LIVE REVIEW: Smashing Pumpkins

Smashing Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlain and singer Billy Corgan perform at Ruth Eckerd Hall. [EDMUND D. FOUNTAIN | Times]

CLEARWATER – There was a time, a much different time, when the Smashing Pumpkins were the biggest band in the world. Led by the bold, often bald Billy Corgan, the Chicago band bridged the gap between the disillusionment of the ’90s grunge rebellion and the hook-banging optimism of a shinier tomorrow.

Using a rambunctious form of melodic mayhem, the Pumpkins urged you to trash the bedroom (and boredom) of your single-parent home -- then forgive your working mother when she told you to clean it up.

In between now and then, however, the famously head-trippy Corgan has battled depression and bandmates, sending the Pumpkins into a state of perpetual fracture. As a result, Wednesday's sold-out show at cozy Ruth Eckerd Hall was more curiosity than comeback, as the 41-year-old former voice of his generation continued working out his demons for those who still care.

From the sound of it, many in the crowd of 2,039 still do, although let it be known that this was mostly a show for diehards only, as Corgan and his crew, including original drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, made two-plus hours of noise akin to a 747 landing on your lanai. It was often brutal, a thrashing melee of the singer's soaring yelp and his band's tumultuous playing. It was also rather annoying, although give the band credit for giving it their all.

When there was a hook underneath the racket, the show was occasionally stellar. Taking the stage in a long skirt seemingly made out of Jiffy Pop foil, the smooth-pated Corgan launched into the prickly "Tarantula" (lyric: "I don't want to fight, every single night") then followed with the new "G.L.O.W." (lyric: "I'm so alone...").

Despite the classy environs, it all had the feel of a reckless club show, the kind where it's mandatory to slosh beer on your shoes and your date. There weren't many "hits," but when Corgan dusted off a smattering of well-knowns, the crowd went loopy, a refreshing reaction in the typically staid hall.

Corgan bunched up his best songs, trying to gain a momentum that might carry through the obtuse new stuff. Early on, the Pumpkins played the searing ballad "Mayonaise," from 1993's multiplatinum "Siamese Dream." That was followed by the grandiose thunder of "Tonight, Tonight," from 1995's ambitious "Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness."

After a ramshackle barrage of forgettables, the band offered up a quiet, near-acoustic segment. This included the bittersweet lament "Today," which Corgan sweetly dedicated to "all our soldiers, spiritually, literally."

Before a confounding art-rock finale that often sounded like a fleet of ferrets scampering across a sea of guitars (oh, and the kazoo-driven cover of "In the Summertime"), Corgan unloaded the heavy-metal goodness of "Bullet With Butterfly Wings," with that unforgettable chorus, "Despite all my rage I am still just a rat in a cage." It was sublime, a blast of what could have been.

At the very end of the show, Corgan brought out his father, a blues musician, who wailed on guitar. It was a sweet family moment. It was also really bizarre. Oh, that Billy. He may not sing for a generation anymore. But give him this: The dude is never boring.

Comments

[Richard Giles]

At least Noel Gallagher got pushed over recently. Thought I'd throw that in the mixer!

[Steve L]

No Nick, the Jonas Bros handlers are doing something right. Do you really think Britney and Jessica and Ashlee, et.al, are doing something "right"? It's not music brother, it's marketing. You get my drift.

[NickWithAnAxe]

You Corgan-ites don't think album sales matter?

What are you, 13? Do you still believe that the music business is about "art"? Sure, this is the internet age and any Tom, Dick, Harry or Billy Corgan can wank on a computer and pat himself on the back and release it to the joy of the 12 people alive who find it entertaining.

The fact is, people don't buy it. You know what that means? It means that your tastes are just that - YOUR tastes. It means that the majority of people disagree, no matter how "right" you feel you are.

Do I like the Jonas Brothers? No. But you know what? They sell a boat-load of albums, which means they're doing something right.

The Pumpkin ship has sailed. It's sailing right next to the Soundgarden ship and the Flock of Seagulls ship and the Duran Duran ship. You get my drift.

