Dear Smashing Pumpkins collectors,
Why do you keep emailing me, asking if I'm selling my Zeitgeist promo CD? I'm genuinely curious about these queries, which I assume are stemming from my review of the album. For starters, it's mad illegal; my copy is a record-label-issued, numbered and watermarked promo with my name on it. It doesn't even work in my computer. There are no liner notes, it's a simple advance CD in bright yellow-and-black packaging. It has absolutely no value whatsoever, and I'm unsure as to how that completes "your collection." (Cue Comic Book Guy voice.) I'd get in big trouble if I re-sold this. It's never going to happen.
I troll eBay enough to understand the (bizarrely) intrinsic value of advanced and promotional CDs to collectors, so that's not the source of my befuddlement. But beyond that -- you're still ponying up big bucks in 2009 for Smashing Pumpkins memorabilia? I'll vouch for the band all the way up until Machina -- and I love Adore -- but SP Mach v2.0 is a sad shadow of its former self. The band's legacy has been tarnished by mediocre shows, a so-so reunion, the departure of drumming ace Jimmy Chamberlin -- and, as of this weekend this:
That's BIlly pulling his best Eminem and choppin' and screwin' the lyrics of "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" for TNA Lockdown, a pay-per-view wrestling event taking place on Sunday night. A long line of respected musicians (Cyndi Lauper and Bob Mould come to mind) have had ties to pro wrestling, but, well...
Please, be content with your Melon Collie vinyl and happy memories of when SP was all over MTV and considered a vibrant artist. Don't let your rose-colored glasses get in the way of seeing the band how it is now.
