Live Review: Smashing Pumpkins @ Chicago Theatre, 11/19/08

There was something off about the Smashing Pumpkins’ second of two sold-out hometown shows on its so-called Twentieth Anniversary Tour-- in particular, the math. The lineup performing that night only had half the original members, and if you subtract the band's 2000-2006 hiatus, its time “together” totals a mere 14 years. Then there's the bizarre fact that it took Billy Corgan and company two years to return home for a show.

All that aside, the night wasn't the retrospective one might expect from an anniversary tour: What amounted to a Pumpkins cover band breezed through a mere handful of hits, turning in mounds of new material and teetering between self indulgence and boredom across nearly three exhausting hours. If nostalgia wasn’t the point of this mislabeled outing, why would Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin even bother resurrecting the band-- or, perhaps more accurately, "the brand"-- with a few faceless backers? Perhaps it was a chance for the bald-headed frontman to bounce back from a bruised ego after half-hearted acceptance of Zwan and his failed solo attempt, a stranger sentiment still given the elaborate Pumpkins “farewell” shows he staged at the tip of this decade.

At the Chicago Theater, the band got off to a limping start with uninspired renditions of the familiar “Ave Adore” and “1979,” with Corgan pulling out all his overblown rock star posturing (including sprinkling glitter plucked from a plastic pumpkin) to overcompensate for the absence of original players James Iha, D’arcy Wretzky and even Wretzky's well-recieved replacement, Melissa Auf der Maur. The new group was augmented by a horn section and violin player on the easy-going nature of the new “99 Floors” and “Owata,” which were appropriate for the intimate setting, but sleepy nonetheless.
 
The night took an upswing for “Cherub Rock” and “Zero,” both examples of Corgan’s ability to write iconic, enduring alt-rock anthems, but the mood was quickly crushed for rambling newbie “A Song For A Son” and a lifeless stab at Fleetwood Mac’s “Landslide.” “Disarm” benefited from violin accompaniment but lacked the epic live appeal of its delivery in the band's original era. Though even a less-than-stellar version of the smash hit suggested the set might get a jump-start, Corgan cheekily announced, “We won’t be playing a lot of your favorites,” and stuck to his guns, ditching “Today” and “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” among others. “Arrogant” would be an understatement in describing the instrumental wanking that flowed between “Galapogos” and “Gossamer,” and a cover of Simon & Garfunkel’s “The Sound Of Silence” was virtually unrecognizable under ridiculous distortion levels and Corgan’s annoying, interpretative wails.

He fared much better during an encore of “That’s The Way (My Love Is),” tastefully arranged to include earthy instrumentation and hearty harmonies from his backers. And he certainly scored points with die-hards by diving into the remarkably rare “I Am One Part II” to round out the seemingly unending evening. But the few highlights paled in comparison to the night's meaningless meandering, which saw founding members Corgan and Chamberlin edging closer to the State Fair circuit than the rock star status they previously held.

Related links:
Paste:Local Chicago: News: Smashing Pumpkins announce 20th Anniversary Tour, Live DVD
Feature: Smashing Pumpkins tour, celebrate 20 years
News: Smashing Pumpkins to release single via Guitar Hero