Smashing Pumpkins

Oh, we do cherish the memory of the early- '90s alt-rock boom. For those who witnessed it and are keen on reliving it 16 years later, the thought of a bald, slender, disco-space-vampire Billy Corgan fronting a nine-piece version of Smashing Pumpkins can incite trepidation. But consider this: Corgan has always been a fan of the the overblown, which is part of the charm of his Pumpkins — the affection for the dramatic, the balance of tightknit riffs and hazy ramblings, and the desire to be a spectacle. After watching most of the alt-rock heavyweights of the '90s extend way beyond their shelf life, it truly is refreshing to see Smashing Pumpkins unafraid to turn up the amps and bare their teeth.