Metal

"We're in the building where they make us grow, and I'm frightened by the liquid engineers, like you."

For this episode, I look back at one of Gary Numan's best-known and best-loved songs, 'Metal', from 1979's The Pleasure Principle.

The track was the first song on the album with lyrics, and was inspired by the writings of Philip K Dick, about a machine with a desire to be human.

The perfect synthpop track was never a single, but it became one of Gary Numan's most-performed songs, and was later covered and sampled by a number of artists, most notably by Trent Reznor's Nine Inch Nails.

The episode looks at:

What 'Metal' is all aboutIts somewhat forgotten music videoWhy it was never released as a singleThe various live versionsWhen Gary performed it with Nine Inch Nails in 2009

Clips used:

Gary Numan - MetalThe Beach Boys - Do It AgainGary Numan - Metal (live, 1979)Gary Numan - Metal (live, 1986)Gary Numan - Metal (live, 2018)Gary Numan - Metal 98Gary Numan - MoralGary Numan - Revolution (audiobook)Tubeway Army - The CraziesTubeway Army - We Have a TechnicalNine Inch Nails - MetalNine Inch Nails - Metal (live, 2009)Planet Funk - Who SaidAfrika Bambaataa - MetalNouvelle Vague - MetalPoppy - Metal

Please get in touch on Twitter, Facebook, TikTok and Instagram, or email at numanpodcast@gmail.com.

Celebrating the music of electronic pioneer Gary Numan, track-by-track. Each episode delves into a different Gary Numan song from various albums and eras in a non-linear journey.

• No. of episodes: 52
• Latest episode: 2025-07-01
• Arts Music

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