If you don't like people disagreeing with your narrow opinions, keep them to yourself.

[Steve L]

Thanks, Marissa. Hmm, I smell strudel...

[jezz]

im guessing you all don't get laid much

fags

[sparky]

Jeff, I am shocked that I compared Nirvana to Little Johnny and fingerpaints and no one jumped up and down screaming. The sad part is I was a junior in college when Nirvana came out and I didn't like it then.

[DoctorDrew]

Last saw SP in Atlanta in 1996 with Garbage. That was an awesome show.

This one blew chunks. For some people I think Billy could come out cr@p on a guiter, mash it around and the "sound" would be genius. And if you disagree, you would, of course, SUCK.

Volume does not equal quality.

[Sean Daly Fan Club/Bodyguards]

Don't get us started, don't EVEN get us started!

[Jeff in Cuba]

Ahh, the joys of toiling in a public forum.

It's been at least three months since I got a good, old-fashioned "YOU SUCK!" at work, and as twisted as it sounds, it's starting to hurt my feelings.

[Satur666]

Whoda thunk the little old punkins woulda caused a riot in Cell Blog 9 ?

[Marissa]

You guys are great. Really. I mean it.

[Steve L]

They wouldn't understand. They just want to give their Cuddly Cousin a big hug because, alas, the critic has been critiqued.

[Anti Sean Daly Fan Club aka Satur999]

Dearest S.D. fan club

you are wrong...there is a difference between critiquing and just sounding like a bitter bitter man...its a fine line
if mr daly would have taken the time to do a little research before going to the show he would have known that it wasnt meant to be a "hits only" show

also to whoever said blahblah about them leaving their mark and their ship sailing blahblahness...where have you been? there is no place to leave a mark or ships to sail because of the changes in the industry since "the good ol days"...we are in space you see...which explains billys choice of attire

[John Hays]

The line starts right behind the Daly trolls. :)

[Steve L]

How original: all Daly marks to the rescue at once...

[Marissa]

Dang. Y'all have some harsh opinions for a guy who has an opinion. Criminy! The only difference is that he gets paid for his and got into the concert for free.

That makes me giggle a bit. Carry on with your bad selves.

Miss Riss out!

[G]

Woooooooo

Jim DeRogatis blogging about himself again.

[J]

Daly, in your earlier post stating that this show was going to be a "long night" because of the "lack of hits" just smacks of extreme laziness. Ok, fine they didn't play the stuff you wanted....but this is a live rock show and last I heard it wasn't supposed to be Vegas. You're supposed to not get the expected. Whether you thought it sucked is one thing, but whining about a band not playing the hits just speaks to your laziness as a reviewer "boo hoo, they didn't play the songs I know....I'm going to have to do five minutes of work to look up what songs they did play."

P.s. the people saying that DeRogatis does nothing but praise the Pumpkins have never read Jim DeRogatis' articles about them. He's always been heavily critical of them and even got banned by Corgan from attending their shows back in the day. It's called fact checking people.

[jo]

Wow, it's harsh being a music critic, laying it all out there.

This has nothing to do with Smashing Pumpkins, but the CARELESS LOVE book you are reading. It is especially meaningful to me because my best girlfriend's older sis >> Sheila Ryan was one of Elvis' girlfriends for a few years, & it touched all our lives. Her part starts on pages 526,535,536,537, 541, till she finally dumps him for James Caan pg 568. Sheila has since written her own book - Fame On Me about her life with The King. Her & Jimmy have a son Scott, who is a genuinely nice guy, & has appeared in lots of movies, including all the "Oceans". Maybe you'll get to interview him some day. There are really so many more good stories regarding Sheila & E & Priscilla, Lisa Marie & Linda. Peter only just scratched the surface in this book, but it is an excellent read. You reminded me to take a look at it again myself.

[Billy Corgan]

Even I can admit that I suck.

