I'd probably give the show a C, and I'm too lazy to type anything in-depth today, so here goes:
Pros:
"Starla": For me, that song honestly made the ticket price worthwhile. Absolutely my favorite Pumpkins song ever.
Jimmy Chamberlain: Even on the songs I hated, he sounded fantastic. That guy is a ROCK drummer, and what's worse is that he makes it look easy.
"United States": Before I get criticized for only wanting the hits or the oldies, I'd have to say that this song was pretty massive. It went on a little too long for my taste, but that song was definitely an awesome set opener.
"Hummer": Maybe it's just because that's the era of the band that I love, but that song pretty much killed it as well. Another of my favorites.
"The Aeroplane Flies High": Like Epstein said, that song was just HEAVY.
"Bullet with Butterfly Wings": I actually hate this song on record, but the live version was pretty serious stuff.
The bass player: Hot.
Cons:
"Rocket": My only other hope was for a full-on rock version of this song, so I was pretty bummed that we got an acoustic, mellow version. Not bad, but considering that's one of my favorite riffs of all time, I was disappointed.
Dropping Balloons during the first song: Really? The first song? Seems to be shooting your load too quickly, in my mind.
The band: I know I gave the whole "reunion" thing a lot of shit, but I think it further drove home the point last night that they're just hired hands. The new members are not dynamic on stage at all, and considering one of them is a hottie, I can't believe how little I looked her way. I'm not even sure the spotlights ever hit them. Granted, the dude from the Lassie Foundation got a solo or two, but even Corgan himself couldn't help but mention "the old school Pumpkins."
The rest of the new stuff: Not to be blasphemous or anything, but I was sorely let down with the new songs. I decided to not listen to the new album before the show, hoping that the live versions would rock so hard that I'd be wowed. I wasn't. Everything had the Smashing Pumpkins sound, but nothing the spark that made the first few albums so great. In the end, it just sounded watered down. I think this SAT analogy sums up my thoughts: Pearl Jam is to Nickleback as Gish-era Pumpkins is to Zeitgeist-era Pumpkins. Sad but true.
"Gossamer": That was honest the most excruciating 20 minutes of my life. The song itself wasn't bad, but the self-indulgent noodling was endless and ultimately went nowhere. The only positive of that song for me was Chamberlain's solo...and I HATE drum solos. I noticed the crowd leaving in droves, and I was tempting to join them, but I stood my ground hoping for "Muzzle" or "Bodies" as an encore. Instead, we got...
"Fuck You": Nothing really bad about this song...I was just hoping for something else. And after waiting through "Gossamer" for something more, it was a let down for me.
Set Momentum: Seeing them again made me remember my biggest complaint about the band in the past: their live shows start out stellar and just wind up teetering out in the end. Even "Cherub Rock" wound up feeling rushed and half-assed to me. As much as I hate bands selling their fans short with hour-long sets, I think the 3-hour mark might be a bit too much for the band. I'm sure I'm in the minority, though.
I will give the band credit, though; they made this show a spectacle. First of all, I found the whole political banners, streamers, protests and fucking motorcade were just such absurdly egotistical and over the top productions, it honestly annoyed me a bit. Does this guy need a bigger ego? Still, when looking at the price of a ticket in light of everything they gave (free shirts, pins, posters, flags, elaborate set up, etc.), I'd have to give them props. They definitely made this an event, which is more than a lot of bands of their stature would do.
Despite my grievances above, it still was a fun night out, and well worth the money. I got to see one of my favorite songs played live, one that I never saw back in their heyday. I was able to relive some of the excitement of what made the band so important to me back in the day. And I got to meet a ton of the freshman class of boardies. Everyone was super generous and friendly, especially The Director (dude's like Jordie LaForge with the sunglasses!), bnyced and Miss P. I met Julian in passing, who seemed nice as well, and somehow even though we were 5 feet apart for about 30 minutes, I didn't wind up meeting Darth Ed, although the Star Wars shirt should've given it away. And of course, it's always a pleasure to see sweetcell and Joe, who didn't sexually harass me at all.
I'm not sure if he's reading the board today or tomorrow, but I couldn't have been happier in selling my spare ticket to tinygee. That guy is a fucking champ. Not only did he stay in line so we got in way early (I showed up a bit later due to work and pooch duties), but he pretty much poured beer in me as a thank you, and won't accept anything back. Really a super nice guy. Sorry I lost you toward the middle of the show, but thanks again for the drinks and conversation.
Ok, I guess I did have time for an in-depth post...
