Good Tunes: Nine Inch Nails, 'Into the Void'

Late one night a month or so ago, I stumbled across Nine Inch Nails’ appearance on Austin City Limits in 2014. I’m not a huge NIN fan, but I do like the band’s music and could not help but watch the rest of the show. I was not disappointed.

Unfortunately, they did not perform “Closer.” (Sometime in 1994, while listening to Open House Party on Q103, I heard host John Garabedian say that “Closer” was especially popular among women. Having only heard the radio version at that time, I did not understand why.) The set list also did not include another good NIN ditty, “Into the Void.”

“Into the Void” has stuck with me for a long time and I don’t know why. It’s probably because I like it (duh!). I remember hearing it a lot on Rock 108 when it was released in 2000 but then it disappeared from the airwaves, as many songs do. (It makes you wonder: How many songs did we hear ad nauseam on the radio for a month or so back in the day but have never heard since?) I saw the video, too, so perhaps the insane close-up shots of Trent Reznor made it impossible to forget. Having not heard it for a long time, I rediscovered it on YouTube a while back and made sure to bookmark it.

Enjoy!