[Unknown]

I'd like to talk about the venue. I've seen a bunch of shows there but this was the first time that I can remember the sound quality of a show there being poor. I was sitting about half way up along the side, which I guess may have been the problem but I doubt it. So, if the guy running the mixer would have taken his hands off his monkey for a while and put them on the mixing board, we'd all have enjoyed the show more (even the critics). It made it difficult to appreciate the tunes that I didn't know.

[True Blue]

"My love, I send this smile over to you"

[Steve L]

There was no allusion to reviewer’s speaking for the masses (by definition they cannot), but rather artists. The Pumpkin’s did, but no longer do. An earlier poster was implying that there was a link between record sales and influence. Aside from mild economic influence there’s little link, particularly in today’s online marketplace.

[Lori]

Yeah, John: I read Rolling Stone for awhile when we somehow started receiving a free subscription. There was not a lick of actual criticism in the thing. Every new album was above average, according to them.

[Thomas Albertini]

YOU SUCK!!!

[John Hays]

Fortunately for us, NO one reviewer speaks for the masses, or else this would be pravda.com.

I'll take a call-it-as-I-see-it review any day of the week over something that trys to play to a certain audience or pander to those who consider themselves the musical elite.

[otto]

Boring!

[Steve L]

You're right NickWithAnAxe: the Jonas Bros must speak for the masses...

[NickWithAnAxe]

Wow...

This Christ-like reverance for Billy Corgan by some on here is pretty surprising. They yell and stomp like they speak for the masses, yet they obviously don't - based on the horrendous album sales of pretty much everything after Mellon Collie.

I know, I know - sales don't mean everything. Calm down, Steve-Dave.

Bottom line is, Corgan and the Punkins were influential at one time. They left their mark. However, that ship has sailed.

The saddest thing is seeing a legend who doesn't know when to hang it up. (I'm looking at you, Brett Favre!)

[Neil]

I have seen the Pumpkins a couple of times. Once very early on in 1988 before, I really knew who they were and again in 1996. I saw Zwan a few years ago and I actually thought was better than the Pumpkin shows I previsouly saw. I don't think there is anything wrong with wanting to see the hits in concert. I respect a critic for saying he wants to see the hits instead of playing up to other critics by saying the hits aren't cool.

[Ryan T]

I enjoyed the show except for the 20 minute solo/feedback/bird noises. They could have easily played five better songs during that timeframe. It was a good concert, but the band should have used this opportunity to wow a FL audience (which they havent played for in probably a decade), not to experiment for 20 minutes. That's what a recording studio is for. I have no problem with solos and jamming, as long as they actually bring something to the audience. A lot of the audience clearly wanted them to move on to another song after 5 min.

[jo]

I thought that `ramshackle barrage of forgettables` was good.

[your mom]

Anyone know where I can get tickets to last nights show?

[joe]

Jim DeRogatis a brown nose.

[Steve L]

Though I often disagree with Daly for obvious reasons (namely his well known “taste” in maudlin, talent poor Shiite and other assorted ex-Mouseketeer’s, as well as his inability to recognize anything not in the Top 20), he almost writes a reasonable review here. Almost.

Once you get past the Wikipedia ruminations the essence of the criticism bleeds through. And the essence is, of course, always: if it’s not “popular”, I don’t like it. The mention of “obtuse new stuff” and “a ramshackle barrage of forgettables” sums this up quite well.

That said, I though it was a good, not great show. The surprising early inclusion of a Gish tune (with an extended, psychedelic guitar solo ripped from the semi-obscure Pumpkins tune Drown) was an easy early highlight. Corgan however failed to fully deliver on his promise of a “very promising second half” of the show. The cover of Pink Floyd’s Set The Controls For The Heart of the Sun (inexplicably not mentioned in the review – oh wait, that was Pink Floyd – not Pink…that explains it) was a great, moody conceit; however In The Summertime was just silly. That would have been fine had the Pumpkins closed with a worthy encore, but Corgan’s father’s lead fingered lead guitar left a lot to be desired and was not a fitting closer, however fun it was to see his dad chiding him (“I used to tell Billy, ‘go put your dress on and go so school or you’ll never amount to anything…’”).

