As most of you know, I'm mildly obsessed (to say the very least) with Nine Inch Nails. I probably know more about the band and and Trent than Trent himself. You also may know that I have gone to well over 20 shows of theirs, including the "very last" three NIN shows in LA. When I found out that they were "starting from scratch" (with two old members) and extensively touring again - a simple facebook status would not suffice..
The very last shows of the "Wave Goodbye Tour" took place at the Wiltern in Los Angeles, which was SUPPOSED to be the last time NIN was on stage ever again was absolutely magical. There were guest appearances by almost 20 collaborators over the years, including old live members, studio musicians, and friends. The club was wall to wall with screaming and admiring fans of all ages. I lost my voice and hearing within the first song. The tour was the "Wave Goodbye Tour" for obvious reasons. He had mentioned in several interviews that he didn't want to keep touring songs he didn't feel as connected to lyrically anymore, that he never wanted to treat it as a job. He said he would more than likely tour again, just not as NIN. He also added he had several projects he wanted to do outside of NIN, one which was becoming a family man. I had nothing but respect for the man when he stated these things.
So after NIN "broke up" he did some pretty amazing soundtrack work, and then pulled an electronic "Wings" and started "How to Destroy Angels" with his producer and wife. How to Destroy Angels is by far the worst music I have ever heard him be involved with. They used some of the coolest, most unique instruments I've ever seen to make some of the worst music I've ever heard. Not much more to say about that..
So after Trent realized "Oh shit, I called that last tour Wave Goodbye, didn't I?" he waves hello and ventures back on the road with the band he just claimed had run it's course. Jackass! Now to those that aren't aware, NIN would ALWAYS have at least 3-4 years in between records and touring. So the fact that he "waited a while" to tour again is complete bullshit. The dude got fuckin bored and broke and wants to tour again. Which honestly, if I could tour in a successfull band like that, I'd be bored as shit at home, too! Just be careful before you make such a bold statement for a few years about how NIN as a live band is done, call out other bands who have done "goodbye" tours and how yours is so legit..
Now to be fair, I will absolutely make every single show of theirs that I can, especially considering one of my all time favorite guitarist will be in this lineup, Adrien Belew. I'm HOPEFUL that this whole "starting from scratch" thing means 100% new material. Nine Inch Nails will forever be that band that I hear about and it feels like someone's talking about my own band. Something I always respected about this band was always the hoensty and goal of doing things a little differently than most acts. Seeing how the tour hasn't happened yet, there is still a chance that this shit will blow me away, especially with the lineup he has this time around, but we'll see..
-Novak