TENSION

I'm 9 days away from driving to Las Vegas and ten days away from checking one of the few remaining boxes off my "Bands I'd like to see while I still can" list.

I'm seeing Nine Inch Nails next weekend, and I couldn't be more excited.

They're on the list along with Bruce Springsteen... and that's pretty much it. I had to get realistic, and as much as I'd love to see Danzig-era Misfits, I know that's just impossible. Even if Danzig teamed up with Doyle and the rest of the guys for an all-Misfits set, I don't think I'd want to see it. That would just be depressing. That guy has kind of lost his mind. I've documented it a couple of times (like here and here) and he's done a few interviews lately that only reinforce that feeling. Look at this excerpt from his interview with The Village Voice last month:

Glenn also made some waves in the press when he commented to the L.A. Weekly about how he wouldn't have played Wolverine "as gay" as Hugh Jackman did in the X-Men movie. Then, of course, Danzig has revealed what may be interpreted as right wing leanings during his 2011 appearance on the Fox News program Red Eye as well as the "Democrats are fascists disguised as liberals" remark he made to Minneapolis City Pages earlier this year. Oh, and god forbid any journalist ask him about Tom Neely's Henry & Glenn Forever, which features Glenn in a non-explicit, PG-rated relationship with longtime friend Henry Rollins. It's this rigidity in his public persona that makes a photo of him grimacing while carrying kitty litter through a parking lot gain instant internet traction.

Any attempts to clarify his use of the term "gay" for Hugh Jackman's Wolverine performance or to discuss politics were met with outright hostility, a rant against political correctness and the paranoid accusation that the purpose of this interview was to smear his politics under the pretense of the paper's liberal agenda.

"FUCK YOU, FUCK YOUR SPIN, AND FUCK THE VILLAGE VOICE!" he yelled. 

That's a long-winded way of me letting you know that just about any band besides NIN or The Boss would probably be a massive disappointment.  Again, probably. I don't know for sure. Sometimes you take a chance on a reunion and it's great (i.e. The Descendents) and sometimes it's like watching old, out of shape guys trying to reclaim their glory days (i.e. Earth Crisis).

Springsteen is probably never coming to Salt Lake, so I'll have to make a real effort on that front and Vegas is the closest Nine Inch Nails is getting, but I'm not passing it up. From the pictures, videos and reviews I've been seeing it will be one thousand percent worth it.

Plus, it's Las Vegas so I'll get to hit up Ronald's for donuts, Society Cafe for Frosted Flake French Toast and Twin Peaks for comedy and the soul-crushing reminder that most dudes in Las Vegas are exactly what you think they are.

Add all those factors together and I'm really, really excited about it. If you want to check out more pictures of the current tour, go to the Nine Inch Nails Flickr or Tumblr sites. Totally worth it.