Par David Lindquist david.lindquist@indystar.com
16 décembre 2001
The pony express, Yankee gamblers and buckshot populate the new songs of Billy Corgan, who played two complete concerts with new band Zwan on Friday at the Emerson Theater. This old-school -- as in 19th-century -- imagery represented the greatest departure from Corgan's former band, the Smashing Pumpkins. Musically, the tunes were dominated by acoustic guitar and suggestive of the Pumpkins' To Sheila (from 1998's Adore album) and Thirty-three (1995's Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.) So, Zwan's sixth-ever public performance might be best described as campfire songs played in a punk-rock club. The fans (some purchasing $15 tickets for as much as $100 online) may have been restless for scorched-earth guitar rock. Corgan gave them earthy tales of yesteryear. El-A-Noy, for instance, pictured the songwriter's home state -- Illinois -- as a western territory offering refuge to upstart religions. Maybe a reference to Nauvoo Mormons in the 1840s? God's Gonna Set This World on Fire, which had the lyrical flair of an old-time tent revival, sought converts through the shaming of "part-time soldiers." The lighter side of pioneer days could be heard in Silly Sally and Candy Came Calling. Stepping into the 21st century, Ring the Bells was Corgan's most personal, compelling and rocking statement. The song contrasts the hubris of external issues and events with an ability to focus squarely on one's self. It's open to interpretation if this ability is one of pride or guilt. With a vocal sneer worthy of Mick Jagger, Corgan sang, "There's no war in my world -- just the anarchy of stillness and someone who will never forget my name." Aside from Bells, ex-Pumpkins drummer Jimmy Chamberlin may not have broken a sweat all night. His main assignment was to finesse congas and the snare. Corgan has found a popular foil in guitarist Matt Sweeney, who aced slow-burn renditions of Iron Maiden's The Number of the Beast in both shows. David Pajo rounded out the quartet with 12-string acoustic guitar. Corgan was happy to interact with either audience of 400. He granted "Happy Birthday" requests during both shows and rebuffed a Syracuse, N.Y., fan with an odd tirade aimed at basketball coach Jim Boeheim. For comparison's sake, Zwan's 9 p.m. performance was much better than the one that began at 12:45 a.m. Corgan basically used the second show as a public rehearsal of sleepy breakup ballads. Perhaps sensing the need to entertain, he threw in the Beatles' Don't Let Me Down as an encore and transformed God's Gonna Set This World on Fire into a call-and-response clap-along. Still, if he pairs the best of Zwan's unplugged tunes with electric songs debuted in recent California dates, Corgan is armed with his strongest material since Mellon Collie's heyday.
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