Nine Inch Nails Deliver Pure Cinema to Spectrum Center
Who really retires from music anyway?
Back in 2009, at the Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Tennessee, I witnessed what was reported, at the time, to be the final Nine Inch Nails concert in the United States. The tour was ending as singer/frontman Trent Reznor was set to retire as he had grown tired of the road.
The band performed for more than two hours, starting at 1 a.m., playing 27 songs, including two encores, then smashing their instruments multiple times. They put on one of the most intense and emotional shows I’ve ever seen.
Of course, that wasn’t their final show. Reznor returned to music in 2013, performing in Charlotte with Nine Inch Nails on a co-headlining tour with Soundgarden in 2014. It was a solid show but couldn’t quite match the energy of the ‘Roo.
That brings us to Tuesday’s show at the Spectrum Center in Uptown. Word had gotten around that the Raleigh show in 2025 was one of the best concerts some attendees had ever seen, so I knew they still had it in them.
After roughly 98 minutes and 20 songs at Spectrum, I’m still having a difficult time deciding which show was better: this one or Bonnaroo.
While that show in Manchester had all of the emotion of what was expected to be a final performance, the concert in Uptown was pure cinema. It’s clear that Reznor, along with producer Atticus Ross (who has been with the band officially since 2016), has taken all of his movie soundtrack experience (they’ve won two Oscars together) and put it to good use in one of the most visually stunning productions of live music I’ve ever seen.
Bouncing back and forth between the main stage and a smaller B-stage located in the middle of the arena floor, Reznor was bathed in different lighting setups — from single spotlights to strobes to rows of red lights.
A camera operator often projected images of the singer live onto screens at the sides of the stage — or thin cloth draping over the entire stage. It’s difficult to describe just how visually stunning the constantly changing production was.
The night started with Reznor at the small stage, solo on the piano, singing, “(You made It Feel Like) Home.” After a couple of songs later, the entire band was on the main stage to ignite the crowd with “Wish,” followed by “March of the Pigs” and “Reptile.”
Reznor incorporated a variety of deep cuts within the setlist. “Find My Way,” “Came Back Haunted,” and “Less Than” were among the rarities Tuesday evening. Of course, there were plenty of hits and fan favorites. While “Heresy” was missing from the Queen City stop, “Closer,” “The Perfect Drug,” “Head Like a Hole,” and show closer “Hurt,” were met with a frenzy.
Reznor said little to the crowd other than a thank you and acknowledging how appreciative he was to simply be on stage performing for the crowd.
For me, as someone who has literally been to hundreds of shows over the years, I left genuinely appreciative of the entire experience — something so visually outstanding and sonically clear that went so well together. The images, video and lighting created the perfect accompaniment to the music and kept the audience engaged.
Please tell me it won’t take 12 years for the 60-year-old Reznor to return to the Carolinas. Tuesday’s set was, indeed, “The Perfect Drug” for longtime fans of the band.
Nine Inch Nails will continue on its Peel It Back tour through March 16, when the band plans to close things out in Sacramento, California.
Nine Inch Nails Setlist
B-Stage
(You made It Feel Like) Home
A Minute to Breathe
Non-entity
Piggy
Main Stage
Wish
March of the Pigs
Reptile
Find My Way
Copy of A
Gave Up
B-Stage
Vessel
Closer
Me, I’m Not
Came Back Haunted
Main Stage
The Beginning of the End
Less Than
The Perfect Drug
Only
The Hand That Feeds
Head Like a Hole
Hurt
Be sure to check out Queen City Nerve’s Soundwave, Charlotte’s most comprehensive live music listing, so you don’t miss out on any shows or concerts coming up. And hell, if you’re looking for something else to do, you can check out our events page as well, which runs the gamut of things to do in Charlotte. You don’t ever have to be bored again. You can check out more of Jeff’s pics and live reviews here.
