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Thread: Tell us about your first NIN show

  1. #61
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    April 28, 2000. Toronto. A Perfect Circle opened. I went to Much Music earlier in the day to see Sook-Yin Lee interview a slightly bloated Trent.
    At the venue a weirdo hippy dude gave me a joint in exchange for half bottle of water. Strong shit.
    That was a Friday. I had driving school that weekend and my right ear rang until Monday.

  2. #62
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    Manchester Apollo, July 10 2005.

    There was a heatwave and the venue was insufferably hot.
    Trent had puffy emo hair.
    I SOMEHOW got right in front of Trent even though I was, like, sixth in line.
    I may have shed a tear when Trent walked out on stage.
    They played Sin and I lost my shit.

  3. #63
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    Ok I'm baaaaaack from my epic weekend. Bear with me cuz this is kinda long I guess.
    The first time I had tickets to see NIN was the Fragility tour. I was 13 and a friend from school had failed a test so his parents wouldn't let him go to the concert but (for some reason) my parents were totally fine with me going as long as I had a chaperone. Chaperone backed out.... no show for me.
    With teeth comes up, requiring a long ass drive.... driver backs out. No show for me.
    Lights in The Sky tour..... I've just move to Vegas and I'm hustling to get my foot in the door as a stagehand. Night of the show? Called in to work. Can't say no cuz then you get bumped off the call list. No show for me. At this point I'm getting pretty convinced I'm cursed.
    Wave goodbye tour.... no reliable transportation, I'm in michigan while they are in Nevada, back in Nevada when they are Michigan.... feeling very sad about the whole thing.
    Tension tour happens. I've got money, I've got a car, I've got paid vacation... I've got tickets to both Vegas shows plus Phoenix and LA. I AM SO READY FOR IT.
    I get my dream job and I leave to go on tour myself... in taiwan. NO SHOWS FOR ME.
    BUT WAIT. SHOWS IN TOKYO!!! I WILL BE IN TOKYO!!!! JUST KIDDING MY TOUR GOES TO HELL AND I HEAD BACK TO THE STATES. NO SHOWS FOR ME. CRYING. LOTS OF CRYING. CURSED.

    And then... They announced this run of festival dates.
    I currently live in Orlando and out of Fyf, Panorama, and Riotfest.... Panorama turned out to be the cheapest overall. I bought my tickets and hotel, etc etc.... started getting anxious/excited.

    Panorama was awesome. The show was great, the crowd was fun... people were surprisingly nice considering I was covered in glitter from one of the sponsor tents and I was wearing a shirt that said "Pretty Hate Machine" in sparkly pink and blue letters.... It was an excellent set for someone who had never seen the band before... got me like 90% of what I wanted and while I didn't leave having my mind totally blown, I was so glad I had gone and I was relieved that I had finally seen them and it was no longer this lifelong THING THAT I HAD NEVER DONE looming over my head. I felt beyond happy that I got to see him do the Bowie cover as Bowie is the only thing I've listened to longer than NIN, so that was a transcendent experience that I will never forget. I went back to my hotel happy, spent a few hours winding down and packing my bags to go home on Monday, and went to bed.

    I woke up on Monday to the surprise Webster Hall announcement. Somehow I guessed the presale code based off the code for Bakersfield, I got a ticket, and I straight up skipped my flight home.
    It was quite literally the NIN sweat lodge experience but it was amazing. All these fans crammed together just so excited that we had managed to get in. Everyone was super friendly and super happy and people were talking and comparing concerts and favorite songs etc etc. And then NIN came on stage and I spent the rest of the set screaming every word along with everyone else there in one giant sweaty human wave. I can't watch the youtube videos from the show without getting ridiculously excited all over again. The room was ON FIRE (also it was literally a sauna). And suddenly in the middle of Head Like A Hole (which ended up being their last song) like... the whole thing just hit me at once and I basically started bawling in the middle of the crowd in the middle of the song and thank god everything was so sweaty that nobody noticed cuz it was super embarrassing. Seriously. Who the hell gets emotional over Head Like A Hole? (me, apparently)

    After almost 18 years of wrong place/wrong time I FINALLY was in the right place and the right time, I managed to find a cheap flight out the next morning, I managed to find a cheap hotel for the rest of that night (all three hours between the end of the show and leaving for the airport), everything somehow fell into place and I ended up seeing NIN two nights back to back in two totally different styles of show. By the time I actually got home I had been awake for 28hrs and I was STILL adrenaline high from the shows. I could not have asked for a more magical first experience. (also, if you were at either of those shows and you met me... say Hi!)

