Rotting Pumpkins

When I learned that the Smashing Pumpkins were going to be playing a pair of anniversary dates at the United Palace Theater, I was, needless to say, pumped. Along with Oasis, these guys were my rock idols in 1996 (I think this point has been driven home just a few times), and I was absolutely blown away when I saw them at The Brendan Byrne Arena (now IZOD Center) during their Mellon Collie tour. This was, of course, before D'Arcy and James Iha left the band, and way before they began to dabble in electronica. This was pure, unadulterated Pumpkins -- a rock and roll machine that could not be stopped. Until, of course it was. The Pumpkins started to rot, and were eventually replaced by more marketable blends of "nu-metal" that made Corgan's distinctive whine seem stale. The head-scratching appeal of Korn and Limp Bizkit reigned in these years, forcing bands like the Pumpkins to hang it up.

But like any band desperate take advantage of fomer die-hards' cash, the "Smashing Pumpkins" reunited last year, albeit with only half the classic lineup. Sure, there were new members that resembled Iha and D'Arcy, but this unfortunately didn't quite cut the mustard. Holes were left unfilled, and this took a serious toll on the band's sound. Zeitgeist was a failure that resembled the very "cock rock" that dethroned the band's original creative sound. With all this being said, I decided it was better to keep my fond memories of the Pumpkins in my heart, and not try to replace them with newer, inferior ones. I made the painstaking decision to not even attempt to get tickets to these "intimate" anniversary concerts. If early reviews are any indicators of the shows I missed, I am beginning to think I made the absolute right decision.

Apparently, Corgan is still the same ego-maniac that destroyed the Pumpkins the first time around. Bypassing the very classics these shows were organized to celebrate, Corgan opted to scatter the setlist with cacaphonous, experimental noise that rendered many in attendance speechless. Sure the crowd got its fill of the occasional hit, but these moments were apparently overshadowed by terrible covers, out-of-tune jams, and a host of mediocre new tunes. But here's the kicker -- on Friday night, Corgan chilidishly invited a heckling fan onstage. When the fan told him to his face that the previous night's show "sucked," Corgan lampooned the fan with some pretty disparaging and homophobic remarks that would have made Josh Homme proud. Take a look at the video:

This sad, embarrassing display just goes to show that you can never go home again.

Two-night, Two-night

As reported awhile ago, the Smashing Pumpkins are planning on playing a bunch of "20th anniversary shows" at scattered venues across the country this fall. Well, today those dates have finally been revealed. Locally, the Pumpkins (or Zwan 2.0 if you prefer) will be playing a two night jaunt at the United Palace Theater in Harlem in early November. Supposedly, those cities that have multiple nights will be entertained with completely different sets. Here is the full itinerary:

10-26 Mountain View, CA - Shoreline Amphitheatre (Bridge School Benefit)
11-01 Cleveland, OH - Palace Theatre
11-03 Toronto, Ontario - Massey Hall ("Black Sunshine")
11-04 Toronto, Ontario - Massey Hall ("White Crosses")
11-06 New York, NY - United Palace Theatre ("Black Sunshine")
11-07 New York, NY - United Palace Theatre ("White Crosses")
11-08 Atlantic City, NJ - Borgata
11-11 Washington, DC - DAR Constitution Hall ("Black Sunshine")
11-12 Washington, DC - DAR Constitution Hall ("White Crosses")
11-14 Boston, MA - Wang Center ("Black Sunshine")
11-15 Boston, MA - Wang Center ("White Crosses")
11-16 Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Arena
11-18 Chicago, IL - Chicago Theatre ("Black Sunshine")
11-19 Chicago, IL - Chicago Theatre ("White Crosses")
11-21 Chicago, IL - Auditorium Theatre ("Black Sunshine")
11-22 Chicago, IL - Auditorium Theatre ("White Crosses")
11-26 St. Louis, MO - Fox Theatre
11-30 San Diego, CA - RIMAC Arena
12-02 Los Angeles, CA - Gibson Amphitheatre ("Black Sunshine")
12-03 Los Angeles, CA - Gibson Amphitheatre ("White Crosses")

In other news, the band will be premiering a new song called "G.L.O.W" in the new Guitar Hero game that comes out later this fall.

