The Perfect Time of Year for "Smashing Pumpkins"

The Smashing Pumpkins returned to Detroit and no one was there to see it. The saddest part is that this was an amazing show from start to finish and those that did not attend (which as I told you was everyone) really missed out. The lighting and stage setup were epic and the video that was projected onto a large, round, moon shaped, white ball was perfectly timed with all 2+ hours of music that the band played.

Personally, I have been listening to and enjoying the new album, "Oceania", so I was pleased when I heard that they would be playing it from start to finish before they busted out their hits. Billy’s voice is as good as it was when they first hit the scene in the 90’s. In fact, after years of practice, I would dare to say that it is even better. When he screams into that microphone, I am instantly transported to the first time I heard "Siamese Dream" and I fall into lust with him all over again. He is by far one of the best guitar players that I have ever seen live and I was very impressed with the drummer’s skills, especially when playing some of the more technical songs. The female bass player is essentially a hotter, younger, better dressed version of Darcy and she can sing like an angel. She had me staring at her the whole night; I would have liked to take that leopard skirt she was wearing off of her.

The crowd seemed quite angry half way through "Oceania". Apparently they did not know that Billy was going to make you hear what he has been doing before you could hear what he has already done. Once he was finally done with "Oceania", he blew my mind by breaking into "Space Oddity" by David Bowie. I was raised on Bowie and hearing Billy sing it was the climax of the night for me. They finally ended the night with the songs that everyone else was waiting for and the crowd perked up. There’s nothing like a good old fashioned sing along to "Tonight, Tonight" to turn a crowd back on your side.

Billy has grown up a lot. He is not the guy that yelled at the crowd at the Fillmore a few years ago and acted like he was too good for us. Despite the small crowd, he seemed to appreciate the people that were there and gave them a show. He talked about the Tigers, the Lions and his favorite team, the Bears. He related to the crowd and thanked them at the end of the night for coming out and watching the band play. If and when they come back, I will be there. He has officially redeemed himself in my eyes.

Here’s a few pictures taken with a camera phone by me and my friend Aaron Peek. We couldn’t get a real camera into the show, but we wanted to share what we could. 

Photo Credit: Aaron Peek

 

 
Make sure to check out CameraJesus.com for some real photos of the show and another in depth review with pictures on Poptropolis.

~S