10 Amazing Rock Albums That You Didn't Know Were About Drugs

Before this record even came out, Trent Reznor wasn't really in the best mindset for making music. After already being strung out on drugs throughout most of the sessions for Pretty Hate Machine, the Broken EP gave us just a hint at what kind of darkness was going to be happening in the next few years. Even with all that preparation though, we still weren't ready for what happened on The Downward Spiral.

While it's hard to say which drugs came to fruition at this point, the character in the center of this album is in the throes of every single addiction you can think of, doing almost anything he can to make himself feel more powerful. Right from the first blast of Mr. Self Destruct, Trent is on a power trip that is not going to end well, whether that be trying to manipulate someone sexually on a song like Closer and being consumed in the world of excess and loving every minute of it.

For as much as this album has its fangs out, this is by no means supposed to be an endorsement of this kind of lifestyle either, with the final song Hurt being the protagonist reflecting on what led him here and whether he could have done things differently. Other rock stars might take this album as a bit of a wake up call, but it's too late for him.