Industrial metal, with its popping synth, is music better suited to the indoors. But last night at Starlight Theatre, Nine Inch Nails did its best to create an appropriate mood.
Smoke billowed on stage throughout the set; row after row of blinding lights flashed on and off in time with the music. Projections on a screen (like what headliner Jane's Addiction would use later) would have been nice, however. Back in the day, NIN was kind of a pioneer in the realm of creepy music videos. But -- especially if yesterday hadn't been so depressing and overcast -- the bugs and scalpels and bondage wouldn't have projected at a performance that started and ended before night fell completely.
And so, Trent Reznor and the cast of musicians currently backing him served up a stripped-down show, featuring most -- but by no means all -- of NIN's hits, a little too much new stuff, plus a few old treats for the fans who've been hating themselves along with Reznor all these years.
The show started at approximately 7:53 p.m. as the silhouettes of the band members emerged in the white fog. Reznor, who's grown stout and muscly over the years, appeared in a dark black or blue shirt. In a pseudo-medley trend that continued throughout the night, the first song "Now I'm Nothing" blended seamlessly into the next, "Terrible Lie."
According to the official setlist that Clubs Editor Berry Anderson had photographed, "March of the Pigs" was supposed to come next, but I'm sure the band snuck in "Discipline." I should have paid closer attention to when the band strayed from the predetermined song order, but I confess to losing myself just a little in the slithery beats, crushing guitars, shotgun drums and heartbreaking keyboards -- the signature NIN sound.
The Reznor razor has dulled some, but not much, over the years. Although he's a verifiable superstar -- one of a few '90s rock icons to remain active -- and therefore presumably living a pretty comfortable life, he's still able to summon up a rage, or at least a convincing approximation of it, on stage. Throughout the hour-and-a-half set of songs about self-destruction, self-hate and fury at the powers of God, Reznor flung himself, a tambourine and at least one mic stand across the stage. As usual, he rotated from guitar to keyboards to just singing, frequently backed up vocally by his band mates. When he did stand at the mic, he gripped it desperately, bending his body to and fro or up and down, often with an angry grimace on his face.
Reznor barely addressed the crowd until very late in the set. As support for Jane's Addiction, NIN plowed through the music, squeezing in as many songs as possible. The energy lagged a bit in the middle, mainly when the band played songs that are more digital and less guitar-driven. One of the times that Reznor did speak, he confirmed reports that this is NIN's final tour. "Thank you for all the years of paying attention," he said. And then he gave a nod to his oldest fans by performing "Physical (You're So)," an Adam & the Ants cover from NIN's 1992 release Broken. Uncharacteristically sexy, "Physical" was by far the best song of the show. And it was a perfect lead-in to the final three originals, starting with "Hand that Feeds."
Almost everyone's arms came up during "Head Like a Hole," and as the '90s anthem ended, it seemed Reznor might take his final bow to the fans he's been serving so long. But the stage stayed black only briefly, until the beginning strains of "Hurt," undoubtedly NIN's best-known song and a beautiful end to his set.
Earlier in the night, another big name from the '90s appeared on stage. Street Sweeper Social Club, featuring Rage Against the Machine guitarist Tom Morello, was the opening act.
The rap rock group also features Boots Riley of Bay Area hip-hop group the Coup. Thanks surely to Morello, SSSC has a vibe that's kinda Rage-lite. Donning matching military style jackets and repeatedly mentioning its mission of fighting poverty and the power, the band definitely has aims that go beyond mere entertainment. But SSSC's music doesn't come off militant. It's fun and danceable, especially when the band covers M.I.A.'s "Paper Planes." Also worth noting: Local band the Beautiful Bodies played a couple of sets over on the venue's V.I.P. before and after SSSC.
There's one overriding question of the night, however. Why would Reznor opt to play second fiddle on his own farewell tour? 'Cause he's just that humble? More likely -- it's 'cause he's Trent Reznor and can therefore do whatever the fuck he wants. The buzz I've heard is that NIN wanted to have a good time on this last tour, and that means kicking out their own tight set and then kicking back during Jane's Addiction -- Reznor's close pals and a favorite band.
