The tradition of damaging musical instruments in live performances gained notoriety with the band Nine Inch Nails. Between July and August 1991, during their shows, the band extensively destroyed equipment, including guitars, synthesizer keys, and drums.
Initially, this destruction was unplanned. In the first show of the tour, overheating in Phoenix caused equipment failures for the group, leading the band to break everything and end the performance.
At that time, Lollapalooza functioned as a traveling tour, covering various cities over the course of a month. The destruction situation escalated rapidly; in subsequent shows, vocalist Trent Reznor and guitarist Richard Patrick began breaking instruments every night, seeking to surpass the level of chaos from previous performances.
To meet the demand for instruments, the band's sound technician received about $2,000 in cash, usually on his days off. He traveled through the tour cities looking for instrument stores and pawn shops. Since it was 1991, without internet or cell phones, he consulted phone books to find establishments and check the availability of cheap guitars.
On some occasions, the technician acquired five or more instruments, transporting them in a rented car back to the festival. Some instruments were repaired after being destroyed, being reassembled with tape and clamps for later use, although many lasted only one song before being damaged again.
Although chaotic, the event was considered historic. An article on The Independent website reported that the crew recorded the destruction of 137 guitars during the tour, which represents an average of approximately 6.5 guitars per show, considering the 21 Lollapalooza concerts that year.
However, Nine Inch Nails was not the absolute pioneer. The first musician to smash a guitar on stage was trumpeter Rocky Rockwell, in 1956. He broke an acoustic guitar on his knee while finishing a parody of Elvis Presley's 'Hound Dog' during the American variety show The Lawrence Welk Show.
Pete Townshend, guitarist for the British band The Who, is credited with cementing the act. In 1964, during a concert at the Railway Tavern in London, he accidentally hit the low ceiling with his guitar, causing damage. Noticing the enthusiastic reaction of the audience, he completed the destruction of the instrument, turning the gesture into a trademark of The Who's shows. Drummer Keith Moon frequently participated in this behavior, destroying his own kit.
Currently, there is a fan website dedicated to cataloging all the guitars smashed by the guitarist, although the collection is considered incomplete by the maintainers themselves. This record contains about 150 instances of destruction, some involving more than one guitar per show, with the most recent entry dating back to 2007.
Additionally, a British magazine mentioned that Pete Townshend allegedly destroyed ten guitars in the first nine shows of a tour in 1971. Besides Nine Inch Nails, other bands that incorporated this habit include Deep Purple, Kiss, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, and Muse. The cover of the iconic album London Calling (1979) by the punk group The Clash shows bassist Paul Simonon destroying his bass, being one of the most notable examples of this tradition.