Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor discussed the state of rock in a new interview with 101 WKQX. Gene Simmons declared rock dead in 2014.
“I mean, to be totally honest with you, we had two big festivals pop up which is why we decided to play. Panorama in New York and FYF in LA were the initial two kind of offers. The headliners were Frank Ocean, Missy Elliott, Bjork, and us. Panorama [was] us, Frank Ocean again, and A Tribe Called Quest.
We don’t go into something assuming that every fan is still waiting, and the excitement and anticipation has been growing in our absence. I don’t take any of that for granted. You always have a question of relevance, it’s hard to see how others see yourself as you get older, you’ve been around for awhile.
When you’ve got fans whose kids could be fans, it’s hard to kind of figure out who you are, how people see you externally. I’d like you to see me as [David] Bowie, but you might see me as- you know what I mean? It could be any number of things. So we were pleasantly surprised to see a full house, and an appreciative and engaged audience that didn’t make us feel like we’re the old guys, or that we’re the rock band. ‘Who do we have on the rock lineup?'”
“I think rock bands are out of fashion generally these days, but I don’t give a shit.”
