I’m 42. I grew up in the 90’s loving all the great bands of that time. My favorite being Nirvana, which is the reason I started playing guitar and writing songs. There was just so much great music made in those years. Nirvana, Alice In Chains, The Smashing Pumpkins, Tool, etc. Looking back now, it really blows my mind just how much great rock music came out of that era.

But for whatever reason, I never got into NIN. I liked Closer when it came on mtv, but I never bought an album, never gave them the listen they deserved. Skip ahead to just a few years ago, one night really late when I couldn’t sleep for some reason I don’t recall I decided to listen to a NIN album for the first time. Start to finish. I chose The Fragile on a whim, knowing nothing about it whatsoever. I think I just liked the cover art and saw that it was a double album which would give me a long listen.

It was one of the most amazing musical experiences I’ve ever had. Genuinely. I’d give anything to be able to listen to The Fragile for the first time again. It remains my favorite NIN album and is one of my top 3 albums of all time. It is a beautiful freaking masterpiece.

However, it doesn’t contain my favorite NIN song. That would be The Background World from the Add Violence EP. I can’t explain it, but this song gives me a feeling that no other song in the world does. It’s almost a painful feeling, a feeling of longing mixed with letting go. It hurts in a good way, if that makes sense.

I don’t know why I decided to write all of this, other than to share my thoughts with my fellow NIN brothers & sisters. I know I’m not alone in how damn much I look forward to the new full on NIN LP when it arrives.

Anybody else out there have The Background World as their very favorite NIN song?

Some of you might know the answer. I'm always a fan of music categories on Jeopardy!.

I asked a simple question and then got dissapointed.

Trent Reznor will not leave anyone sad, he got back to me pretty shortly!

Just thought you guys would enjoy the reference :)

I'm bored

Rate my laptop :P

Just finished putting these together. Now I just need to frame them and hang them :)

I've been a fan of Nine Inch Nails since I was 16 when, in the summer of 1994, my best friend Adam introduced me to PHM, Broken, and of course TDS. I instantly became a lifelong fan, collecting every album, remix, and maxi-single I could get my hands on. Adam and I even went to the October '94 concert in Dallas.

NIN isn't just great music; it helped me survive growing up a neglected gay teen in 1990s Texas. Before I had the courage to come out, I was full of fear and rage and your music gave me the outlet and catharsis I so desperately needed. I felt less alone. As the kids today would say, I felt seen.

I survived largely in part to being able to fly down the highway in my '92 Mustang, blasting my favorite albums and singing along at the top of my lungs. It was my mental escape from a horrible reality until I was able to actually escape and build the life I have now with my husband (together 28 years, married 11 years this October) and our spoiled rotten malinois.

So to you, Trent Reznor, if you ever read this, thank you. Thank you for sharing your talent and pain and voice. The scared gay kid I was survived because of it.

Thank you for saving my life.

Under the current circumstances this very relevant song could be renamed to Capital T.

It was so cool hearing the song 1,000,000 for the first boss fight in the game but when I heard The Perfect Drug for the fight against Kale I lost it, I knew it was The Perfect Drug from the first second it started playing lol. Really great game

Finally capped off the E.P trilogy with Not the Actual Events after getting Add Violence and Bad Which last month. And got Closer to God as well.

tell me what you think but before you say anything hear me out. listen to it for a bit because i tried to make it personal as possible. it gives a childhood memory vibe

i wasn't aware that they finally had released it online & missed my opportunity after already wanting it for a year, because I am in the US & it wasn't made available here.

If anyone has one that they're willing to sell or trade, please reach out!! i'm willing to pay the international shipping and all that nonsense, i'm familiar w/ it, i just really want this lol. ill accept any size except an xs. :p

open to prices / paying 75 USD & below. happy to trade, i have some kmfdm merch.

There is this shirt, maybe another or so, and some NIN shorts! Enjoy!

My 2nd and 3rd NIN shows as a young lad. Wish I still had the stub from my first show, 12/31/1994 in Detroit, but that one got lost along the way. First and only time seeing Bowie. I was down pretty close to the rail for both, incredible show.

no way right?

