In retrospect, Nine Inch Nails’s 1994 record The Downward Spiral had elements that all but guaranteed it iconic status, including an intrepid sound that mashed rock and electronic elements together like none before. On its 30th anniversary, the album has received a second wave of critical attention (yes, it holds up), including a review from Reznor himself who dropped a note on Nine Inch Nails’ website reflecting that listening to his 28-year-old self “still excites me and breaks my heart.”
These are feelings likely shared by fans of the concept album. And for those not content to simply listen to posthumous reflections, there’s an exhibition that’s on the road: “Jonathan Rach: Nine Inch Nails, The Downward Spiral,” which has been organized by Behind The Gallery and will take over 2 Hoxton Street in North London next month.
Robin Finck and Trent Reznor onstage. Photo: Photo: courtesy Jonathan Rach.
The global tour that followed the release of The Downward Spiral was photographed by Rach, who captured the band’s raucous live shows as it catapulted industrial into the mainstream. Rach started collaborating with Nine Inch Nails in the early 1990s as a stage designer and wold later direct Closure, a video album that included live recordings and behind-the-scenes footage.
Trent asked Rach to be a fly on the wall in the belief that Nine Inch Nails were doing something very much worth documenting. “He was right,” Rach said via email. “The tour stood out as a beacon for that generation at its most heightened sensitivity, you can feel a raw emotion connection [in the photos] but more importantly an insigh to something so personal.”
After its first showing in Australia earlier this year, the exhibition brings forward more than 30 previously unseen photographs from the tour. In addition to the release of limited edition prints, Rach will be on hand for an artist talk that looks back on photographing Reznor et al.
Trent Reznor performing in New South Wales, Australia, during the Self Destruct tour. Photo: courtesy Jonathan Rach.
“To be able to show this collection of photography after some 25 years and see how fans connected to them has been such a rewarding and unexpected gift,” Rach said.
While photographs from The Downward Spiral tour are the focus, Rach has also his images from the band’s six-night residency at the Hollywood Palladium in 2018 as well as images from his work with David Bowie and Lou Reed.
“This is an insight into a pivotal moment in the band’s career and Jonathan was there to capture all of it, before the days of social media,” said Stephen Dallimore, the creative director at Behind The Gallery.
“Jonathan Rach: Nine Inch Nails, The Downward Spiral” will be on view at 2 Hoxton Street, London, October 16–20.