16 The Michigan Daily - Mhda y,May 1, 2000
PUMPKINS
Continued from Page 14
Of course, this sort of anti-pop cul-
ture ideology is highly ironic when
one remembers just how "pop cul-
ture" Corgan's band had been back in
the early to mid '90s. When the band
was scoring multi-platinum albums,
headlining Lollapallooza, releasing
unnecessary boxed sets of B-sides
and having their music plastered all
over MTV and commercial radio,
Corgan wasn't rallying against pop
culture. He was pop culture . slowdecay of Corgan's status as
Now things are different. alternative rock icon is that he is
Smashing Pumpkins don't get much writing some of the best music of his
airplay, can't sell albums like they life. The new songs are nowhere near
used to, and find that their audiences as accessible, catchy or melodic as
only want to hear old songs. To make past successes such as "Zero" and
things worse, the band has resorted "1979," but they are much more
to image-based marketing to sell artistic and daring. After listening
their music. Corgan's head is still closely to "Machina,". one gets a
shaved, and his wardrobe has become sense that Corgan could now write
gothic to the point that it is becoming simple pop songs such as "Disarm"
self-mocking. in his sleep.
The unfortunate part about the The current streamlining of old
Smashing Pumpkinrs fans will he
good for the band in the long run,
assurming that they continue produc-
ing intelligent guitar rock rather than
their past pop material. Corgan must
face the fact that he is no longer the
most important man in rock. No one
will argue his genius as a songwriter,
but only time will tell whether his
ego can come to grips with modest
success.
After ending the evening with a
marvelously ferocious rendition of
DANGELO
Continued from Page 14
acts, D'Angelo appeared. However, he
didn't just walk out onto the stage.
Ritualistic chanting accompanied sev-
eral black-cloaked band members as
they walked on the
dark stage.
A spotlight
focused on a
microphone
where a
figure that
the new album's centerpiece, "He,
Metal Machine,"' Corgan lingered
stage for a minute or two, th
the crowd and shaking hands w
the mass of fans flooding the front
the stage. Moments of adorat
such as these may soon become a
more rare for Corgan as his h5
humbles and his fans abandon r
rock. For one night though, he m
many jaded U-M students remem
what it felt like to be a naive teem
er again.
Machine.'
After a few more songs, D'Ang
showing his versatility, took a sea
his electric piano and started into
song "Shit, Damn, Motherfuck
from his first album. Given the titl
the song, the forthcoming events w
inevitable. The song kept build
until D'Angelo, vibing in part o
energy in the crowd, went on a..
ture rampage. Hejumped off stage
ran up an aisle through part of
audience.
He ran back onto the stage
leaped onto an elevated part of
stage where ?uestlove
drumming. D'Angelo proce
ed to grab a cymbal fro
drum set and threw
the stage below.
The scene seem
more appropriate a
rock concert than
R&B one, yet it v
e n t e r t a i n i i
nonetheless.
Though mome
like the rampt
there were two e
that occurred durin
CourtesyofEMI sensual rendition
"One Mo Gin" that were more so
best expressed the (female) audien
intense appreciation for DAng
The tamest instance was when sev
female audience members in the fr
row began to rub on his legs an c
ach during the song.
The second became the talk
Detroit when one female in the au
ence ran down an aisle and leaped o
the stage without even touching it.
She landed with her legs wrap
around DAngelo's waist as he was
his knees singing. She was qui
removed by security but D'Ange
ability to cause this much commot
is a testament to his abilities a
former.
To close out the show, D'Ang
gave the audience what they 1
craved before but were denied, "H
Does It Feel?"
The audience was standing dur
tile entire song as he belted out
tune that may be the first classic sl
jam of the new century.
It also served as a perfect quest
to ask an audience about their exp
ence at a concert that many of th
will not forget for some time to co
looked more like Darth Vader than
D'Angelo started to go into "Devil's
Pie" Suddenly, the stage went dark.
When the lights came back on, a scene
reminiscent of a Funkadelic or James
Brown show was present,
His band and back-up singers, the
Soultronics, came out blazing led by
drummer ?uestlove of the Roots and
helped set the tone for most of the
show.
Over the course of the three-hour
show, D'Angelo covered material from
both of his albums but focused much
of his attention on his latest release.
The audience was dancing in the
aisles as he went into "Chicken
Grease."'
Even more dramatic was the crowd's
reaction when the Soultronics started
playing the opening bars to "Untitled
(Hlow Does It Feel)."
As soon as the first chords were
played, seemingly every fenale in the
audience rose to their feet and began
cheering uncontrollably.
They were all a little disappointed
when D'Angelo proved to use these
few notes as a tease, instead opting to
go into the James Brown classic "Sex
COMING TO TH EATRES MAY 11H