He’s coming back more haunted than ever! Trent Reznor brings Nine Inch Nails to Berlin this Thursday, May 15, outdoors at Zitadelle Spandau. Tracks such as “Came Back Haunted,” the first single from last year’s Hesitations Marks will sound welcomed amongst the extensive back-catalog of tracks by the danceable-industrial-dark-synth-alternative late 1980’s outfit from Cleveland, Ohio.
In the past few years I have become deeply familiar with NIN via a vinyl 12” of “Down In It,” the first single from their debut album Pretty Hate Machine, released nearly 25 years ago. It still remains a favorite for its hard-hitting synthetic-pop overtones. The new record hearkens back to that distant time, much like Reznor’s first Cleveland bands, Exotic Birds and Slam Bamboo. If you have not seen footage of those bands, do yourself a favor and Youtube them. The synth-sounds of those times seem to have become timeless, and are much appreciated today by those not born early enough to be a part of those sweaty underground dance club parties of the 80’s.
The second single off Hesitation Marks, “Copy A,” alludes to the past as Reznor sings, “I am just a copy of a copy of a copy. Everything I say has come before.” Perhaps my favorite on the new album is “Everything,” the third single, a throwback tune in the vein of New Order, which inspires me to spend my hard earned 50.65 Euro to see the band for the first time. Nine Inch Nails is as relevant as it was when Reznor set off to make the music he was hearing in his head, by himself, because no other musician around at the time shared the same vision. We can be lucky in 2014, for the return of not only a pure transplant from the 80’s synth-scene, but also a true innovator in music for the last 20 plus years.
Tickets to the show are still available! Supporting NIN this time around will be the L.A./N.Y.C. based Cold Cave. Showtime at 19:00 Uhr.
Zitadelle Spandau
Am Juliusturm, 13599 Berlin
U7 Station Zitadelle
For more information or to purchase tickets:
http://www.nin.com/
http://www.eventim.de/nine-inch-nails
http://www.zitadelle-spandau.de/
Photos by Rob Sheridan (www.nin.com)