Trent Reznor, the Grammy Award-winning creative force behind the raging and moody Nine Inch Nails, is heading back to the Midlands for the first time in five years.
Nine Inch Nails will bring its "Fragility v2.0" North American tour to Omaha's City Auditorium at 8 p.m. Tuesday in support of the multi-platinum double-CD "The Fragile" (Nothing/Interscope).
In September 1994 and again in February 1995, the Nails treated Omaha fans to a frenetic show that blended cascades of feedback with vocally rich harmonies and a gracefully haunting atmosphere.
This time around, NIN will deliver an elaborately sonic show that promises to "blow everybody's mind," drummer Jerome Dillon said recently by phone from Houston, where the band performed May 22.
"The Fragile's" marked presence of layered synthesizers and strings (slide guitar, violin, cello, ukulele, upright bass) produce a sound that gives the record a more organic feel, Dillon said.
"The machine-oriented, military-type feel was a very integral part of Nine Inch Nails for a long time," said Dillon, who has been drumming for more than half of his 30 years. "The new record has a completely organic quality to it."
New York Times rock critic Jon Pareles called the album "a desperate identity crisis rendered in symphonic scale."
Dillon, a Columbus, Ohio, native who previously fronted Columbia recording artist Howlin' Maggie, was selected by Reznor in March 1999 to fill the drumming slot, which was formerly held by Chris Vrenna.
Previous drummers lacked the ability to bring out the band's musical complexities and the ability to play the music "dynamically," he said.
With the release of "Pretty Hate Machine" in 1989, Reznor introduced his brand of angst-driven, hard-edged electronic music to the masses with clean arrangements and catchy choruses.
His last full studio album, 1994's "The Downward Spiral," sold more than five million copies worldwide and was named one of Rolling Stone magazine's "Essential Recordings of the '90s."
Nine Inch Nails live is Trent Reznor (vocals, guitar, keyboards); Robin Finck (guitar, vocals, keyboards); Danny Lohner (bass, guitar, keyboards, vocals); Charlie Clouser (keyboards, theremin, vocals); and Jerome Dillon (drums).
A Perfect Circle, fronted by Maynard James Keenan of Tool and producer/guitar player Billy Howerdel, will open for Nine Inch Nails.
As of Wednesday, more than half of the 10,000 available tickets for Tuesday's show had been sold, a box office spokesman said. Tickets are $40 and are available at Ticketmaster locations and at the Civic Auditorium box office 1804 Capitol Ave.
