Music History

Before Nine Inch Nails, Trent Reznor was in bands like this. Watch.

Before Trent Reznor settled on Nine Inch Nails in 1988, he was part of a series of Cleveland bands that went nowhere. And none of them sounded like NIN.

Option 30: A new-wavey synthy band he joined when he was in college. They had a lot in common with the Human League minus the female singers.

The Innocent: This is more Bon Jovi than anything else.

Slam Bamboo: More of the same. Love the haircut of the lead singer. And despite what the magazine said, they didn’t have what it took to make it big.

Exotic Birds: More synth-pop. They had a cameo in the Michael J. Fox film Light of Day in 1987. They appear during a record store scene, performing a Buddy Holly song. It didn’t make the soundtrack.

And finally…

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 42750 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross