Monday 11/07/05 Nine Inch Nails @ The Apollo, Manchester

It’s a sweltering day in Manchester, probably the hottest of the year so far and several thousand leather clad Goths, rockers and diehards are crammed into the Apollo to catch a glimpse of what promises to be one of the greatest rock shows in the world today. There is also a sense of ‘it-bloody-well-better-be’, as Nine Inch Nails have been away for six whole years. Of course, the emotional time-bomb, Trent Reznor, came close to collapse in the interim - slipping into a severe depression in 1999 battling with srugs and alcohol Reznor was on the brink of suicide. Having hauled himself out of depression, he thankfully reformed NIN, releasing the new album ‘With Teeth’, which marks something of a departure from its predecessor, coming across less introspective and self-deprecating, though no less involving.

Five pod-like structures tower over everything on stage and there's a horrible moment when Gigwise starts to think some sort of self-indulgent Spinal Tap-esque entrance is imminent. One is then reminded Nine Inch Nails are not quite that sort of band. Instead, the pitch black stage is suddenly transformed into a captivating display of sound and light and Nine Inch Nails appear, stamping their authority with ‘Terrible Lie’ taken from the 1989 album ‘Pretty Hate Machine’. Reznor grips the mic with both hands, revealing two enormous sweat-soaked forearms. The crowd roar into life as the first song ends, adulating their idol with a prolonged round of applause, as if doing their best to welcome him back to the stage. Either that or everyone’s just relieved that an ageing NIN still rock like hellfire.

‘With Teeth’ is given a moderate airing, although several hidden gems such as ‘Sunspots’, ‘All the Love in the World’ and new single ‘Only’ are surprisingly omitted. On the face of it though, owing to the band’s exceptional back catalogue, this does little to taint their performance. They shift from the industrial metal of ‘Pretty Hate Machine’ and ‘Broken’ to the atmospheric moodiness of ‘The Fragile’ to electronica and then to the all-out rock riffs of the new album with ridiculous ease. The themes are still dark, the lyrics still quite harrowing in places, but, as ever, this is a different album to the last. It's the sound of a man in control, confident he can write a hellish downer of a song like ‘Right Where It Belongs’, then write a dance-floor classic such as recent single ‘The Hand That Feeds’... then put them on the same album. 

A mid-set lull in the crowd should probably be attributed more to the searing heat in the venue rather than anything else - Reznor spends a great deal of time between songs throwing water to audience members.) The crowd finds its voice again towards the end as ‘Hurt’ and ‘Head Like a Hole’ bring proceedings to a triumphant close. The gothic adonis in the middle of the stage raises his arms to the sky and the entire audience immediately follows suit, bellowing the chorus: “Head like a hole, black as your soul! I’d rather die than give you control!”, prompting Reznor to look around The Apollo as though feeling incredibly lucky to still be here - and for the one and only time tonight he grins warmly at his adoring fans.