The Smashing Pumpkins at USANA

The last time I saw The Smashing Pumpkins it was an absolutely amazing concert so I was really excited to get to see them again at USANA Amphitheatre last night.  I was definitely not disappointed!  The setlist was an eclectic mix of the band's biggest hits, deeper tracks from their extensive discography, as well as a few songs from ATUM, their latest release which has been billed as a rock opera in three acts, so I spent half the time screaming and singing along to my favorite songs and the other half just listening to the shredding guitars and Corgan's signature voice on some of the more unfamiliar (to me) songs.  I really enjoyed "The Everlasting Gaze," "Doomsday Clock," " Perfect," "The Celestials," "Purple Blood," and "This Time," despite the fact that I didn't remember all of the words, and the new songs "Beguiled," "Empires," and "Spellbinding," even though I wasn't familiar with them, because the band sounded as good as I've ever heard them.  However, it was when they performed "Today," "Disarm," "Ava Adore," "Bullet With Butterfly Wings," "Jellybelly," and "Hummer" that I really came alive because these songs took me back to the 1990s when I would listen to Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and Siamese Dream almost continuously on repeat!  They also played several covers and I have to admit that their version of "Once in a Lifetime" by Talking Heads was really cool but almost unrecognizable!  My favorite moment of the show was an incredibly beautiful acoustic version of "Tonight, Tonight" by Corgan and James Iha.  Corgan dedicated it to SLC because of the lyric about a city by the lake.  The crowd was incredibly chill (almost everyone around me sat for most of the show) but the final three songs, which were "1979," "Cherub Rock," and "Zero," got the crowd up on their feet and it was the perfect way to end the concert!  The stage featured interesting (if somewhat strange) visuals and included dramatic lighting that was almost mesmerizing.  Corgan is such a weirdo and he was in fine form with white makeup on his bald head and face and a long black tunic featuring Masonic symbolism.  He was very tentative with the crowd at first and delegated all of the usual frontman duties to Iha (who favored us with a hilarious rap) but he eventually warmed up.  I had such a great time at this concert because it was filled with so much nostalgia and it was the perfect summer night for an outdoor show (not too hot with a nice breeze as the evening wore on).  I even got out of the USANA parking lot within 10 minutes!