Apple refuses NIN iPhone app, feels Trent Reznor's wrath

Trent Reznor: ready to trade in his iPhone?
Trent Reznor: ready to trade in his iPhone?

Nine Inch Nails frontman Trent Reznor has expressed his anger at Apple's refusal to stock the band's new iPhone application in its App Store.

nin:access is a cutdown version of the Nine Inch Nails website, and is also designed to enable fans of the band to communicate with each other. It was accepted by Apple last month, but has now been refused entry to the App Store, seemingly on the grounds that it contains a link to a Podcast that contains a song with swearing in it (The Downward Spiral).

This seems a little harsh, but what's really annoyed Reznor is the fact that The Downward Spiral is already offered as a song download by Apple.

Writing on the official NIN forum, he says: "You can buy 'The Downward Fucking Spiral' on iTunes, but you can't allow an iPhone app that may have a song with a bad word somewhere in it. Come on Apple, think your policies through and for fuck's sake get your app approval scenario together".

Apple has yet to respond to Reznor's rant, or to reverse its decision. This being the case, nin:access may have to be retitled nin:inaccessible.

Ben Rogerson

I’m the Deputy Editor of MusicRadar, having worked on the site since its launch in 2007. I previously spent eight years working on our sister magazine, Computer Music. I’ve been playing the piano, gigging in bands and failing to finish tracks at home for more than 30 years, 24 of which I’ve also spent writing about music and the ever-changing technology used to make it.