Nine Inch Nails have shared their opinion on the current state of the music world and teased their upcoming work.
- READ MORE: Nine Inch Nails – ‘Ghosts: V-VI’ review: a timely two-part dip into daydreams and nightmares
The band’s Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross recently sat down with IndieWire to discuss their work scoring film soundtracks including The Social Network, Soul, Challengers and Luca Guadagnino’s upcoming film Queer. Earlier this year, it was also announced that they would be serving as composers on the upcoming Disney sci-fi flick Tron: Ares.
While opening up about their process of creating a film’s accompanying score, Reznor also shared his view on the current state of music.
“What we’re looking for [from film] is the collaborative experience with interesting people. We haven’t gotten that from the music world necessarily, for our own choice,” He said. “You mentioned disillusionment with the music world? Yes. The culture of the music world sucks. That’s another conversation, but what technology has done to disrupt the music business in terms of not only how people listen to music but the value they place on it is defeating.
“I’m not saying that as an old man yelling at clouds, but as a music lover who grew up where music was the main thing. Music [now] feels largely relegated to something that happens in the background or while you’re doing something else. That’s a long, bitter story.”
Elsewhere in the interview, the duo were asked about their shelved controversial 1997 video album ‘Closure’. The album contained footage from Nine Inch Nails’ Self-Destruct and Further Down the Spiral tours and was released as a double VHS and featured both on and backstage antics as well as tour guests such as the late David Bowie, Jim Rose Circus, and Marilyn Manson. A DVD release was planned by Interscope Records – the band’s label from 1992 until 2007 after Reznor decided to self-release his work – but was shelved in 2004.
“I’m trying to think what I’m able to say right now,” Reznor told the outlet. “We are doing some things with Interscope again. There’s a renewed interest in making sure the back catalogue is being curated and maintained properly. I’ll bring that up as — I haven’t been paying close attention to what the status of those things are because this is a relatively new development. But that’s a good thing to mention because I would like to have that in some consumable fashion, whether it be streamable or something.”
After being informed that at one point someone did leak a version of ‘Closure’ online, the ‘Hurt’ singer said: “Oh, I wouldn’t know anything about that.”
This is not the first time Nine Inch Nails have opened up about new material being in the works. They began teasing a potential new Nine Inch Nails project in April, when Ross said: “I do feel excited about starting on the next record. I think we’re in a place now where we kind of have an idea.”
Last week, in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Reznor shared that the group were “taking the inspiration we’ve garnered and funnelling it into a Nine Inch Nails project, which we’re working on now. We’re ready to be back in the driver’s seat,” confirming that new material is in the works.
A new album would mark the band’s first since 2020’s surprise ambient double LP ‘Ghosts V-VI‘ which followed 2018’s ‘Bad Witch’.
In other news, this summer, Nine Inch Nails marked three decades of ‘The Downward Spiral’ by teaming up with Dr. Martens for a special boot collection. It followed Reznor opening up on why he apologised to his record label when handing in the record.
The post Nine Inch Nails on the current state of the music world: “Music now feels largely relegated to something that happens in the background” appeared first on NME.