  4. #64
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    After a couple years of being obsessed with the AATCHB Live DVD and CD, I took my first chance to see NIN in 2005. It was originally supposed to be in New Orleans at Voodoofest, but since Hurricane Katrina happened and New Orleans was put into a state of disrepair, they split Voodoofest into two different events, one in Memphis with tickets available to the general public and one in New Orleans with tickets being limited to residents of Louisiana, if I recall correctly. So I went to Memphis, a 4.5 hour drive. The festival was put on in a minor league baseball field, which was pretty unique. Queens of the Stone Age opened and they ruled. I was a huge fan of them at that time so they weren't too far behind NIN on my "bands I wanted to see live" list. Then while the stage was setup for NIN, the New York Dolls played on the adjacent stage.

    I had already followed NIN setlists from the tour journals on here by this time so I had somewhat of an expectation, but man...none of that mattered.

    Highlights included:

    - They opened with "Head Like A Hole" followed by "Terrible Lie." It seemed so weird with "Head Like A Hole" being the first song, almost felt like a malfunction or a corrupted dream.

    - During "Terrible Lie," Trent freaked out as per usual and used his guitar like a baseball bat to hit the mic stand then flung his guitar across the stage. That really got me going.

    - "The motherfucking Wretched!" One of my favorite songs and probably my favorite song included in that show's set. Man that was like a dream come true witnessing that being performed live.

    - The first new song of the night, "Right Where It Belongs." This particular performance of that song really blew me away. I saw them later on during the full on arena setup for the With Teeth spring tour and even though RWIB had visuals for that leg, the song did not sound as powerful as it did outside on that cool Memphis night. When he said the line, "You can live in this illusion", this giant sub bass note hit and it really had a strong effect accompanying that particular line. It gave me chills.

    - Then after that, much to everyone's surprise, Saul Williams came out and they did "List of Demands" and "African Student Movement." I found it pretty comical that Trent had the balls to yell out "Where my niggas at?" in Memphis of all places. I'm sure a lot of people where like "WTF is happening right now??"

    - I noticed that drummer Alex Carapetis kinda botched "Wish" on certain parts.

    - "Suck" - one of my favorite tracks. Lucky me, this girl in front of me that had been grinding on me all night decided to start making out with me. I'm a pretty shy guy and don't try to hit on girls out in public, so I was totally fine with her being the aggressive one in this situation and nothing could complete a single 20 year old's dream of seeing NIN more than an attractive girl making out and groping you during the song "Suck." Memory of a lifetime right there people.

    In retrospect, I really wished I would have attended one of the arena shows that week (Atlanta or Nashville) instead of the festival show. At that time, I was too naive and uneducated about concerts to realize that festivals had shorter set times and scaled down lights/lack of visuals. I just jumped on the cheapest and closest opportunity. But it's cool, I ended up seeing the arena concert a few months later on the spring arena leg of the tour. By going to the Memphis Voodoofest gig, I was fortunate enough to witness one of the most unique NIN gigs ever that included "HLAH" as an opener, Alex Carapetis on drums, and Saul Williams make a guest appearance with NIN doing two of his tracks.

  5. #65
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    Mine was Roskilde Festival, July 3 2009.

    Having missed their previous gig in Denmark on Performance 2007, I knew I needed to go. I didn't attend the festival itself, but got a one-day ticket and hung around for the day in anticipation. Also got to see Faith No More, which was cool, since I was and am a fan of Mr. Bungle.

    The video of from that show speaks volume about the energy. I was right in front, slightly to the left of Robin, and I'll never forget everyone jumping along to that song. Trent was clearly in a good place on that tour, getting into the songs in a big way. He tossed his guitar into the air at the end of Gave Up, and had a bit of fun banter going with a fan who held up the "Important pre-show ritual" picture. If I remember correctly, he asked to see what he/she was holding up, grinned and went "I remember that picture." As someone who became a fan in 2002 as a 13- or 14-year old, it was really great to see that Trent could give the songs the punch they needed, but also allow some of his real-life happiness to make it way into the show. I was in a happy place at that time myself, so it kinda felt like everything coming full circle.

