Video: Smashing Pumpkins at Best Buy

October 27th, 2008 by jjb
tags: video, live

(Sorry, I love putting “Best Buy” in these titles…)

HU reader Evelyn found Billy Corgan and subsequently found her way into the “Guitar Hero” launch event. As she tells the tale:

It was all luck and perfect timing. If I hadn’t turned the corner the exact moment Billy Corgan was walking in my direction I wouldn’t have been able to ask if it was at all possible to catch the show that was to go on in less then an hour. To my surprise he was more then willing to let me and my friend join in on the exclusive Guitar Hero Party that was being held on the Lot behind the Best Buy on La Brea and Santa Monica.

For us, it gets much better:

As crew clean up the stage and Mark Mcgrath (lead singer of Sugar Ray, if anyone cares) takes the stage and plugs the new Guitar Hero game, I pick out a spot and take out my lil Sony Digi Camera.

Ohhh yeah. Without further ado, I give you “As Rome Burns”:

And, a second set of quotation marks is probably warranted when it comes to “”The Sounds of Silence”":

Find the rest of the recordings on Evelyn’s YouTube page.

28 Responses to “Video: Smashing Pumpkins at Best Buy”

  1. Jonathan Says:

    Wow! Holy shit! As Rome Burns completely surprised me, honestly. I was expecting a generic Superchrist/Heavy Metal Machine 07 type song, but it sounds like old school heavy Pumpkins, with a mix of the new energy.

    If this is a sign of what the next album is gonna be like, then I am wholly excited.

  2. Floppy Nono aka "Rat in a Cage" Says:

    “As Rome Burns”….Yay!

    I want internet music bundle, now!

  3. Chris Says:

    The solo in As Rome Burns sounds almost Metallica-esque, like something from Master of Puppets or One. But then again, so does the solo (?) in Sounds of Silence…

  4. Floppy Nono aka "Rat in a Cage" Says:

    Yeah but he doesn’t drag it on too long which is what I like. In the case of “As Rome Burns”, it actually complements it just long enough before kicking right back in.

  5. Cherub Angel Says:

    those are some definite metal trips.

  6. Cherub Angel Says:

    quite frankly, I don’t know what to make out of “Sound of Silence.” All I can say is, once again, Corgan has rediscovered guitar solos. So many guitar solos.

  7. Evelyn Says:

    I tried not to laugh during the howling in the tease of “Little Red Riding Hood” and did my best to stay still and away from the talkers. Hope you all enjoy. I’ll probably end up torrenting the whole thing since I can’t upload Set the Controls to youtube cuz of its length.

  8. Floppy Nono aka "Rat in a Cage" Says:

    thanks by the way

  9. davin Says:

    i’m with you Chris. I even some Lars-like moves from jimmy startig at around 1:19 in the As Rome Burns video. That mix of toms and bass drum usage through-out the song. haha…killer.

    and sounds of silence. wow. hello darkness, indeed.

  10. davin Says:

    *I even hear some Lars-like moves from jimmy starting at around 1:19 in As Rome Burns.*

    thats what i meant to say…but, my giddyness is gettign the best of me right now.

  11. Evelyn Says:

    No problem, as soon as I figure out what I’m doing with torrents etc I’ll make it public. Its only fair to share this since I was so lucky to have gotten in to the show in the first place.

  12. drbenway Says:

    Pow!

  13. axelease Says:

    You rock, Evelyn!

  14. Not Important Says:

    This made my day and this song shreds

    cheers Evelyn freaking awesome!

  15. stace Says:

    This makes me want to figure out which un-sold out show location would have the cheapest round trip airfare…and it almost eradicates any guilt I’d feel about ditching all of my responsibilities for 3 days/2 nights. Thanks a lot, Evelyn ;)

  16. Reggaeluv2000 Says:

    Awesome!!! I am loving this new song!
    Great job Evelyn!

  17. drevpile Says:

    !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :O

    wow

  18. JTristesse Says:

    Fuck Yeah, As Rome Burns…

  19. alaya Says:

    heck, crowd seem responding well. or just near the stage? the whole best buy show kicks ass as hell. billy’s voice has power and emotion again now, or probably since august tour. and never seen billy performing doped like that long time! wow!!!!

  20. bitterrootofself Says:

    this might be my fav. new pumpkin song, oh so exciting, cant stop listening to it, trying not to spoil the chicago auditorium shows, gunna have to keep off the internet till then, going crazy

  21. Katt Says:

    omfg they are my new old favorite band

  22. Floppy Nono aka "Rat in a Cage" Says:

    “As Rome Burns” would probably be much funner to play on “Guitar Hero”, I think. Game players loss, I guess.

  23. jjb Says:

    Hey, Rat in a Cage, would you mind terribly going back to just being Rat in a Cage? I know you have trollish tendencies and everything so it probably pleases you that I am paying you enough mind to be slightly bothered, but, you also have some sense, so maybe asking is all it will take. I’m just surprised it’s gone on this long. The joke is over, man. Stoppen sie throwen sie Kuppen.

    rC: “harmful gutted”

  24. sootandstarz33 Says:

    holy cow.

    “as rome burns” WOW!!!!!!!!!! amazing! cant wait.

  25. glassoglass Says:

    Best Sp song since 1996

  26. Hipsters United // a blog about the Smashing Pumpkins » Set the Birdcalls for the Heart of the Song Says:

    […] Again courtesy HU reader Evelyn, here is the full performance by the Smashing Pumpkins of Pink Floyd’s “Set the Controls for the Heart of the Sun” at Best Buy in West Hollywood on Saturday night. […]

  27. Floppy Nono aka "Rat in a Cage" Says:

    Trollish tendencies? That’s like calling me half-ugly. How dare you.

    Honestly, I’m suprised you think I’m “still” doing this as a joke. I’m just lazy - I never bothered to change. Also, both “Rat in a Cage” and this one are names you gave me, if you remember.

    Remarkably, my recaptcha this time around is “self-respecting brain”. At your request, I will change my name and from here out will be known as the Self-Respecting Brain.

  28. jillysp Says:

    We’ll just start to call you Prince, mmmkay? :) Or do you prefer a symbol?

    reC: “remove severity”

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