I've had a couple of days to digest this experience and had to share. It was amazing. The VIP experience was incredible. Not so much for the songs but just being able to be so close (I was in the 3rd row). I submitted 4 questions and 2 of them were picked! One for Jimmy and one for Billy, although Billy asked James how his drumming has improved since the band started too, which was funny. The other questions were great-everyone had great things to say. James was mesmerized by an ad for upcoming concerts on the tv's in the room, which was funny. And his voice on the Tom Petty cover was great-he sang in a much higher register than he normally does on recordings.

The show itself was incredible. I was in the second row and I don't know if it was how close I was or what, but this is the best they've sounded to me in awhile (this was my 13th time seeing them; 94, 96, and 98, and then the rest from 2007 to now). I noticed it right away on the chorus to Bullet With Butterfly Wings-guitars sounded more roaring than they have in quite awhile. The whole first set was captivating. I had never seen Here is No Why live, and I love that song, so was great to finally see it. The Porcelina solo was epic and we were only 4 song in! Bodies and Ode to No One were also particular ferocious. Can't say enough about the first set.

The momentum slowed down as they started the second set with Sojourner. But then it picked up a lot with the Aghori songs. It was an interesting mix of newer and older songs and I enjoyed it all. I do think I prefer the way they played Ava Adore on previous tours, but it was still good. Mayonaise and and Cherub Rock were as epic as they are always were. But man, did As Rome Burns sound pummeling. Black Stars was great (maybe even better live than the recording). I could go on and on. But Superchrist was an absolutely astonishing way to end the show. Simply amazing and a showcase for Jimmy. When they finished, Billy threw out some picks and I caught one! That was definitely a highlight cause I had not gotten one up to that point of the show (got one that James dropped in 98).

My only regret about the whole weekend is that I did not go to Trolley Records before the show to try and see Billy. I had seen on social media that he'd been going to local record stores before shows, but I totally forgot about it on Saturday, and I even had the time to do it. Oh well. Maybe it is better that I didn't meet my hero, but if the chance ever comes up again I'll definitely try. Overall I cannot recommend this tour enough!

I’ve been listening to this band for over 20 years. I’ve seen a great many shows, and I have to say, I did not expect them to be this damn good. This majestic. They played forever.

There’s not much I can compare to it. The world
Is going to miss this band when they go.

Should I smash it?

I’m a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan, and I even enjoy Billy Corgan’s interviews. There’s something entertaining about watching someone apparently free of any doubt about his own historical importance. In short clips, the hubris is part of the appeal. Working with him, I suspect, would be a different experience.

But loving the music doesn’t mean accepting Billy’s assessment of its place in history. He wrote some great songs, and made some strong records. I just think there’s a distinction between making great music and fundamentally changing music.

To my ears, the Pumpkins’ greatest achievement was combining existing ideas exceptionally well: heavy metal riffs, psychedelic textures, shoegaze guitars, pop melodies and the ambition of progressive rock. The combination was distinctive, but those ingredients already had a history. Even Corgan has acknowledged My Bloody Valentine’s influence on his sound.

They certainly influenced later bands, including My Chemical Romance. But I’m less convinced by the idea that they represented some unprecedented musical revolution.

Billy’s songwriting doesn’t need that argument to stand up. He made records I still love decades later. That’s an enormous achievement without having to cast himself as the man who reinvented rock.

This is the fourth track from the Smashing Pumpkins’ debut album, *Gish*. How do you feel about this song? What are some of your favorite lyrics? How would you rank it among the rest of the band’s discography? How would you rate it out of 10 (decimals allowed)?

At the end of this discussion series, I will be aggregating the rating results from each discussion and compiling a full discography ranking. I will also update the [spreadsheet](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BjhHzZuZ6BMVOvdMp4i9X2UDVRjtotWGxTZTk1xJ9KU/edit?usp=drivesdk) at the end of every day and post previous results for each album in future posts.

SUGGESTED SCALE:
1-4: Not good. Regularly skip.
5: It’s okay, but I might have to be in the right mood to listen to it.
6: Slightly better than average. I won’t skip it, but I wouldn’t choose to put it on.
7: This is a good song. I enjoy it quite a bit.
8-9: Really enjoyable songs. I rank them pretty high overall.
10: Masterpiece, magnum opus, or similar terminology.

Feel free to suggest any improvements, as this is my first time undertaking a project like this!

Gish

1. I Am One (7.43)
2. Siva (7.65)
3. Rhinoceros (8.58)

Does anybody have a good quality recording of the show last night? I tried to capture it but unfortunately was surrounded by people that talked loudly through the entire thing so listening back there’s a lot that won’t be usable to share with everybody.
Thank you!

So, on March 4, 2000 I stood in line for many hours in Minneapolis to meet the band and get my poster signed. When the time came we were told that James wasn't going to make it, but I believe we were told or the rumor was that his brother was going to sign in his place. So, for years I've had my framed posted signed by "Iha" and the rest of the band.

