The Smashing Pumpkins, Sat, 16 Feb 2008 19:00:00, O2 Arena, London, The Event on Last.fm.
From a gig review post:
Support:
? Don’t know
So they split up over 7 years ago and here they are again, minus a few people i.e. D’arcy and James. So what’s the story? It seems Billy couldn’t hack it solo style so persuaded Jimmy C to get back together and give it another go. They consistently said this is a reformation not a nostalgic reunion so are they really back?
Now I did see them on their last ever European date before the split (The Olympia, November 2000) and that was a revelation. A small intimate club show all seater amazing. Sarah, who would be accompanying me (:-P) had been to THAT show. The 1996 gig in The Point which they had to cut short due to a death at the front. Two different prior experiences and how would this compare?
We knew they were on at half eight so we literally got on to the floor, found a space and they started. To be honest I was pretty stoked about this show, the reviews I had seen since the reform had been pretty good. It also promised to be two and a half hours long, even Maiden don’t do that. The O2 holds 10,000 or so people and this time weren’t in the gods. So this was an arena show with all that entails including the pretty apathetic audience. And to be honest I can’t blame them. It would take an uber rabid pumpkins fan to say this was anything but a mediocre show. Yes they played for two and a half hours, yes they played a career spanning set, yes they played some of my favourite songs but as someone else has said "Billy Corgan is an artist not a musician". He had rearranged most of the songs and sometimes this worked i.e. when done acoustically but mostly it was a big load of tripe. He just sped most things up as if he didn’t want to be playing it and then sometimes would just disappear up his own arse with over long jamming sessions. The new members may well have not been on the stage for all you heard them.
Look I love the new album, I love the old stuff and I know the pumpkins can put on a show, what they did tonight was an embarrassment to their legacy. Sorry Billy but I’ll be thinking thrice before going to see you again.
Photos here.
Later days,
Halo.