That’s how it was with NINE INCH NAILS

June 20, 2025, Cologne, Lanxess Arena

In January of this year, the news spread like wildfire: Nine Inch Nails announced their “Peel It Back” world tour. Having last played live in 2022, fans in this country had been eagerly awaiting the return of their absolute idols to German stages since 2018. The numerous dates included two German concerts – in Cologne and Berlin, the industrial rockers from Los Angeles were finally set to unleash their intense live energy again. The relief was palpable: Frontman Trent Reznor had established himself as an important – and Oscar-winning – soundtrack composer in recent years. There were real concerns that he might turn his back on the concert stage permanently. But instead, he not only announced this tour – new music was even in the works. The old love flared up again and drove the pulse of the fans to unimagined heights.

Fan love, anticipation – and a small drop of bitterness

Now the big day had arrived: Around 16,000 people streamed into Cologne’s Lanxess Arena and bathed the event in a deep black. Unsurprisingly, most of them were wearing shirts of their favorite band. However, the first small damper on the euphoria followed at the merchandise stand: current T-shirts were on offer for €55, long sleeves for €105 and hoodies for a whopping €120 – prices that were the subject of many murmurs. Not everyone wanted to or could keep up. And yet quite a few items changed hands. Around the arena, numerous trucks with “Light & Sound” lettering were already announcing what was about to happen inside: it was going to be big. Very big.

Red light and dense clouds

One hour before the concert began, Boys Noize (Alex Ridha) opened the evening on a square stage at the back of the arena. First, a cube-shaped wall of fog enveloped him, through which red light fell dramatically onto him. Pulsating, dark electronic sounds interwove with striking industrial influences – a musical line that was noticeably reminiscent of the sound cosmos of Nine Inch Nails. With tracks such as the electropop classic “Are Friends Electric” (in the Kris Braha remix) or his reinterpretation of Fehlfarben’s“Paul ist tot”, he loosened up the first links.

“Right Where It Belongs” – and nowhere else

From the very beginning, another stage could be seen in the middle of the interior, surrounded by a mysteriously veiling cloth. Seamlessly and as if out of nowhere, the DJ set transitioned into Nine Inch Nails ‘ performance – and suddenly the curtain fell. In the center: Trent Reznor, all alone at the piano, in a warm cone of light. For a moment, there was complete silence. Then he gently struck the first keys, and as his voice soulfully sang the lines “See the animal in his cage that you built. Are you sure what side you’re on?” carried through the arena, cheers erupted. The piano version of “Right Where It Belongs” took your breath away. Every note, every nuance, even the quietest moments had full effect – because the audience was completely spellbound.
What a start! Atticus Ross and Alessandro Cortini almost cautiously joined “Ruiner” and “The Fragile”. The trio formed a triangle, facing each other as if drawing strength from the shared silence. Only gradually did a gracefully rising wave of pressure begin to move through the bass playing. The name of the tour was the program on this evening: right at the beginning, three pieces were played that had last made it onto the setlist in 2009 – forgotten treasures, now brought back to light: “Peel It Back”.

The storm begins

While the three made their way through the crowd to the main stage, Ilan Rubin kicked off with a powerful drum intro to “Eraser”. At first, he could only be seen on a video projection – on another curtain that covered the large stage on three sides. Then it started: “Wish” kicked in with full force – an unleashed eruption of guitar riffs, beats and Reznor’s shouted “This is the first day of my last days”. As the curtain fell, the view opened up to reveal an ingenious production: translucent lengths of fabric hung down across the entire width of the stage, dividing it into several sections. Oversized black and white live images of the individual band members appeared on them, while at the same time they could be seen performing directly behind the fabric – an ingenious play with proximity and distance, projection and reality. Live, the song unleashed its full destructive power: a wild mixture of punk aggression and controlled escalation. Together with Trent Reznor, the crowd started to move – a collective jumping, an outburst of pure energy. Now there was no holding back. The song continued to gain momentum, sweeping through the arena like a roaring thunderstorm of sound and taking everything with it.

In the frenzy of the maelstrom

“Come on, dance!” – the frontman energetically set the tone. The crowd went just as wild as the raw sound of “March of the Pigs” from 1994. Glaringly bright lights broke through the darkness of the arena and further fanned the already tense atmosphere. Pure ecstasy reigned in front of and on the stage. “Reptile” – also from the bloodcurdling album “The Downward Spiral” – then sparkled with dark intensity and creeping menace. For “Copy of A”, Reznor got rid of his guitar. Then he began to unfold himself in the radius of his microphone stand with sweeping movements – as if he was becoming one with the electronic vortex of the song. Even in the stands, fans let out sharp cheers. The silhouette of the singer – arms outstretched in the backlight – multiplied on the live images and merged with the music to create a hypnotic image of sound and loss of control.