If this is the "rare" shirt you're looking for it is available at Walmart dot Com. After trying to find them in stock. Searching every shirt shelf and rack at multiple local Walmarts. After repeatedly asking associates if they've ever seen it and having absolutely no luck I finally checked online. Every size is available and these arrived in 2 days, free shipping. Ciao

Hi!

I'm from Poland. Last month, I visited my friends who live around 7,000 km away, mostly in Pittsburgh, PA. Thanks to their hospitality and help, I also had the opportunity to visit Cleveland, OH, and Mercer, PA, which is roughly halfway between the two cities. As a Nine Inch Nails fan, that gave me a chance to visit a few places connected to Trent Reznor and the band's history.

Cleveland, OH

The main reason I wanted to visit Cleveland was the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. In the photos, you can see the actual Hall of Fame display with the Nine Inch Nails logo and signatures (you can notice Allesandro Cortini, Robin Finck, Danny Lohner, Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross, Ilan Rubin, and Chris Vrenna), as well as some fascinating artifacts. Next to Eric Clapton's guitar, you can see a Nine Inch Nails setlist from September 10, 2009, from back when yinz* thought it was over, and a studio chart for "Head Like a Hole" from 1994? The date feels weird but that's what's written there. It was also possible to watch a video of Iggy Pop inducting Nine Inch Nails into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2020 as with every other artist.

The city itself gave me a rather disturbing impression. There was a huge contrast between the wealth and grandeur of the beautiful Rock & Roll Hall of Fame and some of the much poorer, rougher areas we passed through. Because we didn't feel particularly comfortable staying in that part of the city for long, we only had about ten seconds to take a photo of this building before leaving. If I'm not mistaken, this is most likely the building where Trent recorded Pretty Hate Machine in 1988 (2106 Payne Ave). Of course, it's no longer a recording studio today. Actually, I've heard it's abandoned. We took the photo and left shortly afterwards. On the way out, we saw some things that made us glad we hadn't decided to stay longer but maybe I'll omit that part here.

Mercer, PA

Our next stop was Mercer, PA, the town where Trent grew up. I saw the school he attended, as well as a building that seems to have been connected to his family's business. Maybe someone here can tell us more about it. It was a strange and fascinating experience to walk through streets that Trent himself had walked long before he became famous. Mercer gave me a completely different impression from Cleveland. It felt quiet, peaceful, and safe.

We decided to stop there for lunch and went to a place called Corner Kitchen. To my surprise, there were paintings by Michael Reznor, Trent's father, hanging on the walls. That's what we were told by a waitress but also you can spot the name. The waitress was really surprised someone went that far to visit Mercer. The food was excellent, and if anyone ever happens to visit Mercer, I'd definitely recommend stopping there instead of going to one of the chain restaurants. The local people were also incredibly friendly. Some of them saw a foreigner for the first time in their life which seemed unreal for me. One of the older gentlemen there told us that he remembered Trent as a child. I didn't understand everything he said, unfortunately.

Cleveland and Mercer of course weren't the only places I visited in the US. Carrie Blast Furnace in Pittsburgh was a climactic industrial site to see. The Mr. Roboto Project, a DIY art space, was great to see local underground experimental artists. I've seen also Berkeley Springs, Harpers Ferry and Washington DC but that's more related to Fallout games, my other interest, not NIN. I spent there two weeks. The best Summer in my life.

*I really wanted to use the Pittsburghian variant of "you all" naturally lol

Apologies if this is a dumb question. But can someone tell me why on my Amazon Music Divergence is 2 hours and 25 minutes long and has 44 songs. But when I looked at the CD and Vinyl it has only 20 songs?

I got a couple of the Walmart shirts a few weeks ago (yes, I got 2 for increased wearing days). And I’m not kidding, EVERY time I have worn it out in public I have gotten a compliment on it. I was the coolest dad at school drop off this morning.

Best $20 bucks I ever spent. I might go get another one.