Everyone knows I'm a huge Smashing Pumpkins fan for 20+ years. Many accused me of leaving the confines of Texas to head up to Chicago to stalk Billy's every move. It just turned out I must've put it into the Universe and it delivered me to the grace of the "city by the lake".
I've been looking at putting together a set of Smashing Pumpkin covers for open mic/performance opportunities. I went through all of the 540 tracks I've got and weeded them down to the following:
The interesting thing is that as of late I've been waning a bit in wanting to do things Pumpkins related. Per previous blogs, I've always stuck up for Billy even when he's challenged my own fandom both musically and artistically. However, I haven't been to a live show since 2011 as I don't sense the passion and fire in his performances as I have in the past. Yes, I realize he's not in his twenties anymore and can't run around the stage around like a madman but it's more than that. I just can't hear the passion in his singing (as challenging as that can be at times) that made me attracted to the Pumpkins in the first place. I feel like half the time he doesn't want to be there and when he does, I sense a brooding, dark man on stage. I have been down with the records as of late and have cherished older live stuff where I hear the hunger of a band that thought could really change things.
I recently watched Billy do a broadcast on Periscope and got inspired to do the same. I've done some live streaming in the past via Youtube ans UStream so the concept isn't new. However, people are on their devices now and Periscope provides a way to integrate it into my portfolio of social media. I figured, "Hey, why not do some concerts?"
I chose the Pumpkins as I haven't really been enjoying writing my own stuff because I get to conscious of my own stuff and want to be happy just playing songs I knew well. Why not use the Pumpkin fandom to my advantage, right? So, that's what I'm starting to do.
If you want to check out the fruits of my labor, follow me on Twitter at nelsonvelazquez and wait for the announcement of the next gig.
I've been looking at putting together a set of Smashing Pumpkin covers for open mic/performance opportunities. I went through all of the 540 tracks I've got and weeded them down to the following:
The interesting thing is that as of late I've been waning a bit in wanting to do things Pumpkins related. Per previous blogs, I've always stuck up for Billy even when he's challenged my own fandom both musically and artistically. However, I haven't been to a live show since 2011 as I don't sense the passion and fire in his performances as I have in the past. Yes, I realize he's not in his twenties anymore and can't run around the stage around like a madman but it's more than that. I just can't hear the passion in his singing (as challenging as that can be at times) that made me attracted to the Pumpkins in the first place. I feel like half the time he doesn't want to be there and when he does, I sense a brooding, dark man on stage. I have been down with the records as of late and have cherished older live stuff where I hear the hunger of a band that thought could really change things.
I recently watched Billy do a broadcast on Periscope and got inspired to do the same. I've done some live streaming in the past via Youtube ans UStream so the concept isn't new. However, people are on their devices now and Periscope provides a way to integrate it into my portfolio of social media. I figured, "Hey, why not do some concerts?"
I chose the Pumpkins as I haven't really been enjoying writing my own stuff because I get to conscious of my own stuff and want to be happy just playing songs I knew well. Why not use the Pumpkin fandom to my advantage, right? So, that's what I'm starting to do.
If you want to check out the fruits of my labor, follow me on Twitter at nelsonvelazquez and wait for the announcement of the next gig.
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