The Smashing Pumpkins perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
The Smashing Pumpkins were at Tinley Park’s Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre on Thursday night (Aug. 15), marking the latest stop on their North American summer tour with Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds. The SP frontman and Chicago native Billy Corgan didn’t pull any punches during the group’s headlining performance, immediately launching into Siamese Dream mega-hit “Today.” “Zero,” from 1995’s iconic double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness quickly followed, climaxing with some searing guitar work from James Iha and a rapid-fire frenzy of hits from drummer Jimmy Chamberlin behind the kit.
Joining the above-mentioned original SP members — Corgan, Chamberlin and Iha — were bassist Jack Bates, keyboardist Katie Cole and the band’s fourth official member, guitarist Jeff Schroeder. And though, — in the absence of D’arcy Wretzky — last night’s show can’t technically be referred to as a complete Smashing Pumpkins reunion, the band’s live sound, arguably fuller now than ever before, didn’t leave much room for complaints. The band’s immense sonic presence was, further, visually complimented by a trio of enormous inflatables, giving fans a cohesive, larger than life experience, satisfyingly saturated in both sound and spectacle.
The Smashing Pumpkins perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
“Do you want to hear me play my guitar,” questioned Corgan at one point during the set. And play, he did… dishing up a soft solo on Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun single “Knights of Malta” and working the neck extensively on a later cover of James Taylor’s “Fire and Rain.” Probably the most exciting moment of the evening, with regard to guitar work, was the band’s rocking rendition of the mostly-instrumental “Superchrist” — from 2007’s Zeitgeist — which saw a smiling Corgan facing off in a showdown of the axes with the aforementioned Schroeder, while Iha added shades of his trademark sound.
The Smashing Pumpkins perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
While the guitar was often (and unsurprisingly) the star of the show, the instrument took a backseat on more than a few occasions throughout last night’s set. “Eye” found Corgan slowly working the length of the stage, sans guitar, while Chamberlin took the lead with a hard-hitting mid-song drum solo on Shiny and Oh So Bright’s “Solara,” bringing the entire audience to their feet.
Naturally, “1979” prompted a massive sing-along, as did its fellow Mellon Collie track “Tonight, Tonight,” while the synthy “Ava Adore” saw Corgan making a little lyric play:
“And I’ll pull your crooked teeth. You’ll be perfect just like WPC.”
Other notable highlights from SP’s performance included a menacing take on “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” and a chill-inducing rendition of “Disarm.”
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
Earlier in the evening, Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds put musicianship front and center with a set of inspired tunes, melding the frontman’s most recent HFB material with some timeless legacy Oasis hits. Gallagher and co. kicked things off with “Fort Knox,” the hard-charging opening track from their 2017 LP, Who built The Moon?, setting the tone for the smorgasbord of sound that was to come. The group proceeded to power through the album’s next four tracks in chronological order, with close to a dozen musicians and singers — with equally as many instruments — onstage at any given moment.
“Any Oasis fans here,” a playfully antagonistic Gallagher asked the enthusiastic crowd. “F*ck yeah. This one’s for you.”
Oasis devotees would have to wait a bit longer, however, to hear their favorite tunes as the group subsequently went on to play two of their most recent HFB releases; the hypnotic title track from their 2019 EP Black Star Dancing and “This Is The Place,” the former which found Gallagher hitting sweet harmonies with his wonderfully talented guest vocalist YSEÉ.
Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
The often cheeky Gallagher later thanked the Tinley Park crowd for “letting him indulge himself,” prior to breaking into what would become a venue-wide acoustic sing-along of (What’s the Story) Morning Glory? fan favorite “Wonderwall.” The nostalgia continued with a back-to-back pairing of Heathen Chemistry singles; the mellow “Stop Crying Your Heart Out” and a vocally-rich rendition of “Little By Little.”
The High Flying Birds’ Thursday night set peaked with a touching, keyboard-rich rendition of ’90s hit “Don’t Look Back in Anger,” which saw Chris Sharrock ditch his drum kit to take up tambourine duties, while Gem Archer served up some short but sweet solos on the electric guitar. The group closed their performance, making good use of their three-piece horn section, with an epic sing-along of The Beatles’ “All You Need Is Love.”
Prior to Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds’ taking the stage, California-born alt rock emo group AFI warmed up the crowd with a high energy set, including tracks “Girls Not Grey,” “Miss Murder” and “17 Crimes,” among others.
AFI perform at the Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in Tinley Park on Aug. 15, 2019
Smashing Pumpkins and Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds (with special guests AFI) will continue their trek across the U.S. through the end of the month. For complete tour information, and to pick up tickets to a show in a city near you, visit the Smashing Pumpkins’ official website.
(Photos by Laurie Fanelli)
