Pretty Hate Machine is the debut studio album by American industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails, released on October 20, 1989 by TVT Records. The album is compiled of reworked tracks from the Purest Feeling demo, as well as songs composed after its original recording. Production of the record was handled by Flood and Trent Reznor, among other contributors. The album bears little in resemblance to NIN's succeeding work, featuring a more synth-driven electronic sound blended with industrial and rock elements. Lyrically, it contains themes of angst and betrayal, in addition to the recurring theme of lovesickness. The record was promoted with three singles: "Down in It", "Head Like A Hole", and "Sin", as well as an accompanying tour, the Pretty Hate Machine Tour Series. A remastered edition was also released in 2010. Although the record was commercially successful, reaching number 75 in the US, and received highly favorable reviews from critics, Reznor, the band's only constant member at the time, feuded with TVT over promotion of the album, which later led him to sign with Interscope Records. Retrospectively, it is viewed unfavorably by Reznor, who is critical of its themes and production. Nevertheless, Pretty Hate Machine was later certified triple-platinum by RIAA, becoming one of the first independently released albums to do so, and was included on several lists of the best releases of the 1980s.
