Music Banter - The Smashing Pumpkins @ Manchester Evenings News Arena

Sorry if I've posted this in the wrong place, still getting used to things here I guess.

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I'd been looking forward to this for a while now, but I'm disappointed. I really want to say I enjoyed tonight. I still love the music of The Smashing Pumpkins and I think Billy Corgan is a genius, but tonight I feel so uninterested. Usually after a gig I'm in a sort of euphoria, and I'll want to listen to said band's music for days.

A few things weren't right. It's not really the fact that they didn't play the encore of two songs that they had planned which bothered me, it's the fact that Billy Corgan didn't really seem to be too interested and showed little energy and passion. That's not completely his fault though.

The first thing that hit me when me and my friend walked into the arena was how empty it looked. I've been there a handful of times now and each time I've seen it, it's been packed and busy - tonight it was barren and desolate. The higher tiers were closed off, as were some of the lower tier sections. The entire back of the arena had about 10 - 20 people there, at the most. From our perspective, things looked pretty bad sales-wise.

But at that minute I didn't mind. I sat down with my recently bought t-shirt and watched Oceansize, who sounded like my sort of thing. The arena slowly filled up a bit more, yet it still seemed empty. I didn't think much of it until The Smashing Pumpkins actually hit the stage - and instantly the problems all made themselves completely clear.

The atmosphere was the worst I've been experience to. There was very little energy from the crowd until Tonight, Tonight began - of course, everyone was excited at the commercial radio material. It was pretty obvious from the surrounding crowd that we weren't sitting amongst many proper Smashing Pumpkins fans - instead we sat with a crowd of nostalgic people who liked what they saw on MTV in the 90s.

The lack of energy from the crowd reflected on stage. Jimmy Chamberlin is still, without a doubt, one of my favourite drummers and his playing was incredibly impressive, but even he seemed fairly uninterested. The bassist and keyboardist - whoever the heck they are these days - seemed cut off from the male members altogether. The only thing capable of cutting the tension in the arena was a chainsaw.

When they finally did pull out the hits and played them all in one collective lump, the crowd was slightly more animated, but the lack of enthusiasm from the band was clear. At points, these songs just didn't sound convincing enough. If I had to list bands that sound emotionally effective, The Smashing Pumpkins would be floating around near the top somewhere, but tonight many songs which are beautiful on the albums were sped-up, forced, mechanical and lacking something.

Apparently we got a good deal compared to Nottingham last night though - Billy Corgan walked off mid-set, apparently.

The Smashing Pumpkins just aren't a big arena band anymore (at least in the UK). If they had played in smaller venues, like the Apollo, they could easily have sold out two or even three nights consecutively, which could've been ideal. The atmosphere would've been better without a doubt, and the right sort of people would've bought tickets. Actual fans, maybe.

However, it wasn't all bad. Some of the songs did sound great - songs like Today and Bullet With Butterfly Wings are timeless, and the crowd felt that. It's just a shame to see such a brilliant band look so uninspired and passionless.

An encore was planned, but apparently we just weren't worth it. I'm pissed off at the fact that I missed out on seeing Cherub Rock live, especially since my friend who I'd only introduced to the band a while ago really likes it too and I'd guess it's his favourite Smashing Pumpkins song.

The only way I'd go see them again was in a smaller venue. Even then, it'd be a push, unfortunately. I'll continue to follow the band because their music still sounds good to me, but I'm not sure if I'd rush to see them live now after such a disappointment. It had all the potential - just not the execution.