The Attraction to All Things Uncertain

Editorial Reviews
About the Artist
It all started with the painting on the cover of the album. From the serpentine, shadowy slither of the opening track, "Linoleum," through complex soundscapes that float slowly into a kind of light, not the light of day, but the filtered glint that leaks through yellowed windows. Grammy® Award-winning artist, producer, and remix virtuoso Chris Vrenna takes us on a journey through The Attraction to All Things Uncertain. A little background. Chris Vrenna has been a prominent figure in alternative music since he began hammering drums and programming beats with Nine Inch Nails. After leaving the band he soon became one of the hottest studio wizards in the business. His credits are vast: David Bowie, Smashing Pumpkins, Marilyn Manson, Green Day, The Wallflowers, Hole, Rob Zombie as well as Xzibit featuring Dr.Dre and Snoop Dogg. In a recent one-month period alone, he provided U2 with their "Elevation (Tomb Raider Mix)" for the summer blockbuster Tomb Raider, and provided remixes for Nelly Furtado, Weezer and Poe. In addition, he produced the recent album for Cold, whose CD is nearing gold status. Even coffee, Vrenna's admitted drug of choice, isn't enough to fuel this furious pace. Every now and then, he's gotta get out, take a walk, and prowl the art galleries of L.A. "I'm an art enthusiast," he admits. "So one day I went into this gallery and saw this painting of a sad little guy staring at an empty typewriter, with a cup of coffee on the table. His hands are folded. He's got these big glasses on. It practically brought me to tears. The expression on his face, and the feelings that the painting evoked were just amazing. I went back to that gallery every week for six months and just stared at that painting. Then, finally, a dear friend bought it for me - they said they couldn't let anyone else own it." The painting, created by Joe Sorren, now hangs in Vrenna's living room. Previously, it hung on his studio wall, an apparition whose silent, eloquent presence he used to inspire this latest project -- an inspiration so direct and demanding that Vrenna even borrowed from the painting's title, Elliott's Attraction to All Things Uncertain, for his album. In moments grabbed between freelance projects, or in long late-night stretches with only Elliott as his witness, Vrenna assembled a compelling sequence of pieces, bristling with electronic effects, swampy slide guitar, and stadium-sized slammin' beats that alternate with moments of intimate introspection. Each note plays a role in Vrenna's grand plan to tell the story of Elliott, a kind of lost Everyman, whose life, if everything works out, will lead not to triumph, but to a kind of resolution born from resignation and acceptance. To help guide the story along, Vrenna recruited three guest vocalists to add words at four critical junctures. Each received musical material, a reproduction of the painting, a summary of the plot, and instructions on what Vrenna hoped they would contribute. The results surpassed his expectations. On "Linoleum," the opening track and single featured on the EP, David Sylvian's haunting baritone brings us quickly to the heart of Elliott's fearful confusion. A woman's voice asks "Why?," which only emphasizes his uncertainties. Will Oldham's (of Palace Music and Bonnie 'Prince' Billy) contribution to the album on "Happy Child" is the turning point of Elliot's story. As the music shifts from a murky tread into a breathless suspension on "The Drive-bye," it's the only part of the album where no drums or percussion pulse. It then falls to Craig Wedren of Shudder to Think to deliver the two final vocal tracks. His voice stretches like a bird emerging from its egg on "Take Me Alive" and soars over a chorus of massed harmonies, unchained yet not quite free on "After All," singing "I do not fear this after all/Not quite so fearless after all." The 50-minute EP of "Linoleum," the first single from tweaker, features remixes of the David Sylvian track from Josh Wink, Wamdue Project, King Britt, Teargas & Plate Glass and Paul Leary of the Butthole Surfers, along with rare non-LP tracks. The 12" vinyl contains remixes from Josh Wink, Wamdue Project and King Britt. Recorded under the name tweaker, which Vrenna adopted when he began work on this project three years ago, The Attraction to All Things Uncertain will be at long last released this fall. And that's just the beginning: Look for American McGee's Alice, featuring his music for the popular PC game based on the darker side of Alice in Wonderland, later this year. This collaboration between Vrenna and game designer American McGee is a match made in virtual heaven. As the genius behind Doom and Quake, McGee possesses a dark and brilliant vision that perfectly complements Vrenna's sonic imagination. For Alice, Vrenna concocted a haunting score played mainly on toy instruments and sweetened with female choir, strings, and effects. It is not a game for the faint of heart, but then, neither is the music of Chris Vrenna. Have the courage to enter the world of Alice and The Attraction to All Things Uncertain -- you're guaranteed to come back safely, and with a decidedly different view of the world around you. Both albums will be out on Six Degrees Records.

Product Description
The Attraction to All Things Uncertain is the first solo effort from tweaker, a.k.a. Chris Vrenna, former member of Nine Inch Nails. Featuring vocals by David Sylvian, Will Oldham and Shudder to Think's Craig Wedren, tweaker's Six Degrees debut is an incendiary and haunting collision of rock and otherworldly electronics.

The Attraction to All Things Uncertain,tweaker,Six Degrees,Alternative Pop/Rock,Electronic,Pop,Rock,Rock/Pop

Tracks:

Linoleum (featuring David Sylvian)
Years From Now
Swamp
Turned
Happy Child (featuring Will Oldham)
The Drive-bye
Take Me Alive (featuring Craig Wedren)
Susan
Microsize Boy
Full Cup of Coffee
Empty Sheet of Paper
After All (featuring Craig Wedren)
Come Play

Album Description

The Attraction to All Things Uncertain is the first solo effort from tweaker, a.k.a. Chris Vrenna, former member of Nine Inch Nails. Featuring vocals by David Sylvian, Will Oldham and Shudder to Think's Craig Wedren, tweaker's Six Degrees debut is an incendiary and haunting collision of rock and otherworldly electronics.

