The Pulse of Radio reports that NINE INCH NAILS mainman Trent Reznor is working on a cable TV series based on his 2007 concept album, "Year Zero", according to a lengthy profile of Reznor in the Sunday edition of the New York Times. The article does not go into much detail about the project, except to say that Reznor is working on it with producer Lawrence Bender, who is Quentin Tarantino's partner and also produced the Oscar-winning Al Gore documentary "An Inconvenient Truth".

"Year Zero" takes place approximately 15 years in the future, with the U.S. a religious dictatorship and the world on the brink of environmental and social collapse. Reznor has indicated that he'd be interested in a film version of the story, and has also hinted at a recorded sequel at some point.

The rest of the Times interview, which took place at Reznor's home "on the outskirts of Beverly Hills," touches on his abandonment of the major label system, his recent online album releases, and his own struggle to reinvent himself in the age of music downloading.

At one point Reznor explains, "I don't agree that (music) should be free, but it is free, and you can either accept it or you can put your head in the sand." He also says he doesn't want to participate in the way music is marketed these days, adding, "I don't really want to be on the side of a bus or in a BlackBerry ad hawking some product that sucks just so I can get my record out."

A brand new NINE INCH NAILS album called "The Slip" was posted online last month as a free download at nin.com. The band's previous effort, "Ghosts I - IV", was issued in March in a variety of digital and physical configurations.

Reznor hinted in the Times article that more free music, and possibly new software applications, will be coming soon.

NINE INCH NAILS will begin a North American trek on July 25 at British Columbia's Pemberton Festival.