As a NIN fan, the arrangement embittered me, especially in light of the drizzly weather, but I have to admit that Perry Farrell and co. totally brought it last night. And I'm glad I carpooled with Berry, who reviewed Jane's Addiction, because otherwise I might have stomped home early and missed the best set of the night. (Sorry, Trent. But I still love you.)
Set list (more or less):
Now I'm Nothing
Terrible Lie
Discipline
March of the Pigs
The Frail
The Wretched
Piggy (remix)
The Becoming
Burn
Gave Up
Echoplex
The Fragile
The Way Out is Through
Wish
Survivalism
Physical
The Hand That Feeds
Head Like a Hole
Hurt
Showing 1-18 of 18
This was the first time I seen NIN live. I had a blast. I have all of his CD's (singles,vhs,DVD). I was surprised he played The Way Out Is Through from The Fragile. I'll admit the lights weren't to great since the sun was still partially out. Great show none-the-less. I'm glad they played a few songs that haven't been played in awhile such as Now I'm Nothing (Last time it was played was in 1991), Physical and The Way Out Is Through.
Yo,
I am Luke, soon 38 ,
I 'm a doctor and teach sciences at university
best regards ,
Luke, [url=http://www.eseo.fr]ingenieur[/url]
I went to the NiN|JA concert in Indy this last weekend and I have to say, It was great. I am amazed of how critical people are being of the show and you all might want to take a different look at this.
You just got to see NiN for the last time...ever... Why not feel good about being there at the great farewell?
As far as NiN playing second look at it this way. You come early to see at part of if not all of SSSC. You have a great time watching Nails. Then you can leave during JA and be out by 10 or 11. (that was the case for alot of people in Indy at least.)
JA was pretty sub-par and covered up the suck by turning up the volume.
For everyone saying that NIN shouldn't be opening for anyone... i agree.
That being said, This was Trent's tour. He fought to make sure that you could bring cameras and video recording and all of that. He also made sure that fans for first stab at the best seats at most of the shows. So, if he decides that he wants to play as the sun goes down behind the crowd (which was his intent), then let him. Rather than focus on the negative, look at all the things he did. Oh, and did I mention he gave you an album for free and also a free EP with 2 new Jane's Addiction tracks that were the first with that line-up since 1990? I could go on and on about all the things.. just saying.. let him do what he wants and just enjoy it. He's the only guy that does everything he can for his fans.
I guess no one remembers when Perry gave NIN their start on the first Lalapolooza tour. NIN played at like 4 in the afternoon, and blew most of the other bands away. Seems to me Trent may be tipping his hat in a way.
Yeah for those of you who wanted to see the spectical of a NIN show missed out because THAT tour was last year.
This was a more laid back show, but by all means..the light show was still pretty kick ass.
I wish the set list would've been a little bit better with more rare songs..but Now I'm Nothing, Becoming, Physical, Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now), Fragile and Way Out is Through sounded AMAZING! Great job Trent and I'm so glad I drove from St. Louis to see the show...
Trent'll be back...I know it.
I was very disappointed with the concert. We drove down from Lincoln (3.5 hrs) because we wanted to see NIN for the last time.
We had all seen them and we wanted to be there for the last time.
Then, WTF???? They are opening for Jane's Addiction? That is crap. NIN should NOT be opening for anyone.
They should close out the show and rock into the sunset. They shouldn't be passing the microphone to a LAME 90's band. We were all so pissed off that we left after JA started, and we drove back to Lincoln, even though we had already paid for a hotel room.
This is the second time in a row that I've come down to KC to see a concert and been super disappointed (Beck in October '08 the first). At least Beck played more than 12 songs
Adam
I wasn't even there, so I probably shouldn't have stayed in this discussion so long, but I can't help myself sometimes.
A good movie to rent this weekend: Tell No One (dir. Guillaume Canet, based on the novel by Harlon Coben)
@Jason Harper oh yeah, totally. and to be honest, i don't see how trent could have topped the last tour, beyond, i don't know, setting himself on fire onstage. it was that elaborate and intense. i'm sure physically it was really difficult, too. which is also part of the taking-it-easy thing.
i'm sort of perplexed by how someone who hasn't seen the band before would be disappointed by the set, though. there were a lot of "singles" played, and it's not like there weren't any accompaniments. the lights were pretty bitching.
