On the road with Nine Inch Nails through the lens of Jonathan Rach
Whether through Johnny Cash’s heartbreaking rendition of ‘Hurt’ or a discerning taste for industrial rock, most melomaniacs have beheld the unique aura of Nine Inch Nails. Few, however, can claim intimacy with the iconic band on the level of esteemed documentary and feature film writer and director Jonathan Rach.
Rach rose to prominence in the late 1990s after being commissioned by Nine Inch Nails to direct the 1997 concert film Closure. The critically acclaimed feature followed the band on its 1994-95 Self Destruct Tour and artistically compiles live performances, backstage interviews and liaisons with special guests.
While concert movies depend heavily on a band at the peak of popularity and on-stage chemistry, an enthusiastic filmmaker with a nuanced vision is essential for long-term engagement and critical praise. “I have always loved the idea of storytelling with many brushes at hand – visuals, music, actors, narrative, design, timing, etc. To me, it’s the ultimate adventure in expression,” Rach tells me of his passionate approach to the craft.
Earlier in his career, Rach worked in stage design, boasting notable work with David Bowie and Nine Inch Nails. While Rach worked with the latter, frontman Trant Reznor asked if he would be keen to join the band on tour to make a documentary. “At first, I did not understand what that really meant until I got the itinerary, and it read like a checklist of every city you would want to visit around the world,” Rach reflects. “Rome, Tokyo, Paris… the list went on and on to mention every city in the States.”
“I was thinking it would take a lifetime to visit all these places, and at a closer look, you realised five of them were within seven days,” he adds. “You kind of start to get what a whirlwind of activities you are about to embark on.”
Without hesitation, Rach threw himself into the frenetic life of the travelling rockstar. “I was embedded with the band. It was five band members, a tour manager, a bodyguard, and myself. That was our travelling party,” he remembers. “We travelled together like that for over three years nonstop. An interesting thing that really does happen when you are touring that intensely for that long is you forget where you are: What city am I in? What floor was my hotel room? For so long, you are being handled by a tour manager and others that you start to stop thinking for yourself. Someone has your bags. Someone is pointing you in a certain direction.”
Rach soon found that, in between touring legs, there was a comical transition phase. “I remember at the end of one of the legs, Trent and I were sort of dumped off at the airport gate to head to New Orleans for a Christmas break, and we both just stood there, not sure what we were to do next,” Rach recalls. “The bodyguard who was acting as a tour manager at that moment walked back and had to point us in the direction of the gate we were to go to as if we were incapable of making sense of our own boarding pass or where we go on the other end of the flight and in a sense, he was right. A certain part of your brain shuts down when there’s personnel for every task for so long, but what a way to get lost!”
Rach cherishes the Self Destruct Tour as a life-changing experience and a salient career highlight. “I remember as a kid growing up, local radio stations would have promotions – win a chance to go backstage and meet the band,” he says. “This was meet the band and, oh, travel with them intimately for over three years. The entire experience was off the charts from that perspective. What an unbelievable opportunity to experience first-hand what it would be like to tour around the world, and I will always be thankful to Trent for that. We have become good friends to this day, and I value that very much. And it all stemmed from helping him design his stage show – what incredible life experiences.”
Just before heading out with Nine Inch Nails in the mid-1990s, Rach received some golden advice from a world-renowned photographer. “Anton Corbijn had been out shooting Trent for a magazine cover and suggested I take photos along with the filming I was doing for a documentary on the band,” Rach remembers.
Thanks to this advice, Closure is accompanied by a vast collection of photographs, some of which will be displayed in an exhibition from March 6th-10th, 2024, at 524 Flinders Street, Melbourne, in association with Behind The Gallery. The collection includes 45 photographs from the Nine Inch Nails tour, alongside some additional shots from Rach’s time spent working with David Bowie, Lou Reed and more.
Stephen Dallimore, Creative Director for Behind The Gallery, comments, “We are extremely honoured to be trusted to showcase this collection of photographs for the Nine Inch Nails community. Jonathan’s images provide a rare insight into one of music’s most important artists and celebrated tours in music culture. We look forward to creating a special event for the fans and collectors; this is not to be missed!”
While we gear up for the exhibition, Rach has been kind enough to share some of his photographs for a preview. See further details on the exhibition here.