Club aesthetics under the spell of the beats

Trent and Atticus took the stage again – this time with reinforcements: Boys Noize joined them to add a technoid spice to the tracks “Vessel”, “Only” and “Come Back Haunted”. And the plan worked perfectly. Synths now dominated, the controls were visibly set in motion – and with each new layer, the atmosphere continued to heat up. The previously raging mob turned into a huge dance floor. Dark beats lay under the crowd like a pulsating carpet, creating a real nightclub atmosphere. Some of the sounds were even reminiscent of the raw, pounding elements of Owl Vision’s “Holy Shit”. The trio was perfectly staged by sophisticated lighting effects and light fog – like a dark, hypnotic club vision in arena format.

Waves of people, sound and chaos

Back on the main stage: “Somewhat Damaged” unleashed a concentrated wave of anger and energy. The fabric panels had disappeared and the view of Nine Inch Nails was now completely unobstructed. Instead, new visual elements dominated the picture: projections appeared on high white curtains at the sides of the stage, while nine square light fields penetrated the scenery like glowing grids in the center of the stage backdrop. A dense carpet of fog covered the stage floor – as if the room itself was breathing, just before the next beat came. And it wasn’t long in coming: “Heresy” unleashed its full force and sent a shockwave through the arena. The crowd was turbulent – jumping, pushing and surging around in rhythmic waves. Individual crowdsurfers were caught up in the collective maelstrom and immediately swallowed up again by the moving sea of bodies.

Club track for eternity

“Closer” could not be missing from the set. The classic has been a staple of black club nights for 31 years – hardly any other song has been played more often since then. It has filled countless dancefloors around the world and set bodies in motion with complete abandon. This is precisely why we would have liked a little more pressure at this point. But somehow the song lacked that certain something on this evening. It came across as surprisingly restrained – atmospheric, but slightly paler and less fascinating than the rest of the overwhelming set.

Homage to David Bowie – with an open soul and constant pain

Before his cover version of David Bowie’s“I’m Afraid of Americans”, Trent Reznor spoke to us in an embarrassed tone. “This next song kind of fucks me up a little bit.” It’s not often that you meet someone who has influenced and shaped you so much. He had the privilege of not only experiencing this person artistically, but also getting to know him personally – and realizing that he was even cooler than you thought. David Bowie had reached out to Reznor in one of the darkest phases of his life – not only musically, but also as a person. In interviews at the time, Trent spoke openly about how Bowie had helped him to free himself from his addiction. His honorable salute to his mentor moved you deep inside – and then Nine Inch Nails took off like there was no tomorrow. “I’m Afraid of Americans” unleashed a raw, powerful energy on stage – harder, edgier and even more desperate than the original. The beats pounded, Reznor’s voice literally cut through the room and the distorted sounds covered the arena like a metallic layer. The song was like a pent-up scream, the pain was palpable – powerful, biting, unstoppable. A cathartic outburst that ate deep under the skin.

A touch of eternity

“Head Like a Hole” from the early days in 1989 brought the arena to the boil once again – bright light flooded the room, Reznor threw his arms up in the air and thousands followed him like a single, quivering body. The song unfolded live exactly what makes it so timeless: raw energy, resistance, anthemic power. And then – suddenly silence. With the delicate accompaniment of an acoustic guitar, “Hurt” introduced the final act of the evening. After this powerful storm, the band effortlessly managed to turn the moment around – and touched the audience deep inside one last time. A sea of cell phone flashlights flickered on, and word for word, thousands of voices joined in animatedly. As the music finally faded out, the stage once again disappeared behind the black curtain – and the iconic NIN logo appeared on it, burning itself into the heart anew at that moment.

Intoxicated by this experience, these lines kept popping up inside at night: “If I could start again / A million miles away / I would keep myself / I would find a way.” Nine Inch Nails are back – and nothing feels more right!

Setlist NINE INCH NAILS:

“Right Where It Belongs” – “Ruiner” – “The Fragile” – “Eraser” – “Wish” – “March of the Pigs” – “Reptile” – “Copy of A” – “Gave Up” – “Vessel (Techno Remix)” – “Only (Techno Remix)” – “Came Back Haunted (Techno Remix)” – “Somewhat Damaged” – “Heresy” – “Closer” – “I’m Afraid of Americans” – “Less Than” – “Head Like a Hole” – “Hurt”

Not from Cologne, but still full of atmosphere: here are a few impressions of the tour that we don’t want to withhold from you.

Text: Nadine Kloppert
Photos: Edmund Fraser, John Crawford, Coen Rees

Which Nine Inch Nails fan article will you treat yourself to next?

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Listen to Nine Inch Nails in our “Industrial Rock/Industrial Metal” playlist on Spotify: