The week of Halloween, I won tickets to go see the Smashing Pumpkins in concert at Constitution Hall in DC. The concert was on Veterans Day, 11/11/08 (they played two shows down there, so if you by some chance saw the other one, which may have been different, maybe what I’m going to say doesn’t apply). Let me just say right off that I’m not a huge fan of the Pumpkins. I have respect for them as musicians, which is why I am willing to see them. But I hate Billy Corgan’s voice, which is why I will never actually pay to go see them. My free seats were pretty good. I was on the floor, but not so far back that I couldn’t see the stage, and not so close that I was wishing I wasn’t.
So we all know that the man is weird. He started the show wearing something that made me think he was trying to be an Egyptian. This long white skirt thing (which he wore for the rest of the concert as far as I could tell) and a gold sun headdress. The thing had to be the size of my 30-lb Corgi, and heavy. He wore it for a few songs, and then took it off. I imagine it’s hard to headbang with something like that on. But when he did take it off, he reminded me a bit of Moby. A little bigger version of Moby. Skinny and bald. I really did expect him to be bigger than that.
The sound was done very well. You could hear each instrument. And it wasn’t all guitars and drums either. There was a trumpet, a trombone, and a flute player. And the flute player was hot. Also, he held the flute like people were going to make fun of him for playing it (I think there may be some issues he has to work out there, but hey, he can do it, he made it this far). The drummer was also hot, but he was usually behind the huge drum kit (which, incidentally, was very well micced. I would love to know what kind and how they used their microphones on that puppy). He came out a few times from behind it – to play the tambourine – and also, apparently, to show off his muscley arms.
The lights – not so much. They seemed to have been prepared for a much larger, maybe outdoors-type, facility. The lights were loud, bright, and colorful. But also, there was this repetitive, colorful, strobe-light-the-audience effect that I did not appreciate. A lot of the time I had to keep my eyes shut to prevent a migraine; I can only imagine if I were prone to seizures what could have happened. It was nice though, that there was no smoke machine. As a person with asthma, those things can cause me to have to actually leave.
The musicians were all very good (BC’s voice notwithstanding). I have learned to live with the voice. And he didn’t sing the whole time. Sometimes he actually played for 10 straight minutes - and you thought this is nice - and then he would sing again. What was strange to me though, because I have never, ever, experienced this before in any concert that I’ve been to, is that he played for the first hour and a half. I mean played. No talking, no break, just played. It was like a feat of stamina. I don’t even know if he took a break for water (which he definitely did afterwards). It was weird. There were the people in the audience, those people who annoy the crap out of me, that act like they are the only ones at the show, who know every line to every song, and dance and jump, and pump their fist like they are the only ones there (that’s what mosh pits are for people!). And after 1.5 hours of music, BC was still hopping around stage, and they were tired. That was cool to see, but other than that it was just plain weird.
After the 1.5 hours there was a few minute intermission (water break) and something I can only assume was vocal/mouth exercises. BC was 1)beatboxing and 2)making the popping sound that you practice as a teenager to impress your friends, only he did it up on stage in front of everyone. And then he passed it off as a song he made up, right there on the spot, just for us. Which just goes to show you that he is just as weird in a normal way as the rest of us, but not afraid to share the normal weirdness either. Which I find reassuring.
But what followed that was this ten minute screechy-screechy thing (evolution? Is that one of their songs?) that was so awful I about left in the middle of it. When they were done angsting, things softened out and I was glad that I had stayed. I do appreciate the range of their musical ability. I mean, the fact that they can get up there and do what they do, and have that many people pay them for it has to say something.
And now, I have to confess that I only lasted for 2 hours. I have no idea how long the concert went. But they’re job is to be up there on that stage, and I got there for free, so I feel like I got what I paid for. I am glad that I went to see them. And although I may never love the Pumpkins, I can appreciate them and I definitely respect them as musicians.
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