The massive rock band Trent Reznor once called “extreme mediocrity”
There’s a reason why some of the most outspoken people in music come from rock backgrounds, and it’s because it’s arguably the most competitive space out there. And most of its biggest voices, like Trent Reznor, first started out because they simply wanted to escape.
Reznor got a sense of this at just 13 years old. He, like many who would go on to become revolutionaries, saw a guiding light in bands like Kiss and something meaningful to chase that would make sense beyond the vapidity of normal life. “It was exciting, it was taboo, it felt larger than life,” he later said, saying that he’d listen to their music and go, “I didn’t know you could do that.”
Reznor, like many of his peers, found the ultimate escape in Kiss. Their theatrical tendencies provided an outlet for many of the things people were still too afraid to explore in music, and many of the things Reznor would later use to inspire Nine Inch Nails to greatness. As he gravitated more towards his heroes, however, he grew a strong distaste for those who got it wrong.
But his disses almost always come within reason. Because, more than most in rock, Reznor is someone who genuinely believes in the value of art and the dignity of pouring everything into it. In his view, there are too many people who put out material unworthy of any semblance of popularity, and too many bands whose music should never be considered art to begin with, like Limp Bizkit.
Reznor once said the band epitomises everything bad about modern music while highlighting the difference between people who are out there just to have fun and people who masquerade as good artists but whose music actually “sucks”. A harsh review, but one which only serves to highlight Reznor’s high regard for artistic brilliance and those holding it back. These are all similar reasons why he also once called Creed “extreme mediocrity”.
His comments came from an assessment of modern pop tendencies and how they condition people into thinking that’s as good as they’ve got. “I’m not saying I’m averse to a good pop song, like something by Incubus, although I’m not going to run out and buy their album or anything,” he told Kerrang. “But I’ll sit with my mouth open in front of the TV watching what gets played these days. And I think people have been conditioned to this, and that’s how bands of extreme mediocrity rise to the top. People don’t know that there’s anything better than this.”
When prompted to elaborate on whether he means bands like Creed, he went on: “Oh my God, yes, exactly. But I don’t even really take offence at them because we’re not doing the same thing. It’s almost like we’re not the same species. I don’t want to fight them, but I don’t want to listen to them, either.”
Most people see Creed as a bit of a Marmite band. A lot of people nowadays have a more nostalgic attachment towards their music, and, all things considered, a lot of it still holds up. But that’s also the beauty of it. It’s familiar, safe, and trustworthy whenever you come back to it. But in Reznor’s view, those traits are nothing more than that pesky “extreme mediocrity” that prevents people from discovering art with more depth.