    I liked the setlist a lot, even if I lost out on Closer. Mind you, I fully believed this would be my first and last NIN gig, since Trent had made it fairly clear he would stop touring after that year. But there were some nice surprises. I wasn't familiar with Metal, so I spent the next couple of days binge-listening to that song and getting into Gary Numan. I loved hearing I'm Afraid of Americans, though. And Heresy, which was just insane to witness, given how rare that song is. I do remember thinking it was weird they didn't play anything from The Slip. This was, after all, their first trek across the pond after releasing it. I wonder it it sold poorly in Europe? I don't suppose I can convince anyone that, contrary to what every setlist online says, they didn't play Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now). I wish. But it was just the regular, old, boring Piggy. I've tried editing that on setlist.fm god knows how many times, but someone keeps reverting it. Oh, well.

    The rest of the band was pretty great. Near the end, I was yelling at Robin and raising my first in approval, and he reciprocated it. Great fucking moment, since I count the man as one of my biggest guitar inspirations. Justin was slightly subdued, but I had anticipated that beforehand. His manager's young son had just died, so he wore a black armband for the performance and generally didn't thrash around much. Musically, it was a treat, though. I was quite impressed with how well they sounded after losing Alessandro and replacing Josh. It was a raw, dangerous affair, but the quieter selections were still hauntingly beautiful. I walked away extremely satified that I'd finally gotten to see them.

    Finally, here's the only worthwhile photo I have from it. Phone cameras were obviously way shittier back then, and I only took three sub-par photos anyway. I didn't feel like holding up my phone constantly. But here's a decent one I got of Robin and Trent. This is during La Mer, I think:



    Great thread, by the way. Really enjoying reading these stories.
    Last edited by Fred; 08-06-2017 at 11:32 AM.

  6. #66
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    Cuban Club Feb. 15, 1990. Tampa, FL. Opening for The Jesus and Mary Chain

    NIN were the opening band for The Jesus and Mary Chain. I had won two tickets from the radio (different station) and took 2 friends along and we each chipped in a 1/3. Epic night. The Cuban Club was just that, a club built by the Cuban community in Tampa /Ybarra City. The stage was set up in the back courtyard. NIN took the stage covered in corn starch as they often did in the early days. Black leather and corn starch. I liked NIN and often played Down In It on the radio show the three of us ran at USF's college radio station. Head like a hole hadn't broken big, so the frnezy for the band wasn't there yet. A couple songs in all hell broke loose. Their equipment failed mid song and Trent went ape shit as he often did in the early days. Tearing everything apart, breaking what he could. Equipment reset and they were off again. Fun to watch. Then it happened, the point were I became a lifelong fan. They covered Get Down Make Love by Queen. I almost did a spit take. Loved Queen in High School and to hear a song I grew up with reinterpreted in a way that was new and exciting just clicked. The rest of the set was good and they were done. Maybe 30 -40 minutes tops.

    J&MC played a great set. From a band that supposedly didn't like to play live, the band played past the 11pm curfew and their sound was cut off.


    Visage July 6th, 1990. Orlando, FL

    First time seeing them headline. 5 months later and a lot had changed. This was a sold out headline show. Visage, a great club in Orlando, FL. Meat Beat Manifesto opened and were good. The leader would swing a mace over his head at the audience while wearing creature stilts. Industrial /dance beats. Great visuals and music combination.

    NIN now had arrived. Head like a hole was everywhere. The stage was covered in old movie film strands and there was an overhead truss that the band / Trent would swing and hang from. Shoving, pushing, and moshing were constant, and that was just the band on stage, the floor was the same, but it was rougher on stage, everything seemed like it was made to be broken. The music sounded great live, the energy level was through the roof. Again cementing my lifelong fandom. A wonderfully fulfilling sweat soaked evening.

  7. #67
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    Riot Fest-Today, September 15th 2017, isn't only the first NIN concert I've ever been to, but also the first concert I've ever been to...period. I was on the fence if I wanted to go see it in person (I don't like the idea of live concerts in general), but I thought, "Hey this is a perfect situation, might as well go for it."

