question submitted by mark lamorg:

how has your approach to this album been different to the ones in the past? with the commercialism of easy-to-use computer music software, how do you keep your ideas and sounds fresh? you have been a great inspiration and i thank you.

response from trent:

some music, repeat, some music created and recorded in computers can sound awfully stale and lifeless to my ears — devoid of passion or sincerity. i love working and and probably always will, but i’ve adopted same strategies that seem to work well to ensure the sound in my head gets on the disk the right way. the element of performance is one of them. editing and correcting is avoided if possible, whole “take” are encouraged as opposed to looping, etc.

question submitted by coke:

from japan.

i‘m looking forward to playing u !

thanks u !

response from trent:

yours well come.

question submitted by toph:

how does the rawness and aggressive nature of the upcoming release compare with the aggressiveness of albums like ‘broken“? can we expect the same sonic layering that was found on “the downward spiral” and “the fragile” or will it be more of a return to the stripped-down nature of nin’s first album, or should we except an altogether different animal?

response from trent:

it’s hard for me to be objective about this. i’m approaching this record from a totally different mindset and strategy than the fragile, so it sounds vastly different to me .

question submitted by faith castle:

nin live has historical been a spectacle of a show, do you think you’ll continue with that format for the new record (presuming you will tour it) or do you think you‘ll go with a more stripped down, back to basics approach which would possibly come off as more initimate? thanks x

response from trent:

i plan on touring extensively when the record is released and i‘ve been putting a lot of thought into how to do that in a way that conveys what and where i am the most effectively.

question submitted by kevin brady:

does it feel dam good to be a ganster?

response from trent:

yes, it feels damn good to be a ganster.

question submitted by adam:

what music have you been listening to throughout the creation of bleedthrough, and how do you think it has affected your musical direction?

p.s. today (may 6th) is my birthday... i couldn’t have hoped for a better birthday present then this updated nin.com... thank you

response from trent:

well happy birthday.

lately i’ve been listening to (in no particular order)... early bob dylan, the polyphonic spree, spree, pere ubu, dfa-produced acts, the fall, sonic youth, wire (send in particular), wilco, brainiac, liars, and of course bowie.

question submitted by stephen escobedo:

you have said “bleedthrough” is “minimal and a bit brutal” of  an album. what instruments and equipment are you suing to achieve this sound, and will this entail the use of any digital synthesis as on previous albums?

response from trent:

so far, i’ve been using a mix of real drumming on same things, old drum machines on others. one of the “rules” of this record has been to orchestrate only using monophonic voices. no chords. anywhere. most of the synthesis has been done with a rather elaborate (and ever growing) modular rig and recorded live. it is mainly comprised of doepfer, analogue solutions, analogue systems and metasonix modules. reaktor is also extensively used. guitars are guitars — who cares.

question submitted by thomas shallon:

are there plans to ever release a dvd version of closure?

response from trent:

yes.

question submitted by meathead:

train a leaves the station travelling at 30 miles per hour. two hours later train b leaves the same station travelling in the same direction at 40 miles per hour. how long does it take for train b to catch up to train a? (show all work)

response from trent:

it will take six hours for train b to catch up to train a.

work shown, where t = number of hours the trains were travelling:

30 miles/hour * t hours = 30t miles

40 miles/hour * (t-2) hours = 40 (t-2) miles

30t = 40(t-2)

30t = 40 (-2 + t)

30t = (-2 * 40 + t * 40)

30t = (-80 + 40t)

30t + -40t = -80 + 40t + -40t

30t + -40t = -10t

-10t = -80 + 40t + -40t

40t + -40t = 0

-10t = -80 + 0

-10t = -80

t = 8

8-2 = 6

question submitted by wouter:

as a person you’ve obviously changed since the release of pretty hate machine in 1989. in which ways has that change expressed itself through your music, and in which way will that express itself on your forthcoming album?

response from trent:

every record i’ve done has reflected where i’ve been at as a person when it was done, for better or for worse. what is coming out of my head new seems to be from a very different place than last record, but again it’s hard for me to tell because i’m in here, too.