12 November 2008

Nine Inches of Awesomeness!


Last night’s NIN (Nine Inch Nails) concert was absolutely amazing! I have heard that they put on a good show, but this far exceeded my expectations.

I have been listening to NIN since high school and while I can’t claim myself to be a diehard fan, I always thought they would be a cool band to see live in concert. Being a bit older now, and totally frightened by mosh pits and claustrophobic crowds, having a box was definitely the best way to see the concert. Hubs and I had a great view with only a minimum amount of pot inhalation from the fumes wafting up from the unwashed masses below. Yup...there’s that crotchety old lady seeping out again…

The only downer of the night was the opening act, Boris. If the signer had a decent voice, I certainly couldn’t tell. The instruments drowned out his voice and all was left with was the ungodly sounds of wailing and screeching instruments without any discernable beat, rhyme or reason. To be perfectly blunt, it was about forty minutes of depressing noise that forced me into a comatose state. Who needs drugs or alcohol?

The NIN show opened with most of the classics. I went a little wild when Trent sang Closer – a song that is sadly near and dear to my heart and very much reminiscent of high school and early university speaker-dancing days. (I swear to God, I’m a good girl!). The set also included: Head Like a Hole, March of the Pigs, Hurt, Only, Deep and The Hand That Feeds. Sadly they didn't play Into the Void, one of my favourites. The band wowed the crows for almost a solid 2 ½ hours with barely a pause between songs. As if the music wasn't good enough, we were also awed by what was easily, one of the coolest stages and light shows I have yet to see at a concert. Every song was backlit by LCD lights and images. At one point the band looked as though they were singing in the middle of a waterfall – the water had the illusion of falling around the singer anytime he stepped forward into the falls. I could go on and on about the visual effects that accompanied each song, but then that would ruin the surprise.

If you like rock (industrial-rock), I highly recommend seeing NIN in the future. It was truly an experience, both acoustically and visually. This is going down as one of the best concerts yet and believe me, I’ve seen my fair share!

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