    I went with my uncle (who's a big NIN fan as well) and 3 of his friends who are fans. We waited in the local train station and got told the train was going to be like an hour late (bad omen) but actually it was only like half an hour late. So we get off, and are walking with thousands and thousands of other people going to the festival. It was like the biggest circus I'd ever seen. I come from a really suburban/normal neighborhood and it was crazy seeing so many people in band shirts, let alone NIN shirts. We chill by the merch booth and I get two sick NIN shirts.

    We make our way to the main stage to watch Ministry (They were before New Order which was before NIN).

    I thought I was somewhat prepared for it was going to be like.


    I WAS NOT.

    There was so much pushing and shoving and scary looking people everywhere. Early in their set some DRUGGED up guy pushed me like 10 ft and it shook me up a little but I got used to that craziness. Ministry was awesome though, don't get me wrong, but there was some annoying-ass people around me who were moshing in a area that wasn't really meant for moshing.

    Next was New Order, sounded nice but I was anxious for NIN to start.
    After waiting for what seemed an eternity, New Order's set ended and some lights came on in the crowd. We started moving UP, I should add that I was pretty damn close to the stage, like only 30-40 rows back which, when you consider there was tens of thousands of people, really close.

    Finally we can tell that NIN's coming up and then I hear: "YES. EVERYONE SEEMS TO BE ASLEEP" and Branches/Bones starts playing. Now I thought the crowd was crazy when Ministry was playing, it got about 10X more insane when Trent got up there and started spewing about spiders and infected Japanese. It was a STORM of pushing backwards and forwards, from either sides, diagonally. My uncle had to hold onto the back of my shirt like I was a dog on a leash to make sure I didn't die. One of our friends was just completely swept away in the span of like 5 seconds! Scary stuff. Some older lady got PISSED off because she lost some jewelry or something and just went off, even the craziest guys there stopped and tried to help her find what she was looking for, but it was no good. She and the guy she was with didn't have any kind of fun time after that. The setlist in general was great, very balanced but fun. Something I Can Never Have, The Wretched, The Background World, Burning Bright, and the last 3 songs (Somewhat Damaged, THE DAY THE WORLD WENT AWAY!, and of course Hurt) were fucking phenomenal. Trent was ON FIRE for every song as well as the other guys.

    Trying to get home was a nightmare, we tried asked people where was the train, NOT THE L, but it kept getting more fucked until we got a cab and finally managed that we needed to get to union station ASAP if we wanted to get home at a reasonable time. The cab driver hauled ASS to get us there. Then we literally started running until we reach the train that was going to leave in literally about 10-20 after we got on.

    I was sleepy, a little shocked, legs dead, ears ringing, dehydrated.

    Incredible night, most fun I've ever had.

  8. #68
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    Thar review was awesome. Different perspective than most of us are used to at this point. How old are you?

  9. #69
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    My first NIN show was almost 10 years ago in Calgary. I had a huge crush on Alessandro at the time. I had also just come out of the most important relationship of my life. I started listening to NIN because Trent reminded me of my ex--his looks and his attitude.

  10. #70
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    Quote Originally Posted by bobbie solo View Post
    Thar review was awesome. Different perspective than most of us are used to at this point. How old are you?
    17

  11. #71
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    To be young again.

  12. #72
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    First show was Fragility 2.0 April 2000 in Indianapolis. I had been to 6 or 7 concerts in total prior to this but this was the first time I had gone to a concert myself, so that was a big deal for a single woman in a large venue in an unfamiliar city. I listened to The Fragile endlessly and wanted to see NIN but could not find anyone I knew who was interested in joining me. I was graduating college the next month and therefore a broke college student so price was the most important factor. As a result I bought a seat in the upper tier to the side of the stage and could not see the screen or much else and honestly I don't remember much about the show and felt kind of detached due to my location, the crappy view, and the people around me chit chatting.

    The show was several hours from where I lived, but I had a friend who lived in Indy and shuttled me to and from the venue. Mostly that show gave me the confidence to go to concerts on my own if I so desire. Now it's nothing to go on my own; others are welcome to join me but they'd better decide prior to tickets going on sale because I rarely wait for anyone to hem and haw to make a decision.

    The second time I saw NIN was 2005 in Denver. That's when my thirst for the live shows really began and I don't know if it will ever be sated.

