REVIEW: Allie Goertz – ‘Peeled Back: A Tribute To Nine Inch Nails’

Back in 2015, Allie Goertz released ‘Sad Dance Songs’, a five-track collection based off of hit TV series Rick & Morty. Establishing herself for her comical take on popular music, she became the editor of MAD Magazine in the years since, exiting in 2019 to continue her pursuits within the music industry. And after a few years on the road and away from the studio, she now returns with her latest offering ‘Peeled Back’, a warm and sombre tribute to one of her most beloved bands, Nine Inch Nails.

While her background in comedy would lead many to approach this release with a more ambivalent attitude, Goertz plays it completely straight here as she looks to heighten the darker and more brooding moments of the band’s catalogue, and offer up a far more emotive listening experience. Stripping back the hard and pounding industrial elements in exchange for a wistful chamber-pop-inspired aesthetic, ‘Peeled Back’ is a warm and inviting homage to Trent Reznor’s more passionate singles.

While Johnny Cash’s rendition of ‘Hurt’ certainly brought the raw emotion of Nine Inch Nails to the forefront, Allie Goertz does the exact same thing but with a more diverse and eccentric appeal. Creating these incredibly lofty soundscapes that broaden the originals from beginning to end, ‘Peeled Back’ is less of a covers album and more of a pursuit in unearthing the true beauty in some of the more unexpected places.