via//chicago

np: "spaceboy (alternate version)" - smashing pumpkins

so yeah, most people that know me know that the Pumpkins are my all-time favorite band. awhile back i was hooked up with a download of the ultra-rare Mashed Potatoes boxed set that Billy put together years ago. i've been hooked on it all day, and this track in particular reminds me what i love about this band. this version is a little more country and a little more psychedelic than the original version. if i was one of those cool mp3 bloggers, i'd hook y'all up with a download but i'm not that awesome. but yeah, this box set is full of live stuff, demos, alternate versions, and just a lot of Pumpkins goodness from about '89-'94. the era that i still consider to be when the Pumpkins were at their creative peak. it's just sinking in to how obsessive i've been about this band at various points in time. probably the only band that i've gone to such great lengths in order to get new shit to listen to. it seems that at some points Billy almost reached a Bob Pollard-like level of output with great music. it's a shame to see how much he's tapered off in the last few years. Zwan was an amazing live band, but the bald one was never able to capture that energy in the studio, resulting in a mediocre disc that i can't even remember the last time i pulled it out. yeah, you may remember me hyping it up back when it came out, but i think that was more from the excitement of seeing them live so much then. my liking for that album has diminished quite a bit in the past 16 months. and from what i've heard of his recent solo performance, i'm not going to be too terribly excited about what's coming next either.