So if you skip the bloated metaphors and read between the lines, you’ll get the real review. Wait, what do you mean there’s nothing there?

[Don't pick on Sparky now]

Just don't pick on Spark.

[John Hays]

BTW, Mellon Collie - SUCH a great album.

[3,000 Mile Zone]

The Pumpkins have rancid body odor, never change clothes. Don't sit close enough to smell.

[John Hays]

So Sean, what do you think of the Pumpkins slow version of The End is the Beginning is the End? (or is that beginning is the end is the beginning....)

Plus, what did you think of it being used in the Watchmen trailer, starring your man, Jackie Earle Haley?

[Marissa]

Oh Daly! You're such a controversial dude. A rabble rouser. Chaos theory thrives!

Now, where's that strudel?

[sparky]

bman22, heard the Smashing Pumpkins just wasn't a fan. And wasn't a fan of the whole Grunge scene either (lump Nirvana, STP, Pearl Jam). Now the Beatles are another story, HUGE fan of group and the solos. Just don't see the relevance by lumping Beatles, Pumpkins and Nirvana. That's kind of like comparing Michelangelo to Little Johnny and fingerpaints.

Now I must admit that Billy did produce some of the songs on Breaking Benjamins last CD and I really like it and you could definitely tell the influence.

[Reality]

Sean,

Do you own any of the albums that the Pumpkins have produced? Just wondering. Do you own Zwan albums?

[booman22]

I do realize that free speech is a great thing and I respect Mr. Daly for his opinion, no matter how much I disagree. And to Sparky, there must be quite a few rocks to live under for you to have never heard a Smashing Pumpkins song. Try and get out more. I'm guessing you havn't heard songs from Pearl Jam, The Beatles, or Nirvana either.

[Bassnote]

Sean, I applaud you for telling it like it is. Now, if you were a Chicago music critic (Jim DeRogottes), you would have heaped nothing but praise on the Pumpkins. You're honesty is refreshing, and what most of us love about you.

[Sean Daly Fan Club]

There are no right or wrongs when it comes to critiquing. Everyone has his or her own opinions. That's the beauty of it. It's a free country. It's free speech. If you don't agree with Sean, so-effin-what?

[sparky]

Billy Corgan is the voice of my generation. Really? That's strange because I never asked him to say anything on my behalf and I can't name a single SP song other than the one that starts of like ... and the other one that the chorus goes like ... nope not an f'ing one.

Way to rile up the natives SD. Better watch out with that hurricane blowing through Florida like a burrito through a duck the natives will have lots of lose objects to hurl.

[booman22]

Wow, a legitimate journalist getting it wrong yet again. By "forgettable" songs do you mean "non hits". Those "non hits" bridged the show very well (I was at the Louisville Palace Theater) and were songs I have never seen Billy and Co. perform. The problem with fly by night fans like yourself, you are quick to point how time has given up on certain artists. It is simply not so with the Pumpkins and here is why: 1)The new material is "Pumpkins Music" all the way down to the hooks and pounding drums. (example: Doomsday Clock) and 2)They have the power now, with no nagging distractions, a solid lineup of players, and a catalog of new a old material, to play the best shows of their lives. Billy may not sing for a generation anymore, but he and his band are still top level musicians that should garner a little more respect from a so-called pop music critic. P.S. Just because your personal music catalog is widely varied by genre and artist, doesn't mean it's worth a damn. Lose the Journey!!

[Sean Daly, Pop Music Critic]

"Whether they skriek for Neil Diamond or scream for Nine Inch Nails, TIMES readers are intensely passionate music fans. They're crazy. I dig that about them."

[Marissa]

Hi. I just stopped by because I heard there was coffee and strudel.

[Satur999]

Dearest Mr Daly,
Your mom is getting pizzed...she said it is time to move out...she is tired of picking up your sheeaat after your hissyfits

PS
Pumpkins kickazz whereas you suckazz...whoohoo

The End