Review: Nine Inch Nails
Nine Inch Nails at Birmingham LG.
The industrial nightmare of noise, known as Nine Inch Nails, have hit UK shores, ready to demolish ears with distorted beats and hypnotic industrial sounds. After the release of ‘Hesitation Marks’ back in 2013, Trent Reznor and the boys are back with yet another amazing line up; their first stop, the home of metal itself, Birmingham.
One by one, the band members step onto the stage and begin with the Year Zero classic, ‘Me I’m Not’. The atmosphere is haunting and, as the dim purple lights shine down on the artists, it is clear a tension is building.
Suddenly, the curtain drops, smoke fills the room and lights flash pink as the aggressive ‘March of the Pigs’ throws the show into top gear. The crowd go mental as distortion shakes the room and base shakes their chest, whilst Reznor screams for them ‘To step right up, march!’
The pyrotechnics transform the LG into an industrial carnival of lights. Strobe lights, spot lights blinders and an LED screen turn the stage in a techno club in Berlin where everyone is dancing. There is so much going on, it’s hard to keep track of the performers as they throw themselves around, switching instruments between songs.
A wall of energy resonates from the stage as the band smash through songs with heated intensity. Reznor is captivating; he moves from fiery, violent vocals to chilling whispers down the microphone as he makes his way through tonight’s perfect set list.
No Nine Inch Nail fan can argue with the band’s songs of choice. There’s something from every era; including the classics such as ‘Burn’, to the brilliant ‘Hand that Feeds’ and ‘Head like a Hole’, which every audience member screams, dances or stomps along to.
The show finishes with the beautiful, heart wrenching sound of ‘Hurt’. There is something so personal about this song that the intensity it creates connects both artist and audience member. The crowd sing along one last time before the lights fade and the industrial storm leaves the stage. With almost thirty years of musical genius underneath his belt, Reznor is still astounding to watch live on stage.
Words by Sophie Sparham