Live Review: Nine Inch Nails

It’s been 5 years since Trent Reznor and co conquered a British arena, and their return certainly stretched the 16,000-person capacity of Birmingham’s LG. Fans new and old gathered from as early as 5pm, dressed in the colourful attire you’d expect from an industrial metal show – or rather, the lack of. The range of washed out tour shirts proved an overwhelming point – Reznor has been playing this game for over 25 years now.

Nine Inch Nails are perhaps most famous for their work in the 1990s, with 1994’s The Downward Spiral regularly being cited as one of the most influential records of the decade. However, for an act that could easily fill arenas by playing ‘the classics’, Trent Reznor advocates a real dedication towards reinventing his live act. Either through recruiting new members or investing in stage production, The Nails have earned a reputation for innovating their stage show. In fact, just last summer the band lashed out at Reading and Leeds for refusing their elaborate lighting rig. It seems that the UK would wait another year before giving them a platform that could truly accommodate them.

Nine Inch Nails continue to set the benchmark for live shows, and you’ll be unlikely to see Reznor hanging up his guitar any time soon.

The show itself opened with a spotlight on Trent Reznor, in a minimalist rendition of ‘Me I’m Not’. The other band members progressively joined him, in a pattern that was inspired by The Talking Heads‘ Stop Making Sense shows. However, having just toured America as an eight-piece, it was somewhat disconcerting to count just three people join him on stage.

But there was nothing underwhelming about this show. After a strobe-driven ‘Copy of A’ and an exuberant remark about not playing another “fucking festival”, it was clear that this was a refined and polished live act. In turn, with a flurry of exotic lights during ‘March Of The Pigs’, Trent Reznor’s secret weapon was now in full swing. A mechanical screen covered the stage and sat behind or in front of those performing. Images accompanied the music and masked those on stage; this created one of the most immersive live act I’ve ever witnessed. The dynamics this presented were unparalleled. Screens of white noise and distortion obscured the band during breakdowns, only to be pulled back like a futuristic theatrical curtain.

This was most notable during the performance of ‘Eraser’. Uncomfortable images of insects covered the screen during its slow introduction, but were dispersed as the drum kicked in and Ilan Rubin was revealed from behind the metal sheet. The rest of the band proceeded to join in, and the crowd was engaged both visually and sonically. Frankly, these kinds of theatrics are what is inspiring about live music on this scale. Trent has taken the essence of his music and projected in a way that exceeds what the audience expects, when in all honestly, he doesn’t have to play anything more than the music.

In fact, for a band that is comprised of only one official member, there was a remarkable lack of ego displayed. Whilst Trent Reznor is invariably the focal point, his bandmates were impressively tight and professional. Ilan Rubin effortlessly glided between drums and synths, and occasionally picked up the bass and electric guitar. Robin Finck and Alessandro Cortini also swapped instruments, each facing a synth whilst guitars hung from their necks. It seems Trent has hired four likeminded musicians to carry his live act with him. There was no showboating or excessive guitar soloing, nor any other kind of the usual rock star bullshit of bands (and stages) this size. Nine Inch Nails were an act, a collective unit, and above all else, an experience.

There was no showboating or excessive guitar soloing, nor any other kind of the usual rock star bullshit of bands this size

Likewise, the set list was equally as choreographed. Songs like ‘Sanctified’ from 1989’s Pretty Hate Machine were book-ended with tracks form 2013’s Hesitation Marks; clearly they were attempting to cover as much as their catalogue as possible (as a result this certainly didn’t feel like a ‘plug the new album tour’ – *ahem*, Smashing Pumpkins at Wembley last year) Fans also received over-looked album tracks such as ‘The Great Destroyer’ and ‘Piggy’, something that is often missed in larger arena shows. Nevertheless, there was a distinctive scarcity of 1999’s The Fragile. Whilst this is likely the most divisive record within the Nine Inch Nails catalogue, the ripping guitars of ‘The Day The World Went Away’ proved that Trent Reznor’s darkest moments were undoubtedly his best. Their finale was, unsurprisingly, the closest thing to a ‘greatest hits’ for The Nails. A back-to-back performance of ‘The Hand That Feeds’ and ‘Head Like A Hole’ ignited the crowd for one last time. The band then returned for gut-wrenching performance of ‘Hurt’ in the encore; which sparked the cliché lighter waving that only certain songs can provoke.

Whilst I ultimately find it difficult to review something as subjective as live music, and no doubt I would’ve be satisfied merely hearing the songs, the experience that Trent Reznor and co. have conjured is truly awe-inspiring. It is refreshing, immersive and it pushes the limit in what live acts should be doing in light of their ever-inflated ticket prices. Nine Inch Nails continue to set the benchmark for live shows, and you’ll be unlikely to see Reznor hanging up his guitar any time soon.