Rock On

The last time we heard from Bill Corgan, he was making a big stink about Radiohead's "publicity stunts". Or something like that. Well, baldy is back -- confirming this week that the Smashing Pumpkins will be heading out on the road next month to play a string of intimate shows at smaller venues. These will be the "reunited" band's first shows of 2008. After this jaunt, the band will be playing what Corgan is billing as an "anniversary tour" this November (to coincide the Pumpkins' 20th) at higher capacity spaces. No word yet if this will be an actual reunion tour with original members D'Arcy and James Iha (um, please), but this is what Corgan had to say:

"The August tour is going to be a blast... Expect a very loud and raucous show from us...and we are very, very happy to know we will finally be playing our own shows come November in New York, L.A., and Chicago... The 20th Anniversary shows will be magical... We are already working on lots of surprises"

Surprises, hmm. We'll see what Billy's got up his sleeve.

The World Is A Vampire...

Growing up, the Smashing Pumpkins were arguably my favorite band. They were the first headlining concert I had the privilege to attend (during their Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness tour) and there was a time in 1996 when I was borderline obsessed. When drummer Jimmy Chamberlain got kicked out of the band by band leader Billy Corgan (after being implicated in the notorious Johnathan Melvoin heroin overdose incident), the Pumpkins were unfortunately never quite the same. His departure left a huge gap in the lineup, causing the band's sound to wane considerably (although in hindsight, Adore wasn't that terrible). Clearly frustrated by the group's new direction, Corgan gained the reputation of being a megalomaniac. It looked like original Pumpkins James Iha and D'arcy had enough of his behavior, as they too departed the band at one point or another. When Corgan announced in 2000 that the band was officially breaking up for good, this only seemed appropriate. The Smashing Pumpkins had an excellent run and it was just their time. They saved some face by calling it quits somewhat on top, and in doing gained respect in the music world.

It's funny how time can change things so dramatically. After the failure that was his flash-in-the-pan (semi) supergroup, Zwan, Corgan helmed a dismal solo album which only dug the fallen star into a deeper hole. It seemed like the only vestige of salvation was to get the band back together. The day TheFutureEmbrace was released in 2005, Corgan took out a full-page ad in his hometown paper enthusiastically announcing the triumphant return of the Smashing Pumpkins. It looked like he finally managed to reconcile with his former band members and all would be good in Pumpkinland. Or not. Corgan was very hush hush when announcing who exactly would be in the band -- leading to speculation that this would not be a full-on reunion. As it turned out, the only original band member other than Corgan was Chamberlain -- the very man who essentially helped to destroy the band a decade earlier. To me (an presumably many others) this was not the Smashing Pumpkins, but rather "Zwan 2.0". And the new record shows this. Aside form Zeitgeit's disappointing sales figures and stale sound, the album has since failed to generate a solid radio hit and is slipping quickly into obscurity.

But this is what gets me. Rather than accepting his own failure to make good music, Corgan claims that publicity is essentially what makes careers these days. In a recent Q&A with Rolling Stone, Billy Corgan candidly dismisses the success of Radiohead and Amy Winehouse by insisting that the music they've respectively created has nothing to do with the praise they've garnered. He claims to have no beef against said musicians, but does think they are sending a bad message to young bands about how to break it in the industry. Although I am a firm believer that really good music (regardless of how its packaged) will deservingly rise to the surface, I think Corgan is in absolutely no place to criticize how others obtain success -- especially because his embarrassingly new incarnation of the "Smashing Pumpkins" is nothing but a publicity stunt. And let's not forget his futile attempt to pump more sales out of Zeitgeist by hastily releasing expanded editions of the album exclusively through Best Buy and Target -- please. No wonder why James Iha isn't returning any of his calls.