On Friday, October 19th, the Smashing Pumpkins played at the Allstate Arena in support of their Oceania tour. To pass judgment on a band such as the Pumpkins is easy. How much do they have going for them anymore? The most commercially successful double album in the history of music (Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness), one of the most notable grunge acts of the 90’s, a widely respected band amongst the music industry. Point in point, the Pumpkins have been cast upon with the spell of excellence, and that holds true of their superb performance on Friday night.
The band’s Oceania tour has been going on since the beginning of October, and will continue until November 4th. A very short tour indeed, but seeing the Pumpkins live, and so close was an incredible and indescribable pleasure and honor. The arena was beaming with positivity from the fans, and the atmosphere was alive with vivacity.
When the time came when the band was ready to play, they subtly walked onstage with their instruments, and without introducing themselves, bassist Nicole Fiorentino began playing the starting riff to “Quasar,” the opening track from Oceania. Once every instrument came in, down came the curtain disguising the large movie balloon which played animations while every light in the Allstate Arena turned on revealing the band, blinding the audience with bright and elegant colors. All in all, the entrance made for an amazing beginning to a two hour long set, something that is unheard of in the current music world.
After “Quasar,” the band played all of Oceania, which by itself took up at least an hour of the show. Each song off the album had its own unique animation, and lighting, setting the mood for Oceania, which is mostly mellow and tranquil. The first half of the show proved off the bat that the Pumpkins still have lots of gas in the tank and will not leave us for a while.
After playing Oceania, Billy Corgan spoke to the audience discussing a wide range of topics from Twitter to their history as a group. Corgan then pointed out many of the problems with the world today that kids face, and that their music should be more tailored to such issues, such as kids not being able to log onto their internet, or their favorite celebrities not tweeting them back.
After his speech, the Pumpkins began playing some of their old time classics including “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” “Tonight, Tonight,” “Zero,” and many more. Despite their age, the rockers still know how to woo a crowd without an overabundant amount of energy. Corgan’s presence is so potent that whatever side of the stage he walked to, the crowd immediately exploded with joy.
After about an hour and forty five minutes of playing, the Pumpkins finished their set with a scintillating performance of “Cherub Rock,” one of their most notable and successful singles. But the crowd was not satisfied, and begged for an encore. Being the classy band that they are, the Pumpkins came out to not only play one song, but two: “Ava Adore,” and “Mayonnaise,” respectively, and theoretically tearing the roof off the Allstate Arena.
It was a spectacle of a performance, and the band accomplishes something most bands their age cannot do anymore, and that is to entertain a crowd with outstanding musicianship and minimal energy consumption. The Pumpkins still act as a V8 engine in the music world of V6’s, and the show proved this ten-fold. 9 out of 10.