The World Is a Vampire Bite the Tampa Amp!!

Mid FL Credit Union Amp, Tampa, FL 20AUG2023

Setting back out on the road, the Smashing Pumpkins brought out some of the overlooked heavy artillery, with Rival Sons and Interpol joining them for this second half leg of the tour. Billy Corgan also brought out his wrestling promotion, the storied NWA.

Unfortunately, as is par for the course, it poured off and on all day, even delaying doors opening, and severely slowing down traffic. With all the tourists, people forget how to drive in the drizzle. This ultimately means I missed catching the Rival Sons, so my apologies to the band and their fans. From what I was able to hear though, it was a great set.

Opening things from my perspective was Interpol. Despite having a wide open floor, much of the audience was content checking out NWA and grabbing merch to start their set. Flanked by massive white lights and disco balls, the band played to a rather blacked-out stage.

Described by one fan as looking “rather formal and ready to cater a reception,” they wore matching blacked-out suits and sunglasses. Formed back in 1997, the band consists of Paul Banks carrying the singing and lead guitar duties, with Daniel Kessler adding in on keyboards and guitar, and Sam Fogarino on drums. A bonus keyboarder in Brandon Curtis, and Bran Truax on bass rounded out the touring lineup.

With a softer sound to accompany their unique look, they played a solid 14-song set that didn’t have people dancing in the aisles, but rather mellowing with the steadily building humidity.

To be fair though, they are part of the NYC indie-band darlings, and the diehard fans they had in the crowd sang every word and hung on Paul’s every note. Watching them play, it’s the kind of music to partake in the green or have a introspective moment to. 

36 years after forming, the Smashing Pumpkins are still at it. While not the original lineup, Billy Corgan, guitarist James Iha, and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin have settled into a groove that 20 years ago would have seemed impossible. They were joined by Jeff Schroeder on keyboards and guitars, as well as touring bassist Jack Bates and Katie Cole on keyboards and vocals. 

Taking the stage following what seemed like a 4-minute intro, the band settled into place to open their set. Playing “The Everlasting Gaze” it seemed like the rain from earlier might have made them miss a sound check. Very garbled and muddy vocals to open the set, with a face-off with Iha that played to the pit audience for sure.

Keeping the muddy sound through “Doomsday Clock,” the lights punched up and shocked much of the crowd. On “Once in a Lifetime,” the Pumpkins introduced a string of vocal effects, which just didn’t sound quite as good as they have on previous tours.

Yet when “Today” played, the band seemed to come alive. Now maybe it was the filled house, but the band suffered a massive shift in their energy and sound. The audience sang along, and it was like Corgan remembered his places and pitch effort. The backing vocals from Cole complimented Corgan beautifully. Her range is beautifully mixed with Iha’s notes.

Hitting into “Tonight, Tonight” Corgan made a note about how this song is always dedicated to the audience, but with his father having lived here before his time, he wanted to send it out to his Daddy as well. The closing “Believe in me cause I believe in you “**45-second applause** “Tonight, tonight,” segment had numerous people around me wiping their eyes.

The rest of the set had the band teasing the audience to get them more into the show, and some of Corgan’s NWA workers came onto the stage, with two of the girls dancing on stage. As one of the wrestlers came up and confronted them, he was dropped with others in the band putting the boots on him.

With massive static in the mix, Corgan’s voice gave out a bit towards the end, but the audience seemed to pick up with Cole’s backing vocals boosting things as well. Overall, an awesome tour, even with the audio issues. Given the humidity and earlier rains, it’s more than understandable. The tour rolls on through mid-September, and still have numerous stops to go!!