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To that end, we have the Cold and Black and Infinite tour as catharsis, and catharsis it was on the first of three sold-out nights at the Aragon Ballroom.<\/p>\n
The setlist for this tour has been an ever-changing, metamorphosing thing of a super fan\u2019s dreams, and the first of the Aragon shows was no exception, as the band had only just finished the savage onslaught of opener \u201cMr. Self Destruct\u201d before trotting out the white whale of NIN fandom: \u201cThe Perfect Drug,\u201d in all of its frantic drum-and-bass glory, and it was all blazing intensity for another few tunes before the Atticus Ross collaborations began to find their way in.<\/p>\n
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Reznor\u2019s partnership with Atticus Ross has turned out to be one of the great meeting of minds in music, the most relatable one that comes to mind being Fripp and Eno, as its a case of two musical visionaries finding common ground and learning to play to each other\u2019s strengths. Throughout the series of EPs that have come from Reznor and Ross\u2019s work together, there\u2019s been a tangible, organic sense of moving forward arguably unlike any other phase in Reznor\u2019s career. Live as on record, tracks like \u201cAhead of Ourselves\u201d and \u201cLess Than\u201d are all the best parts of \u2018classic\u2019 Nine Inch Nails, but when thrown in with more abstract cuts like \u201cThis is the Place\u201d and \u201cGod Break Down the Door\u201d (the latter of which featured Trent on sax), you got a sense of that shared, elevated vision. \u201cGave Up\u201d was a seizure-inducing rager featuring the biggest strobe lights mankind has ever seen, and \u201cI\u2019m Afraid of Americans,\u201d the now-classic collaboration with David Bowie, proved to be as prescient as it was relevant.<\/p>\n
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Thirty years into his career as one of the most consistently engaging and creatively confident artists we have, Trent Reznor is still focused on moving forward, but he\u2019s long ago made peace with the scope of the band\u2019s fame, cementing their status as that rare band that exists outside of genre, era, and cultural cycle. Springsteen is the closest thing that comes to mind as an artist with a unique voice who has realized his place outside of the traditional scope of generational popularity; Reznor seems to have realized his role in that sphere as well, his early lyrical visions of death, madness, and mortality having remained in focus but tempered with a stronger, more distinct sense of social commentary.<\/p>\n
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\u201cTime is running out,\u201d Reznor croons on \u201cOver and Out\u201d from new EP Bad Witch<\/em>, and it\u2019s a great example of a track that comes across almost more effectively as a transition piece between other songs in a live context. NIN have had these moments over the years (the instrumental pieces from The Fragile<\/em> being the most obvious example), but perhaps never to such effect. You couldn\u2019t help but wonder who\u2014or what\u2014he was talking about. Maybe himself, maybe us. Maybe both.<\/p>\n For more on Nine Inch Nails, click here<\/a><\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/beintheloopchicago.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Nine-Inch-Nails-live-in-Chicago-at-Aragon-Ballroom-10-25-18-36-1024x683.jpg\")
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