Nine Inch Nails

London Royal Albert Hall

Hotly anticipated set from Trent and co.

When Nine Inch Nails were leading the industrial rock surge in the 90s, no one could have predicted that nearly 30 years later they’d be selling out the opulent and ornate Royal Albert Hall. Least of all their founder and frontman Trent Reznor, who tonight remembers his first trip to London in 1989 when the label said his record “sucked”. But Nine Inch Nails’ immersive industrial extravaganza actually turns out to be a perfect fit within this hallowed hall.

Accompanied by a huge light show, NIN’s throbbing synths and sexually charged grooves are given even more oomph: during Copy Of A, the band are silhouetted as huge figures pulsing in time to the music, Head Like A Hole is accompanied by a dazzling display of white lights, and in March Of The Pigs a spotlight shines on Reznor before plunging the venue into darkness for a brief second, then battering the audience’s senses with blinding bursts of brightness.

There are moments of softness, too. Reznor takes to a piano for the delicate instrumental The Frail, there’s a hauntingly emotional cover of David Bowie’s I Can’t Give Everything Away, and they encore with Hurt, delivered with passion by both Reznor – who’s visibly overcome with emotion – and an audience that sings back every word. It’s an affecting way to end a spectacular show, and a reminder of the many facets of Nine Inch Nails’ vision.