Trent Reznor Talks Future of Nine Inch Nails in New Interview

Just because Trent Reznor announced Nine Inch Nails' last ever U.S. tour dates last week doesn't mean he's parting ways with his two-decades-old musical alter ego. In fact, as Trent tells the Philippines' Daily Inquirer (via TwentyFourBit), he is giving up touring so he can focus more on Nine Inch Nails, other collaborations — like his recent Jane's Addiction production role — plus work on some non-musical projects (and maybe an Exotic Birds reunion?).

"What I specifically said or meant to convey is that NIN as a touring live band or live band that's on the road all the time is stopping. I've just reached the point ... where it has invaded every other aspect of my life," Reznor said. "I have a number of projects that are not music-related which I have put on the back burner for a long time." Reznor adds that because of the way the record industry is built, "the only way to get a paycheck is to play live," though Reznor previously proved he could be successful without a major label or tour when his Ghosts I-IV made about $1.6 million during its unconventional release in March 2008.

Another reason why Reznor is ditching the live circuit? He doesn't want to wind up like another decade-spanning rock act. "I'd never want to be Gene Simmons, an old man who puts on makeup to entertain kids, like a clown going to work," Reznor said of the Kiss bassist and the self-proclaimed God of Thunder. "In my paranoia, I fear that if I don't stop this, it could become that." Like the live incarnation of Nine Inch Nails, Reznor also sees the end of the road for the record companies in general. "They're in their last moments of death and I'm happy to see them go 'cause they're all thieves and liars," Reznor told the Daily Inquirer. "In the States, there aren't any record stores left. The only place is like a Best Buy where you go to buy a washing machine and there's a tiny rack of DVDs and CDs. I think we're in between business models right now."

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Song Stories

“Smells Like Teen Spirit”

Nirvana | 1991

"Smells Like Teen Spirit," named after a brand of deodorant marketed to girls, was Kurt Cobain's attempt to "write the ultimate pop song," he said, using the soft-loud dynamic of his favorite band, the Pixies. Cobain "had that dichotomy of punk rage and alienation," the song’s producer, Butch Vig, told Rolling Stone, "but also this vulnerable pop sensibility. In 'Teen Spirit,' a lot of that vulnerability is in the tone of his voice." Sadly, by the time of Nirvana's last U.S. tour, in late '93, Cobain was tortured by the obligation to play "Teen Spirit" every night. "There are many other songs that I have written that are as good, if not better," he claimed.

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