Smashing Pumpkins – Xcel Energy Center – St. Paul MN – August 19th 2018

It was an interesting concert for me personally.  My sister and her best friend were with me at the show and the two of them had seen Smashing Pumpkins in their heyday when they were in junior high, so I feel like I had a very different viewpoint seeing their outlook on it.  While I was simply there for the music, they were there for the memories and many of the songs touched them emotionally.  Depending on who you are, this show was either jam packed with the nostalgia of youth, so an extremely bloated set.  If you are not a Pumpkins fan, this show was not the one to see.  It was a thirty one song set, which is incredibly long for those who don’t go to enough shows to know the difference.  I only know the hits and a few of the deeper tracks by them, so it was not nearly as enjoyable on my end as others.

The show opened with “Disarm”, much to the delight of the entire audience.  If you want nostolgia, that song reeks of it.  The show was a mix of hits, newer work, and covers.  Billy Corgan’s vocals were impressive, especially when he was able to hold a sixteen count during the cover of “Space Oddity”.  I felt that the show really kicked in once they performed “Zero”.  The audience was incredibly into that song and it felt like 1995 all over again for those few minutes.  I am a huge lover of alternative music throughout the decades, but the thing that always gets me at alternative shows like this is that the audience doesn’t move.  The most movement I saw was the headbanging during the heavier moments of “Zero”.  Aside from that, the audience simply stands and watches the show and it doesn’t feel that interactive.  But that’s just me.

One of the biggest complaints I heard about this show is how it was so much “The Billy Corgran Experience”.  While I would agree with that (the man played nothing but images of himself on the big screen over the opening number), I’m certainly not going to complain about someone who comes to town and gives his fans what they want – a three hour set filled with not only some of the greatest hits of the band’s career, but deep tracks as well.  It’s what everyone wants out of their favorite artist, so despite not being a huge fan myself, I can’t say it was a bad show.  It was a good show, especially if you are a Smashing Pumpkins fan.

Review Tracy Hansen

Photos Kyle Hansen