Oscar nominations: Trent Reznor says ‘Social Network’ score might be first step to a new career path
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Trent Reznor is one of the most respected creative minds among his generation of rock musicians, and his industrial rock band, Nine Inch Nails, was considered a signature sound for two decades before Reznor downshifted his career last year to focus on family. Now, though, the first-time father said he is still pulsing from his experience with “The Social Network” and is looking at Hollywood work as a possible new career path.
“I’ll be honest, watching the music industry collapse has been demoralizing and disheartening at times,” said Reznor, 45. He added that spending months or even years working on a traditional album is less appealing now that “it can be stolen in second and forgotten in a week.”
The music Reznor made for “The Social Network,” by contrast, has taken on a different sort of life in pop culture, and he’s heard from fans both old and new who found the sonic architecture of the movie just as compelling as its tale of creativity, ambition and acclaim.
“This is completely new territory for me and I feel inspired,” Reznor said. “This opportunity came completely out of the blue, and it gave me a chance to work with [‘Social Network’ director] David Fincher, someone at the top of his field, and the experience was a good one and educational one, and I never once felt like jumping out of a window, which usually happens at least once with a big project. It’s been a dream, and that’s weird because usually I don’t have dreams where my pants are on.”
Reznor said he is getting calls from other Hollywood filmmakers and that he is mulling over “the trajectory of my life for the next few years.” Rock fans though, shouldn’t worry that the intense, dark figure of the industrial scene will stay away from the concert world for good. “I feel most alive when I’m on stage, but it’s just touring for a year that I don’t see as part of my life right now.”
-- Geoff Boucher
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