Halo numbers are the numbers assigned to pieces of the Nine Inch Nails discography in the order that they are released, so that a collection can be neatly ordered, supplied, and bragged about. Halo numbers are sometimes modified for variations of a release, such as the different versions of The Downward Spiral.

Some Halo numbers are shared with promotional items; Halo 10 is shared with the Hurt and Piggy promo CDs and Halo 16 is shared with the Into The Void promo CD. There are also promotional releases that are given 'Seed' numbers.

Origin

Trent Reznor's decision to use a numbering system for his releases stemmed from the fact that Depeche Mode had already come up with a similar system, using BONG for singles.[1]

Halos

There are four types of Halo:

Studio albums

Singles/EPs

Remix albums/EPs

Live releases

Strobe Light was announced on April Fools' Day 2009. The only real clue to this album being a prank is that it was not assigned a Halo marking, as it would have been Halo 28. As part of the joke, the album was said to have been produced by Timbaland and feature special guest singers such as Jay-Z and Fergie.

"Halo-less" Official Releases

Head Like a Hole UK 12" vinyl release (1990)

UK 12" vinyl release (1990) Into The Void (1999)

(1999) The Hand That Feeds - DFA mixes 12"

- DFA mixes 12" Capital G (2007)

Promotional Releases

Promotional singles released to radio or the internet:

Seeds

Seed numbers are used to catalog promotional releases that come directly from NIN, in a similar manner to the Halo numbers. The bootleg three-part The Definitive NIN collection was released via BitTorrent.