Thanks Annie and Ryan. It stands to reason, though, that if people come expecting a full on NIN show, they'll be disappointed. There were probably a lot of people there who were seeing NIN for the first -- and quite possibly last -- time. To them, Trent's crack-a-beer-and-kick-back approach was probably not what they were hoping for. I understand, though, how longtime fans who've seen them a bunch of times would appreciate the change, though.
@JJS: Yeah, you're probably right. I'm just arguin'. Mainly, I wanted to work Kermit, Cash and Maxwell into the same thought.
This was in no means a show for the casual fan and it was in every way everything thing that Trent billed it to be. Raw, stripped down, and full of things we havent seen in a very long time.
Having toured almost constantly for the past 3 years, and as Trent told us backstage about having to "see the same 20 people up front every show," he wanted to do get away from the usual set playlist. He told that he wanted to do something a little different that would put them in a little more uncomfortable of a place.
And Im glad he did.
From the very beginning we were gifted a song I havent ever seen him play since the woodstock days but always loved "Now Im Nothing."
Not to mention Physical, or The Becoming.
All in all, I didnt miss closer a bit having seen it played 4 times already. I was glad to see things I had never seen before.
I'll definately be missing NIN. Theres no one else on this earth that can capture such raw emotion as Trent, or put on a better show. But as someone said earlier, what a way to say good bye.
This was in no means a show for the casual fan and it was in every way everything thing that Trent billed it to be. Raw, stripped down, and full of things we havent seen in a very long time.
Having toured almost constantly for the past 3 years, and as Trent told us backstage about having to "see the same 20 people up front every show," he wanted to do get away from the usual set playlist. He told that he wanted to do something a little different that would put them in a little more uncomfortable of a place.
And Im glad he did.
From the very beginning we were gifted a song I havent ever seen him play since the woodstock days but always loved "Now Im Nothing."
Not to mention Physical, or The Becoming.
All in all, I didnt miss closer a bit having seen it played 4 times already. I was glad to see things I had never seen before.
I'll definately be missing NIN. Theres no one else on this earth that can capture such raw emotion as Trent, or put on a better show. But as someone said earlier, what a way to say good bye.
weird thing #1: the official setlist i got from the venue had "discipline" on it. ? maybe last-minute addition?
@disappointed: the show did run 90 mins. 7:52 until 9:20ish.
apologies in advance, because i feel like the comic book guy right now:
trent basically said that he got all of the fancy touring stuff out of his system with the last huge tour, which had ungodly amounts of video, lights, programming, etc. this was meant to be his kick-back, feet-up, crack-a-beer, sit-on-the-lazy-boy-and-watch-bad-tv tour. (metaphorically speaking.) and i actually really liked the light show -- i thought it was deceptively simple, and was really atmospheric/tasteful. so that's why there was no video, etc.
i saw that last big fancy tour twice, and in comparison this one was totally disco. the new drummer -- coupled with the heavy synths -- brought much more of a new wave/dancey groove. i actually texted someone: "Everybody NINDisco!" so that was interesting to me.
also, the setlist had a ton of stuff from the Fragile, which i liked. (but then again, i love that album, which makes me weird.) agree that maybe i didn't need to hear "survivalism" and i actually was sorta disappointed to hear "physical" (was hoping for "dead souls") and "terrible lie." but "burn"! "the wretched"! "wish"! hot damn!
otherwise, great review and solid set. trent's going out on top.
I actually didn't even know about Maxwell.
My point is that even my parents would recognize "Closer", if only because it's the song with the lyric about Trent's animal-like prowess.
People off the top of my head who have covered "Hurt":
Kermit the Frog
Johnny Cash
People off the top of my head who have covered "Closer":
Maxwell
Um...
Thanks for the review. I would offer that "Closer" is far better-known than "Hurt", however.
I've waited a long time to see Nine inch nails and couldn't have been more disappointed. The light show during the day doesn't do it justice. And, personally they shouldn't open up as a band for anyone! I heard very few old hits and had way too many new songs that were OK at best. Lastly, the set only lasted an hour and 15 minutes. What a rip off! Expected so much more.
like
dislike
