How to Destroy Angels is Trent Reznor’s latest musical endeavor. We find the genius behind Nine Inch Nails alongside his wife Mariqueen Maandig, Atticus Ross, and Rob Sheridan (who is also the group’s art director).
The first thing anyone notices during the show at the Regency Ballroom last week is the huge 16-foot-tall curtain of surgical tubing. This veil of sorts offers a semi-transparent surface onto which band member Rob Sheridan projects abstract lighting effects. It’s a bizarre setting for any live performance, but for this one in particular, it truly adds to the band’s mystique and dark soundscapes.
HTDA has just returned from playing at Coachella, where they were hailed as one of the Top 10 performances, and after witnessing this show, it’s very easy to see why. Leave it to the genius that is Trent Reznor to put on what I would recall as the show of a lifetime inside an intimate venue.
Touring for the very first time and supporting their major label debut Welcome Oblivion, HTDA have a lot of hype to live up to. The record is a solid effort, but the live show is where the magic happens. The industrial electronic sounds that are the foundation of each song came through majestically from a full 360-surround-sound speaker system.
This is the kind of thing that only Reznor can bring to life, and he has truly outdone himself this time around. This show is a truly magical experience that immerses the audience in both his visual and aural perspective. It’s not to be missed and touring the states as I write this.
Were you at the show in San Francisco? Did you see How to Destroy Angels at Coachella? Join the conversation in the comment section below.
