The spring leg of Nine Inch Nails' much-lauded Peel It Back tour stopped through Van Andel Arena in Grand Rapids, MI to offer a chance for fans on the state's west side a chance to see the show after it rocked Little Caesars Arena in Detroit last August. The general structure and tone of the show remained consistent throughout the U.S. performances, with DJ Boys Noize opening with an hour of live-mixed, gothy dance tracks, followed by Trent Reznor and company alternating between the main (A) stage and a smaller (B) stage in the middle of the floor to deliver quieter, piano-based arrangements and newly remixed dance versions of select tracks in addition to the standard industrial rock attack for which the project is known. The song selection varied a bit on the spring dates, however, where Reznor dug deeper into his back catalog to occasionally feature pieces that were composed with keyboardist Atticus Ross for soundtracks as well as select deep cuts from NIN's more recent releases. Immersion in the technically impressive, theatrical visuals, much like Tool's tours over the past 15 years, continued to be one of the most significant elements of the show and were both engaging and maintained the artistically unsettling vibe that was simultaneously throw back and current in different ways.
Boys Noize, spinning on his own (C) stage on the back of the arena floor, bumped extremely loud tunes without interruption under a blanket of vibrant, deep red lights that flooded the arena for exactly 60 minutes before the lighting changed and all attention diverted to the center of the floor where Reznor appeared alone at a piano to quietly begin the show among the cheers of the crowd. This time, the Reznor/Ross score track, "(You Made It Feel Like) Home," from Bones and All, (not to be confused with "Home," NIN's B-side from 2005's With Teeth), started things off, somewhat anticlimactically due to its soft tone and lack of recognizability among the audience, but the thrill of being at a live NIN performance sustained it until the more familiar sounds of a new arrangement of "Ruiner" and the "Nothing Can Stop Me Now Mix" of "Piggy" began to deliver what the people paid to hear and see. Shining light on that remix from 1995's Further Down the Spiral was a nice nod to hardcore fans from that era, but the song's original arrangement is still its best form.
The coordination of changing between the A and B stages throughout the show was very carefully timed out, with flashlight-wielding crew helping usher Reznor and other band members from one to the other, even as music began to set up the next song. This may recall The Rolling Stones' Bridges to Babylon tour, also famously featuring a B stage for a short portion of the set, but NIN's execution perfected the movement and transition to make it all happen much faster, which added the ability to move back and forth between the stages multiple times without disrupting the flow and pacing of the concert.
Drummer Josh Freese got things started on the main stage with a short solo that included bits of the intro beat from "Getting Smaller" before breaking into "Wish" with the full band once everyone was in position. The volume, anger, and intensity of that signature tune from 1992's Broken EP still hits as hard now as it ever did, and the crowd was completely locked in for the rest of the night. Keeping the tempo and energy high, "March of the Pigs (with the extended outro section from the remix, "All the Pigs, All Lined Up") followed before everyone was able to take a breath during a sultry, sexy take on The Downward Spiral's "Reptile." That particular album continued to be the centerpiece of the night, with other tracks, like "Find My Way," "Copy of A," the minor hit "Less Than," and the always intense "Gave Up" becoming ornamental complements to songs from that release.
Continuing on the B stage in the center of the floor, the electronic and dance-based portion of the show included deep cuts like "Vessel" and "Parasite," a song from Reznor and Ross' other project, How to Destroy Angels, and the mega-hit "Closer," along with NIN's latest single, "As Alive As You Need Me to Be," all in the form of new remixes by Boys Noize, who performed with Reznor and Ross during the 4-song mini-set. Pieces of stage rigging doubled as light fixtures and illuminated the room with dense, vibrant, and varying colors as portions of the stage itself choreographically raised and lowered throughout. While there was no mention of it, the audience danced away while also getting a preview of Nine Inch Noize, the remix collaboration that stunned the crowd at Coachella several weeks later and included Reznor's wife, and lead vocalist of How to Destroy Angels, Mariqueen Maandig, though she was not present on the NIN tour.
The final portion of the show concluded on the main stage where veteran guitarist Robin Finck and newcomer Stu Brooks on bass fell in perfectly with Reznor, Ross, and Freese to deliver a powerful set of classics that included "Mr. Self Destruct," "The Perfect Drug," "The Hand That Feeds," and "Head Like a Hole," clearly the climax of the concert. Freese shined especially on the complex drum solo during "The Perfect Drug," rarely performed prior to the '25-'26 tour. David Bowie's "I'm Afraid of Americans" continued to be featured in this portion of the night throughout the tour with Reznor often remarking respectfully about his friendship with and fandom of the late rock icon. After a short encore break, the band concluded with "Hurt," closing things down with a familiar emotional coda that put a cap on an impressive performance to both first timers and return customers alike, leaving them all wanting more.
Nine Inch Nails set list (2-22-26):
(You Made It Feel Like) Home (Reznor/Ross)
Ruiner
Piggy (nothing can stop me now mix)
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Drum solo/Getting Smaller (jam)
Wish
March of the Pigs/All the Pigs, All Lined Up
Reptile
Find My Way
Copy of A
Gave Up
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Vessel (Nine Inch Noize remix) (w/Boys Noize)
Closer (Nine Inch Noize remix) (w/Boys Noize)
Parasite (How to Destroy Angels) (Nine Inch Noize remix) (w/Boys Noize)
As Alive As You Need Me to Be (w/Boys Noize)
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Mr. Self Destruct
Less Than
The Perfect Drug
I'm Afraid of Americans (David Bowie)
The Hand That Feeds
Head Like a Hole
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Hurt
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(The Flamingos-"I Only Have Eyes for You" (outro tape))
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