However, I'm skeptical that the man who signed was Tom Iha. I have some pretty crappy photos from that day, but fortunately there was also a video posted of the signing on YouTube. You can see him about 11 seconds in, seated between Jimmy and MADM.

My question is, who signed my poster as "Iha" that day?

Video of link below:

https://youtu.be/nm7Z_U6pXTI?is=O1fZw2PFkATPLKG8

I saw them in Indy last Tuesday, and the line for merch wrapped nearly the entire circle around Gainbridge. My dad and I made the mistake of leaving instead of waiting probably hours to get a t-shirt, assuming that they would sell surplus online, but I can’t find any recent stuff (that isn’t bootlegged) anywhere. Does anyone know if they’ll put the stuff up at some point? They have some stuff from previous tours so I’m hopeful that it’ll appear sometime but I’m also worried that it just won’t.

Edit: found the poster I wanted, but what about t-shirts?

Just got notice of duty owed. Usa to Canada. 161 dollars. I was not expecting it to be this high.

My girlfriend (now wife) bought this autographed pictured around 25ish years ago without much info about it. Is there any chance it’s authentic and Billy was just being silly signing it Bile!??? Does anyone else have a similar photo to possibly help figure this out for me?

Neat little details on this one.

Is anyone missing a Volume II, because they gave me an extra one?

Mellon Collie was my teenage angst bible that's stayed with me till today (not the angst lol - but the songs). Was a huge fan of Siamese Dream and the underrated Adore as well, but Mellon Collie was just special to me for its lyrical spread and sprawling soundscapes. Love it. I even got The Aeroplane Flies High boxset when it just came out! Favorite B-sides disc was the Bullet with Butterfly Wings one, with Said Sadly and the other songs. Enjoyed the Blondie cover of Dreaming too.

The vinyl packaging is sublime too. Lots of photos and writeups. By the way, if you're into vinyl stuff, feel free to hit me up on IG (I'm not an influencer. Just an ageing guy who loves music during the Pumpkins era and enjoys the tactile element of buying physical albums. Got < 50 followers lol)

Pumpkins forever! Happy Birthday Mellon Collie!

Just wanted to do a little cover for halloween idk, I don't have a drum set, and BandLab has been my main digital workstation, but I'm still unfamiliar with a lot of its features. Main ik bpm for the rest of the song is 87 so not quite able to do smthn fast with that tempo so just wanted to know what the BPM or tempo of the intro was so maybe I could do it in a separate project, or if there was a way to make a separate tempo in the same project, I love SP so much. I've wanted to make a cover of this song for so long, so help would mean the world to me. Thanks!

Bf and I have gone as rat in a cage/smashed pumpkin for a previous Halloween. Wearing this to the November 1 show--would this be too gauche/on the nose???

I have audio of the whole show recorded. Looking for more sources to do a mix. I also found video of the entire first set thanks to @ProofThisDaveWasThere on YouTube. It would be amazing to find enough footage (horizontal) to edit the whole show together with. Send me a message if you have anything!

This is the third track from the Smashing Pumpkins’ debut album, Gish. How do you feel about this song? What are some of your favorite lyrics? How would you rank it among the rest of the band’s discography? How would you rate it out of 10 (decimals allowed)?

At the end of this discussion series, I will be aggregating the rating results from each discussion and compiling a full discography ranking. I will also update the [spreadsheet](https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1BjhHzZuZ6BMVOvdMp4i9X2UDVRjtotWGxTZTk1xJ9KU/edit?usp=drivesdk) at the end of every day and post previous results for each album in future posts.

SUGGESTED SCALE:
1-4: Not good. Regularly skip.
5: It’s okay, but I might have to be in the right mood to listen to it.
6: Slightly better than average. I won’t skip it, but I wouldn’t choose to put it on.
7: This is a good song. I enjoy it quite a bit.
8-9: Really enjoyable songs. I rank them pretty high overall.
10: Masterpiece, magnum opus, or similar terminology.

Feel free to suggest any improvements, as this is my first time undertaking a project like this!

Gish

1. I Am One (7.43)
   
2. Rhinoceros (7.65)

I just want to sincerely thank the whole band and everyone in the crew for everything they've given us for the past 35 years. Incredible show so far! Love from Oklahoma!

A little SP tribute at the end

I see that a lot of you guys have gotten your Machina CD box sets. How does it feel to be one of Billy's favorites?

No seriously though, I am curious when your orders were placed? I know this has sold out and been restocked at least once. I ordered on 10/10 in the morning and got my UPS tracking number on 10/16, and that's the end of my story. Has anyone who ordered after the 10th gotten theirs yet? Or does the shipping company least have possession of your package?

I know ordering through Zuzu's can be a mess, but I'm getting impatient. They maybe should have taken preorders so they could have done a better job of this release.

Says it starts at 8pm. Do they have any openers or do they come on at around 8pm?

I've had this since I was a teenager...so a long time haha