Aragon II started much the same as I…Mew bored me nearly to tears, but Sean brought earplugs this time so my hearing wasn’t almost completely gone like it had been the night before by the time NIN took the stage at about 8:35.
In addition to the earplugs, I had a ragged throat, lumbar region that was screaming for relief and feet that weren’t sure if they were still attached to anything. The night before was pretty intense, but nothing compared to what was in store. Anticipation was at an all-time high. You could feel it in the crowd. Sean and I both felt for sure they would open with “Somewhat Damaged” so when Robin appeared in the fog to the opening drone of “Home” we were both a little disappointed but still hopeful as the “Home”/”Somewhat Damaged” one-two punch combo had been a regular occurrence on the NIN|JA tour.
Robin walking out of the fog during the intro of "Home"
But they went a direction completely unexpected: “The Beginning of the End.” Definitely one of my favorites off of Year Zero and it was awesome to see live. Robin’s solo at the end was very loud, noisy and nasty-sounding which was MUCH appreciated. “Survivalism” followed and I thought for a moment that we might get Year Zero in its entirety (sans “HYPERPOWER!”) but a particularly heavy “Heresy” followed and was enjoyed by all. Being right there as the crowd screamed along to the chorus so loudly the band was drowned out was incredible. Following that came the most intense performance of “March of the Pigs” I have ever seen. Trent exploded into the first verse so violently he lost his balance, fell down a the mic stand went flying. It was absolutely insane. And the pause before “All the Pigs, All Lined Up” started was quite extended with Trent standing there, the stage bathed in yellow/orange-ish-white light…the crowd exploded into cheering that escalated so loudly it was painful. Listening to the two available recordings, the mics are completely overloaded because it was so loud. My body is covered in goosebumps listening to this again.
But sadly, for as awesome as “March of the Pigs” was, that’s when the crowd around us turned to utter shit.
A dude that must have been as wide as he was tall (5 feet, give or take) became a human wrecking ball and a massive, violent pit broke out right around Sean and I. We were pretty far back (maybe 10 feet in front of the soundboard, dead center) and definitely didn’t expect this. It absolutely ruined my mood and the show for a while because I was fighting to stay alive rather than enjoying the most intense version of “March of the Pigs” ever. Looking at the final setlist, it wasn’t halfway through “I’m Afraid of Americans” that we finally moved and got to a calmer section directly to the left of the soundboard.
- Home
- The Beginning of the End
- Survivalism
- Heresy
- March of the Pigs
- Piggy
- Metal
- Ruiner
- I’m Afraid of Americans
- Burn
- Gave Up
- La Mer
- The Frail
- I Do Not Want This
- Gone, Still
- Right Where it Belongs (v2)
- The Way Out is Through
- Wish
- Mr. Self Destruct
- Suck
- Echoplex
- The Good Soldier
- Dead Souls
- Reptile(with Peter Murphy)
- Strange Kind of Love (with Peter Murphy)
- Final Solution (with Peter Murphy)
- The Hand That Feeds
- Head Like a Hole
- Hurt
That really sucked as Ruiner was mostly ruined (sigh @ the unnecessary pun) due to The Wrecking Ball causing massive destruction all around our area. It was my first and only time seeing the song live and, listening to the bootleg, it was incredible. It sucks I don’t remember it at all.
Burn
“Burn” and “Gave Up” were both pleasant and surprisingly heavy. And getting “La Mer” again was highly unexpected but ever so appreciated. Teasing with “The Frail” right afterwards was sort of mean, but it led into “I Do Not Want This” which was VERY heavy and also cool to see as it was a rare occurrence.
I Do Not Want This
“Gone, Still” was next and my hopes again soared that “The Way Out Is Through” would follow as it had so many times before on this tour…so when “Right Where It Belongs (v2)” came next, I was more than disappointed. I’d seen this song enough times on the Fall 2005 – Winter 2006 tours (6 times to be precise) and it was just as boring now as it was then. I still don’t understand why they don’t perform the original studio version from [WITH_TEETH] which is superior in every way.
Regardless, my hopes were realized after it ended as I heard the grating washboard (for lack of a better term) intro to “The Way Out Is Through” come up through the cheering. At first I thought my strained ears were just playing tricks on me, but the crowd quickly died down and proved my initial hunch right. This performance was EXCELLENT. So incredibly heavy. Energy was at an all time high as the song ended and the band immediately went into “Wish.” I never, EVER get sick of this song and it seems like the band feels the same way. Robin’s screeching feedback breakdown was goosebump-inducingly good and Ilan’s double bass during the final bar of the song was again overpowering in the most fantastic of ways.
Wish
And to continue the mind-blowing, the revised “Mr. Self Destruct” started almost immediately after “Wish” ended with its new time-warped intro. Again, this version seemed particularly heavy and the band seemed to be completely into it.
“Suck” was nice to hear again, especially with Robin shredding through it. Especially the end with his guitar screaming the mini-solo. “The Good Soldier” was actually a lot better live than I thought it would be and while I would’ve preffer a ton of other songs, it was still nice to see another song I’d never seen live before.
“Dead Souls.” I don’t know what to say about this. It. Was. AMAZING. And so much better that Peter Murphy wasn’t on it. Definitely one of the highlights of both nights. The song was tight and heavy…it was perfect.
The intro to “Reptile” came on and I immediately new Murphy would be making an appearance. Words cannot express how heavy this song was. Recordings do it no justice. It shook to the core. And it’s a damned shame that Peter screwed up the lyrics at least twice (and this is after screwing it up both nights he performed it with NIN in NYC…come on man, READ THE DAMNED LYRICS). “Strange Kind of Love” was terribly boring but it was redeemed with a rather heavy version of “Final Solution” which was a welcome surprise. I loved seeing it at all three shows of the Summer 2006 tour I attended. It just sucks Robin’s mic wasn’t working for most of the verse he screamed. I love his voice.
The Hand That Feeds
Thankfully that was the end of Peter’s tenure with NIN and he exited the stage as “The Hand That Feeds” started up. Again, another powerful and heavy performance that just felt right, even though I’ve seen the song 13 times. “Head Like A Hole” followed and I felt an overwhelming sense of closure coming over me. I figured this would be the end or one of the last few songs (I was still holding out hope for “In This Twilight”) and I couldn’t be happier. While the setlist of the 8/28 show was better, the performance/energy and overall cohesion of 8/29 just took the show to the next level.
“Head Like A Hole” wrapped up with its feedback explosion as usual and I couldn’t have been more pleased. There was an extended pause and the finger-picked chords of “Hurt” came over the PA. I rolled my eyes as the song is beyond overplayed and irrelevant today, but still fell into the moment anyway realizing this would be the last NIN song I would ever see live (if what Trent says is to be believed) and it seemed somewhat fitting. And the final three chords were likely the heaviest of the night.
Justin and Ilan preparing to leave the stage at the end of "Hurt"
It’s been a hell of a time these last 4 years. Apart from a few different/extra songs, I absolutely could not have asked for a better way to end things with NIN. The heaviest, tightest, most-ridiculous-setlisted shows yet were a perfect ending to this wild ride.
Tags: 2009/08/29, Aragon, Aragon Ballroom, Chicago, NIN, Nine Inch Nails, Obsession, Wave Goodbye
