Trent Reznor found success as the founder, lead vocalist and (for awhile) only official member of the industrial rock band Nine Inch Nails. NIN broke into the mainstream with 1994’s epic The Downward Spiral. Lately, Reznor’s work is more often on display on the big screen than on the airwaves. Along with bandmate Atticus Ross, the Pennsylvania-born visionary, 59, is responsible for the brooding, atmospheric musical scores of commercially successful films like Gone Girl and The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo. Never one to mince words, especially when it comes to the music industry, Reznor recently explained why Hollywood offers him more creative fulfillment these days.
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Trent Reznor: Music Is “Something That Happens in the Background”
Perhaps no artist has been more openly critical of the music industry than Trent Reznor. In September 2007, the “Hurt” singer famously encouraged Australian fans to “steal” his music “and steal and steal some more and give it to all your friends and keep on stealin’.”
Reznor similarly didn’t hold back during a recent interview with IndieWire. The multi-instrumentalist said that his work in film satisfies his need for collaboration in a way that music never did.
They had me at Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross score
— Ryan (@ryan_mcfly) December 15, 2024
“The culture of the music world sucks,” Reznor said bluntly.
[RELATED: Nine Inch Nails’ Trent Reznor, Atticus Ross Score New Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles Film]
He continued, “That’s another conversation, but what technology has done to disrupt the music business in terms of not only how people listen to music but the value they place on it is defeating.”
Reznor clarified that he didn’t mean this sentiment to come across “as an old man yelling at clouds.” Rather, he is speaking “as a music lover who grew up where music was the main thing.”
“Music [now] feels largely relegated to something that happens in the background or while you’re doing something else,” he said. “That’s a long, bitter story.”
Reznor and Ross Are Up For Two Golden Globes This Year
2024 has been a prolific one for Trent Reznor. He and Ross just released their second film score of the year, the soundtrack for Luca Guadagnino’s film Queer, starring Daniel Craig. Additionally, they scored two Golden Globe nominations for another Guadagnino project: the tennis drama Challengers, featuring Zendaya.
Featured image by Image Press Agency/NurPhoto/Shutterstock
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