2007 | 4 |
| European Albums (Billboard) · 2007 | 4 |
| Australian Albums (ARIA) · 2007 | 5 |
| Finnish Albums · 2007 | 5 |
| German Albums · 2007 | 6 |
All 30 charts
| Scottish Albums · 2007 | 7 |
| Swedish Albums · 2007 | 7 |
| Norwegian Albums · 2007 | 8 |
| UKDigital · 2007 | 9 |
| Irish Albums · 2007 | 13 |
| Swiss Albums · 2007 | 13 |
| Belgian Albums (Flanders) · 2007 | 14 |
| Croatian International Albums (HDU) · 2007 | 15 |
| French Albums · 2007 | 17 |
| Japanese Albums (Oricon) · 2007 | 17 |
| Italian Albums · 2007 | 18 |
| New Zealand Albums · 2007 | 20 |
| Portuguese Albums · 2007 | 20 |
| Danish Albums · 2007 | 24 |
| Belgian Albums (Wallonia) · 2007 | 27 |
| Spanish Albums · 2007 | 32 |
| Greek Albums (IFPI) · 2007 | 35 |
| Hungarian Albums · 2007 | 38 |
| Czech Albums · 2007 | 40 |
| Mexican Albums (Top 100 Mexico) · 2007 | 90 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification |
|---|---|
| United Kingdom · 2022 | Silver |
From MusicBrainz, Wikipedia and Wikidata. Only what the sources record is shown.
Also released on 17 April
Every year →
More from Nine Inch Nails
Full discography →
The best of 2007
All of 2007 →
![[untitled] by Korn, album cover](/img/4ee42fb0-056a-38bf-8a89-e4cf8e4a57ed/300)
More on Nothing Records
The label →Releases and pressings
How we know the release date wikipedia + wikidata; also seen: 2007-04-13 (musicbrainz)
| Source | Date | Note |
|---|---|---|
| MusicBrainz | 13 April 2007 | |
| Wikipedia infobox | 17 April 2007 | |
| Wikidata | 17 April 2007 | |
| US release | 17 April 2007 | earliest US date |
| UK / Europe release | 16 April 2007 | earliest UK or European date |
12 editions
| Date | Country | Label | Barcode | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 April 2007 | — | Nothing Records | 00602517324237 | original |
| 14 April 2007 | AU | Universal Music Australia | 0602517324237 | other |
| 16 April 2007 | GB | Interscope Records | 602517324220 | other |
| 16 April 2007 | RU | Interscope Records | 4605026011434 | other |
| 16 April 2007 | XE | Interscope Records | 602517324237 | other |
| 17 April 2007 | CA | Nothing Records | 00602517301566 | other |
| 17 April 2007 | US | Interscope Records | other | |
| 17 April 2007 | US | Interscope Records | 602517301566 | other |
| 27 April 2007 | JP | Universal International | 4988005464996 | other |
| 25 September 2007 | US | Interscope Records | 602517423183 | other |
| 2 September 2016 | XW | Nothing Records | 00602547582812 | other |
| 2025 | XW | Interscope Records | 602517325173 | remaster |
Cover art sources
coverartarchive · upscaled: minor: best source 1400x1400, upscaled to 1500 (x1.07)
| Source | Size | Verdict |
|---|---|---|
| coverartarchive ✓ | 1400×1400 | upscaled: minor: best source 1400x1400, upscaled to 1500 (x1.07) |
| deezer | 1200×1200 | upscaled |
| fanarttv | 1000×1000 | upscaled |