How One Day Working for Nine Inch Nails Almost Drove a Man Insane

Four hours with the band and a certain ThinkGeek product was all it took to push a tour manager to the brink of madness.
How One Day Working for Nine Inch Nails Almost Drove a Man Insane

Four hours with the band and a certain ThinkGeek product was all it took to push a tour manager to the brink of madness.

Words: Timothy Brown

photo by Daniel Cavazos

June 21, 2019

It’s easy to believe that working within the dark and murky world of Nine Inch Nails could be a harrowing business. Now, Trent Reznor’s former art director, Rob Sheridan, has shared a story detailing just how crazy things can get behind the scenes.

Sheridan told the story in honor of the imminent demise of ThinkGeek, a popular division of GameStop with a heavy emphasis on classic fandoms from Marvel to Harry Potter.

In a Twitter thread yesterday, Sheridan explained that life on the road with Reznor and crew is indeed hard work, offset by an ongoing series of elaborate pranks the tour mates pulled on each other.

Not to give it away fully (it’s such a wild ride)—but let’s just say that a ThinkGeek product called the “Annoy-a-Tron” more than lived up to its name. By emptying the device, Sheridan and his cohorts were able to push a hapless tour manager to the edge of a complete nervous breakdown. And it took all of four hours to get him there.

It’s like a Black Mirror comedy episode. Check out the thread below for details.