  13. #73
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    Quote Originally Posted by AnaTorpedo View Post
    Ok so I will return to this thread and read all of these and tell my whole story AFTER sunday night. Because right now I'm so excited my coworkers made these for me..




    I'M SO EXCITED YOU GUYS I'VE BEEN A FAN FOR LIKE 20 YEARS
    THIS is amazing! During the With Teeth era I had a friend who would make humorous things like this for me.

  14. #74
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    First show was Fragility Tour 5/2000 in Worcester, MA with A Perfect Circle opening. The thing I remember most clearly is Terrible Lie kicked in to start the show...that is almost always my favorite moment of shows, when the first notes of the opening song plays.

    Favorite show was 5/2005 at the Tabernacle in Atlanta during the club tour. Went to the show alone and the energy was just amazing.

    Next show (number 9 I think) is Friday in Vegas. Flying out for the show, really excited about it.

  15. #75
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fred View Post
    Mine was Roskilde Festival, July 3 2009.

    Having missed their previous gig in Denmark on Performance 2007, I knew I needed to go. I didn't attend the festival itself, but got a one-day ticket and hung around for the day in anticipation. Also got to see Faith No More, which was cool, since I was and am a fan of Mr. Bungle.

    The video of from that show speaks volume about the energy. I was right in front, slightly to the left of Robin, and I'll never forget everyone jumping along to that song. Trent was clearly in a good place on that tour, getting into the songs in a big way. He tossed his guitar into the air at the end of Gave Up, and had a bit of fun banter going with a fan who held up the "Important pre-show ritual" picture. If I remember correctly, he asked to see what he/she was holding up, grinned and went "I remember that picture." As someone who became a fan in 2002 as a 13- or 14-year old, it was really great to see that Trent could give the songs the punch they needed, but also allow some of his real-life happiness to make it way into the show. I was in a happy place at that time myself, so it kinda felt like everything coming full circle.

    I liked the setlist a lot, even if I lost out on Closer. Mind you, I fully believed this would be my first and last NIN gig, since Trent had made it fairly clear he would stop touring after that year. But there were some nice surprises. I wasn't familiar with Metal, so I spent the next couple of days binge-listening to that song and getting into Gary Numan. I loved hearing I'm Afraid of Americans, though. And Heresy, which was just insane to witness, given how rare that song is. I do remember thinking it was weird they didn't play anything from The Slip. This was, after all, their first trek across the pond after releasing it. I wonder it it sold poorly in Europe? I don't suppose I can convince anyone that, contrary to what every setlist online says, they didn't play Piggy (Nothing Can Stop Me Now). I wish. But it was just the regular, old, boring Piggy. I've tried editing that on setlist.fm god knows how many times, but someone keeps reverting it. Oh, well.

    The rest of the band was pretty great. Near the end, I was yelling at Robin and raising my first in approval, and he reciprocated it. Great fucking moment, since I count the man as one of my biggest guitar inspirations. Justin was slightly subdued, but I had anticipated that beforehand. His manager's young son had just died, so he wore a black armband for the performance and generally didn't thrash around much. Musically, it was a treat, though. I was quite impressed with how well they sounded after losing Alessandro and replacing Josh. It was a raw, dangerous affair, but the quieter selections were still hauntingly beautiful. I walked away extremely satified that I'd finally gotten to see them.

    Finally, here's the only worthwhile photo I have from it. Phone cameras were obviously way shittier back then, and I only took three sub-par photos anyway. I didn't feel like holding up my phone constantly. But here's a decent one I got of Robin and Trent. This is during La Mer, I think:
    I attended that show too! I was right in front of Robin so i guess i was a few people away from you.
    I agree it was an awesome show, i loved when they played "Metal" and "I'm Afraid of Americans".
    I also saw Faith No More and it was glorious, i loved Roskilde, i want to go back again to the festival.

    Needless to say; that wasn't my first NIN show, i'll talk about it in another post...

  16. #76
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    That's really cool! You clearly came a long way to see them at that festival. Yeah, we must have been standing close to each other.

    Something I neglected to mention is that an acquaintance of mine caught Trent's tambourine. I really envy him for that.

  17. #77
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fred View Post
    That's really cool! You clearly came a long way to see them at that festival. Yeah, we must have been standing close to each other.

    Something I neglected to mention is that an acquaintance of mine caught Trent's tambourine. I really envy him for that.
    Oh yeah, i'm so glad i made the trip, so jealous for the tambourine, i once caught a water bottle (story up next...)

    So, the first NIN show i ever saw was back in 2005 (Live: WITH_TEETH Tour).

    I can't even put into words how i was feeling before, during and after the show; it was nuts! my favorite band, playing in my hometown after many years as a fan? I was beyond excited!
    I follow NIN since the "Downward Spiral" era and i always imagined watching them live during the "Self-destruction" tour, but during those days seeing NIN in latin America was a "wild dream" (they did came to Mexico during the "Pretty Hate Machine" era to a very small club in Tijuana, but very few people even knew about this...)
    I remember when "Pinion" sounded on the P.A. i was nearly pissing myself, then "Wish" kicked the show and everything was awesome!

    They did changed the setlist they were doing mostly in the tour to "fit" the audience who was their very first time watching them.
    They played: "Something I can Never Have", "Home", "No, you don't", "Dead Souls", among many others, but those tracks stand because they are not on the "regular setlists".

    When the "Head like a hole" intro started i told my friend "wait for me", i'm going upfront; i was so excited i forgot everything i knew about concert etiquette and did not care for security.
    I made it to fron row and then i saw a water bottle fly (i think either Twiggy A.K.A. Jeordie or Trent threw it, i did not think twice; i jumped on it like a granade in a battlefield...)
    That was the "gold seal" of my night, afterwards i was exhausted but happier than ever!

    I would end up watching NIN 3 more times and if i ever get the chance i would gladly watch a fifth time...


  18. #78
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    Downward Spiral, must have been ‘94 at the Rosemont Horizon outside of Chicago. I had been to a handful of concerts before.

    jim Rose and PWEI opened. The curtain was up waiting for NIN. I had no idea what was coming. We all know what those shows were like, different from anything I’d seen. The music was unbelievable live, but the spectacle was insane. I remember a guy next to us trying to explain the production. He said Robin could fall over dead and it would sound the same. He also had some crazy story about driving Clint Mansel around after a show.

    i had trouble describing the staging and performance to friends, especially the integration of film. Like you guys, I’ve seen him a bunch of times since the first, and I’ve been to hundreds of others. What impresses me the most is that Trent keeps raising the bar and leaving me a bit awestruck at every show.

  19. #79
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    Sadly, my first show was Riotfest this year. I've seen 80 acts or so live and christ, I was floored. I have liked NIN somewhat casually for years, but never , fucking never have I seen such a cohesive, brilliant live show. I went and saw them again in October at The Joint and will be going to the Day for Night festival. It's money well spent , imo. I wish I would have been smarter and seen them before. Fuck.

  20. #80
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    Quote Originally Posted by ericy210 View Post
    Downward Spiral, must have been ‘94 at the Rosemont Horizon outside of Chicago. I had been to a handful of concerts before.

    jim Rose and PWEI opened. The curtain was up waiting for NIN. I had no idea what was coming. We all know what those shows were like, different from anything I’d seen. The music was unbelievable live, but the spectacle was insane. I remember a guy next to us trying to explain the production. He said Robin could fall over dead and it would sound the same. He also had some crazy story about driving Clint Mansel around after a show.

    i had trouble describing the staging and performance to friends, especially the integration of film. Like you guys, I’ve seen him a bunch of times since the first, and I’ve been to hundreds of others. What impresses me the most is that Trent keeps raising the bar and leaving me a bit awestruck at every show.
    Sounds like we had the same first, or one day apart at most! The Rosemont Horizon stops on the FDTS leg were January 15 and 16, 1995. The 15th was a Sunday night, which was only possible for 8th-grade me thanks to the MLK Jr. Day holiday. My parents were completely oblivious and/or indifferent to my physical safety, so my friends and I had GA floor tickets. This meant that we were jeopardized by the idiots crowdsurfing between sets, presumably out of boredom, but also that I was able to worm my way within a few bodies of the rail over the first several songs. Wedged against some random guy's ample back, I was able to ride out the rest of the show in highly-compressed comfort. And what a show it was! Specific details are hazy, but the impression that endures is the overall intensity of the performance. Certainly the production itself was spectacular, but none of my limited prior concert-going experiences (L7, Meat Puppets, and the first Q101 Twisted Christmas festival) had anything remotely resembling Trent's raw energy. Obviously there are plenty of factors that have helped keep NIN at the pinnacle of my live and recorded music fandom over the years, but it's probably not that reductive to say that the cathartic element is the most fundamentally addictive.

