Three hours of Smashing Pumpkins, last night at the Sprint Center

August 17, 2018

April Fleming,

Smashing Pumpkins stopped in at Sprint Center last night and played a career-spanning show that clocked in at over three hours. That’s a lot of Pumpkins.

The “Shiny and Oh So Bright” tour marks the reunion of original members Billy Corgan, James Iha, and Jimmy Chamberlain (original bassist D’Arcy ‘s absence was well noted when the tour was announced several months ago). At times, the performance admirably weaved together nostalgia with surprising technical prowess. At other points, things slipped into the indulgent and Corgan-esque — the band performed on-the-nose covers of on-the-nose songs “Stairway to Heaven” and “Space Oddity,” for example. Approximately 10,000 people turned out for the show, and if they were there because they love Smashing Pumpkins, then it’s unlikely they walked away unsatisfied.

Canadian pop act Metric opened with a short but bright set in its first Kansas City performance since appearing at the Beaumont Club in 2012.

All photos by April Fleming.