This is an extraordinarily-sparse track that, yes, has a more-than-passing resemblance to Blue Monday. But that's kind of music in a nutshell. I mean, consider Nine Inch Nails' "A Warm Place:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v... A number of people have pointed out that it bears an eerie resemblance to David Bowie's "Crystal Japan:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xm2ciX0_UP8&feature=playe... Considering what Trent Reznor grew up listening to, however (he's on record saying "Down In It" was an homage to Skinny Puppy's "Dig It") it was more likely inspired by Depeche Mode's "Stripped:" http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v... ...which could easily have been inspired by David Bowie, but at that point, who cares? "Stripped" is a much more developed, lush track that includes stuff that 'Crystal Japan" could never have, while "A Warm Place" takes that which "Stripped" added to "Crystal Japan" and pulls out all the Bowie. And all three songs exist. Before too much discussion like this, we'll end up staring at our navels and discussing the legitimacy of Squarepusher and the Amen Break: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SaFTm2bcac The fact of the matter is, Frank Zappa pushed Gerry and the Holograms and nothing came of it. Blue Monday is a legend. Saying "yeah, but something else came before" is always true.
My first exposure to John Bonham's crushing drums was The Beastie Boys' "Rhymin' and Stealin'." Those drums are literally cut'n'paste from "When the Levee Breaks." it makes neither song less awesome.
Did you know they recorded that drum track with a single stereo mic at the top of a stairwell with his drums at the bottom in a hallway and it's considered the "holy grail" of drum recordings. Now a-days when you go in to a studio to record drums every piece of the kit is mic'd up and you often have several overhead mic's. -and it still never sounds as good as Bonham did with just one mic at the top of a stairwell. The natural reverb is amazing! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=U9cpziwfV90&feature=relat...
You might enjoy this article: http://www.soundonsound.com/sos/Oct04/articles/classictracks... "Mic number one was a valve U47, and with the other two on gates I made sure that number two, an 87 placed about 15 feet away from him, would go on at a certain level, while the third mic, another 87 that was all the way at the other end of the room, didn't open up until he really sang loud. That reverb on his voice is therefore the room itself, none of it is artificial, and it's his voice triggering the gates. What is really great is that the sound of the opening two verses is really intimate. It doesn't sound like a big room yet, it sounds like somebody just singing about a foot away from your ear. The whole idea worked, and what you hear on the record is probably take three. We wouldn't go beyond that. He was really worked up by then and I can tell you he was feeling it. It was quite an emotional song for him to sing, he deliberated long and hard over these lyrics, and he was ready to go, there was no holding him back. We probably punched in a few things, but it's pretty much a complete take save for a couple of notes that he redid.?