  21. #81
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    i remember being extremely bummed out that NIN wasn't on the bill @ the first lollapalooza in seattle. the date was tacked on the end of the tour & they had other commitments. i did get to hear the downward spiral before it was released. blew my little mind...

  22. #82
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    to go with post before: my first show was beginning of downward spiral tour at the moore theater in seattle. an awesome show that seems to have a great reputation.

  23. #83
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    2004: some crazy guy insisted to listen to an album he burned for me. it was downward spiral deluxe. it hit me hard, i was only 19 years.

    i wasnt really into concerts or festivals but went to Werchter 2005, mainly to get drunk, en to see Rammstein.

    in the little programmation book i saw NINE INCH NAILS , on that day, to make a come back. damn, i was suddenly excited, and on the right place.

    i was a mile away from the stage, but there were old school rockers so enthousiastic just before they came on stage, and i read this article in the little book about fighting his addictions, while i was in my deepest point of my life.. it was incredible. i didnt know the lyrics, but i knew everything he sang about. the article wrote also about a fight between Fred Durst and him, and NIN was programmed after Limp Bizkit, and before Rammstein.
    Fred Durst said he was going to kick his ass at this festival, but then he came on stage, buffed, strong, incredible...

    and then the production with the own camera guy... its a joy to watch the screens at festivals for NIN.

    in-cre-dible.

    ofcourse, now im used to their indoor concerts, and their festival shows are "medium" for me. allthough the 3rd best show i saw of them was at Pukkelpop '07 (saw them 13 times now ,everywhere)

  24. #84
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    Lollapalooza 92. My mother is a huge fan and was pregnant with me.
    I WIN!

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    NIN didn't play Lollapalooza 92, so your mom lied to you!

  26. #86
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    my first nin:

    i already listened to NIN since about 4-5 years, so it was a very big deal to me. and "the fragile" was so awesome and new ...

    fragility 1.0, düsseldorf (germany), 1999.
    support: atari teenage riot.

    venue: like a cave, not that big.

    we travelled from frankfurt. 2 1/2 hours via train, no way back home after the concert, we had to wait for the first train in the morning.

    best friend & girlfriend with me, it was october or november i think, really cold. i was 22 years old.

    there was a girl with a "somewhat damaged"-ringtone at düsseldorf-main station, it impressed me.

    (later on i saw nin several times more: southside festival 2000, berlin 2005, les eurockeennes festival 2005, frankfurt 2007 (playing "we're in this together", really!), berlin 2009, berlin 2014)

    to me the ugly düsseldorf-experience was the best yet, next to the very cool performance at that french festival 2005 on this beautiful site. southside 2000 = weird. "him" (do you remember this shitty "band"?) all around. and berlin 2014 (zitadelle) couldn't really catch up neither, because of the daylight and the sound.
    Last edited by notsoprettynow; 12-19-2017 at 11:06 AM.

  27. #87
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    Quote Originally Posted by Fadeout54321 View Post
    number 1 being 8/23/2009 in NY at Webster Hall. Nothing will ever top that.
    Agree!
    My first was APC/NIN Fragile tour at Madison Square Gardens. Incredible first show. But nothing will top 8/23/2009.

  28. #88
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    July 2009, O2 Arena in London on the Wave Goodbye tour. Gary Numan turned up, they played 'I'm Afraid Of Americans' and La Mer. Then got stranded on the way home. It was a good night.

  29. #89
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    Brixton Academy December 1st 1999.

    I've seen TONNES of gigs since my very first one (ZZ Top at Wembley Arena in 1986, since you asked)...NIN and PJ Harvey are undoubtedly the most consistently brilliant live performers ever - I've see PJ around 20 times and NIN around 11 and all of the shows have been utterly superb...

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    It should have been the Lost Weekend festival at London Arena in 2000, but as that was cancelled it ended up being one of the London Astoria shows in 2005 instead!

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