Jan 26, 2016
Trent Reznor has spoken about the loss of “father figure” David Bowie for the first time since his untimely passing.
The Nine Inch Nails front man credited the icon for helping him to get sober, while also highlighting his far reaching impact on both the music industry and him personally.
In a new interview with Rolling Stone, Reznor, who went on the Outside tour with Bowie in 1995, talked about how the musical legend helped him get through his addiction problems.
“My way of dealing with life was to numb myself with drugs and alcohol, because it made me feel better and more equipped to deal with everything. My career was skyrocketing, but the scaffolding that was holding me up as a person was starting to collapse,” he said.
“There were a number of times where the two of us were alone, and he said some things that weren't scolding, but pieces of wisdom that stuck with me: ‘You know, there is a better way here, and it doesn't have to end in despair or in death, in the bottom."
During the Outside tour Reznor struggled with drug addiction and by his own account hit “rock bottom” just a year later. However, he thanked Bowie for being there for him when he was struggling and admitted he had taken the recent loss of the musician hard. “I didn't think we were done. It feels like the loss of a mentor, fatherly figure, someone looking out for you.”
Earlier in the interview, Reznor also documented the profound impact Bowie had on him as a musician when he first began his career. “As I found myself onstage with an audience, I was in full-obsession mode with Bowie.”
“His music really helped me relate to myself and figure out who I was. He was a tremendous inspiration in terms of what was possible, what the role of an entertainer could be, that there are no rules.”
Watch Trent Reznor and David Bowie perform "Hurt" while on tour together:
Image: Pitchfork