Customer Reviews:

Interesting, but ultimately unsatisfying........2005-08-03

"The Attraction to All Things Uncertain" is the debug album by Chris Vrenna's "Tweaker" project. Inspired by the cover painting, the album has been criticized from numerous angle for being too much like Nine Inch Nails, or too little like Nine Inch Nails, or too much of a dull electronica experiment with not enough songs.

In truth, all of these criticisms are probably true on some level. Certainly, Vrenna's work is heavily informed by his former employer ("Swamp"), but not enough so to be able to please the majority of NIN fans ("Years From Now"), and the truth is that from my perspective, its when Vrenna steps out and develops his own sound that he excels on the album.

The best tracks are bizarre, moody, and borderline irritating at times-- relying on some sort of bizarre arpeggiated part or oddball sample intertwining with a drum loop and more-often-than-not NIN-like guitar line. Take vocal tracks "Linoleum" (ably sung by David Sylvian) and "Take Me Alive" (Craig Wedren). Both establish a sort of tense, haunting mood punctuated by unexpected shifts and a tense vocal. Of the instrumental work (of which the album is dominated), the same sort of oddity in performance is where the record excels, as the bizarre "The Drive-Bye" illustrates. The song's sample-driven sound really borders on grating which develops the tension of the piece well.

Of course, sometimes it doesn't quite work. "Microsize Boy" is washed in electronic voices and NIN-like beats that end up grating to the point where you practically count the seconds until the song ends.

In the end, "The Attraction to All Things Uncertain" may have a lot of interesting ideas and unique moments, but as a whole I find that it fails to hold together. Interested parties will find a lot to like about this (I did), but its not an overly rewarding effort.

Excellent Debut.......2004-04-02

I've found myself listening to TATATU a lot recently, gearing up in anticipation for Tweaker's upcoming second album, "2 a.m. Wakeup Call". This type of music is definitely not for everyone, but for those who decide to venture in, they won't be disappointed. This album is intended to be listened to on a rainy day, when you have plenty of time to just relax, have a few cups of coffee, and possibly just stare out a window or outside a patio into the bleak overcast.

On the 4 vocal tracks, the guest appearances by David Sylvian, Will Oldham, and Craig Wedren are all exceptionally well done, and fit nicely. The lyrics sung on "Microsize Boy" are entirely mechanic and go excellent with the mood at this point of the album. After this track, the pace slows down significantly, almost as if to reflect on the previous 9 tracks, most of which all pulse with intense drum beats and synths. It picks back up again for the final two tracks, "After All" and "Come Play".

All in all, a 4/5 star performance for me, with only a few minor weak points throughout the entire album, but easily forgivable ones at that. You really need to listen for yourself to understand the concept. After hearing the first released track, "Ruby", off the second Tweaker album, there is no doubt in my mind it will go above and beyond what TATATU did. Here, Vrenna was only scratching the surface...

Standout Tracks: Linoleum, Years From Now, Swamp, The Drive-bye, Take Me Alive, Microsize Boy

WOW!!! Great C.D!.......2003-12-09

This album is VERY eclectic! Many different sounds and genres are combined. Industrial, trance, ambient, rock. I really enjoyed this album!
It's kinda stupid for these other reviewers to compare these guys to NIN. NIN is great but Tweaker definatley has merit. I think its unfair to compare the two because both have such different qualities.

P.S- Whoever the reviewer was that said this album had dance music breaks inbetween songs is INSANE. You wouldn't know real "dance" music if it bit you in the A$$.

Anyways... Please hear it for yourself.

phenomenal music.......2003-08-20

to start off, yes, christ vrenna was the drummer for NIN, and no, this cd does not sound like "the downward spiral" or "broken." it is a completely different sound. but that is probably to be expected, seeing as how when one does one's own solo project they can do whatever they please. it may not sound like NIN, but you can here a hint of influence in it. very electronic, featuring the voices of many other persons, other than himself. NIN is one of my favorite bands, and so is tweaker. i recommend that all of you buy this cd if you enjoy good music, which this most certainly is. it is always in my cd player. just check it out, you'll be happy

Not NIN.......2003-06-05

This is mostly calm, thoughtful, synth pop and alternative. For some reason though Vrenna thought it'd be a good idea to put (generally awful) techno intermission tracks between the real songs.

1. Linoleum - heavy synth pop and great vocals, but the guitar is out of place(8/10)
2. Years From Now - aggrivating techno, kinda like and intermission (1/10)
3. Swamp - industrial dance music and drum loops that build up to funky country guitars and pounding agressive drumming (10/10)
4. Turned - yet another techno intermission, less aggrivating though (3/10)
5. Happy Child - deep and introspective lyrics, emotional singing and well done instrumentation (10/10)
6. The Drive-bye - weird sampling and haunting indian music, the only good intermission (6.5/10)
7. Take Me Alive - melodic singing and upbeat bass n' drums. i really like the bluesy guitar work after each chorus (8/10)
8. Susan - harsh grating industrial dance. very reminiscent of Wumspcut, except it's catchier (4.5/10)
9. Microsize Boy - digitized vocals and beats too catchy to be industrial and to heavy to be pop (9/10)
10. Full Cup of Coffee - really long and boring (3/10)
11. Empty Sheet of Paper - dance and techno [intro to "After All"] (4/10)
12. After All - worse instrumentation than the first Craig Wedren song, but better singing (7/10)
13. Come Play - techno and reggae (3/10)