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The very first time I saw Nine Inch Nails was in 1990 after I had worn out their
first vinyl single, Halo 1, Down In It. The show was at the Masquerade
in Atlanta and it would later be infamously known as Sweatfest, for very good
reason. Little did I know that what I witnessed there would become the
phenomenon that is still going strong nearly twenty years and 26 releases, or
“Halos,” later. Nine Inch Nails experienced a rebirth in the past year by
forming its own record label, The Null Corporation, and with it came an
incredibly savvy vision and Web presence. This Lights in the Sky Over North
America tour is definitely a product of the new, refreshed version of NIN
as well as its architect and front man, Trent Reznor.
Emerging on a
deceptively sparse, seizure-friendly black stage, the band began the show and
easily settled in with four tracks from their latest effort, The Slip.
Already rapt by Reznor’s presence, the energy of the crowd immediately spiked
when they heard the first beats of “March of the Pigs.” It was right about then
that a 4.0 earthquake was rumbling outside. It went unnoticed since, inside, it
felt like there was a 7.0 emanating from the stage. It also probably went
unnoticed by me since it was also just about the time guitarist Robin Finck was
diving on me as I photographed the set from the pit. I love my job.
More
crowd favorites, “Closer” and “Gave Up” finished out the first part of the set
and gave way to a surreal transformation of the stage. It became a wall of
images as proximity-sensitive mesh video screens dropped in front of the
quintet. The entire stage seemed to be made of LEDs. While grainy images
reminiscent of those on my tattered Joy Division t-shirt along with rain,
ripples, static and desert landscapes enveloped the performance in a hazy
shroud, the band performed mostly instrumental material from Ghosts.
This stripped-down, artfully dreamy subset of the show featured bassist Justin
Meldal-Johnsen on an upright bass and Reznor on vibraphone. Only the half-way
mark in the two-hour, thirty-song performance, the interlude ended with an
startlingly eerie Ghosts version of “Piggy” with the images on the
front screen parting like worm-holes when Reznor leaned forward to accentuate
the best parts.
With the aching sounds of “Pinion” droning throughout
the arena, the screen was “erased” with a flashlight by a member of the crew as
he systematically painted it with light. Although hi-tech flourishes were
abundant during the show, it was clear that it was much more integrated than in
previous tours. Gone were the simple video screens with beautifully ghastly
time-lapse images of decay. Gone were the showers of broken keys flying from
violently smashed keyboards. The new era of NIN has a much more mature, artistic
and playful nature as Reznor has transformed the entire stage into his very own
canvas and playground. At one point, his every move was followed by a crew
member wielding a video camera while the abstract and distorted close-up imagery
of the singer’s face was displayed overhead. Other technological touches
included hanging pipes of light for the band to amuse themselves onstage and
live video feeds from various cameras installed throughout the venue. Sadly, the
fans caught on the screen missed the joke and didn’t realize they were on camera
and, even more unfortunate, the bathroom cameras, which have been a running gag
on this tour, must have been out for repairs.
The show’s climax
culminated in scorching renditions of favorites including “Wish,” “Terrible Lie”
and “Head Like a Hole,” with the newly reunited Finck bringing back his
trademark intensity. His style has always been a perfect match for Reznor’s
gritty, unwavering vocals. The band was exceptionally tight throughout the
entire evening, as Meldal-Johnsen gave no indication that this was his first
stint on tour with Trent and company and Alessandro Cortini provided solid
backing on the requisite keyboards. Josh Freese, who also moonlights as the
drummer for DEVO, among others, was reliable as always. As talented and well
respected as Freese has become, I still always get a little nostalgic when I
don’t see Chris Vrenna (with a wee trickle of blood on his head) behind the NIN
kit.
After a brief break, the band returned with an encore highlighted
by one of Nine Inch Nails’ most cinematic songs, “Hurt.” For die-hards there
were some notable omissions from the set-list including “Sin,” “Last,”
“Something I Can Never Have” and “Heresy.” And to not follow “The Frail” with
“The Wretched” is heresy indeed. Still, the fans remained captivated and it was
refreshing to see that even the sound and light techs were enthusiastically
bobbing along, especially this late in the tour. The entire production buzzed
with professionalism, from the stagehand on microphone stand retrieval duty to
producer Atticus Ross and art director Rob Sheridan hovering in the wings.
Gazing backstage at the screens and screens of custom-written software
running various aspects of the show, it is apparent that Reznor still embraces
technology as much as ever. It’s also apparent that his measured use of it is a
product of his overall transformation. The aggression and onstage destruction
that have been staples of nearly every previous tour were still very much a part
of this show but were each used more judiciously. While the visual and aural
spectacles were abundant and satisfying, the show turned out to be more than
just a sum of these parts. In the new Nine Inch Nails, it seems that the
emphasis is more about the entire experience—about showcasing the creativity
beyond the live performance of music. NIN 2.0. More artist, less rock star.
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