Main menu
Fretplay home Submit tabs

Smashing Pumpkins
Smashing Pumpkins tabs Smashing Pumpkins discography

Channels
Guitar channel Bass channel Guitar videos Reviews

Message Forum
Guitar forum Bass forum Bands and artists Promote your band Recent discussions All categories

Fretplay.com

Smashing Pumpkins guitar tabs

CD reviews

Earphoria Live

Smashing Pumpkins - Earphoria Live Audio CD

A fair review of the Smashing Pumpkins "Earphoria Live" Audio CD. Please note that the below review is the views of the authors, and authors only. You can get a complete list of all Smashing Pumpkins reviews here, or go back to the Smashing Pumpkins tabs.

Band: Smashing Pumpkins
Title: Earphoria Live
Rating:

Release Date: 2002-11-26
Media: Audio CD

Tracks: 1: Sinfony 2: Quiet (Live In Atlanta, 1993) 3: Disarm (Live On English TV, 1993) 4: Cherub Rock (Acoustic) (Live On MTV Europe, 1993) 5: Today (Live In Chicago, 1993) 6: Bugg Superstar 7: I Am One (Live In Barcelona, 1993) 8: Pulseczer 9: Soma (Live In London, 1994) 10: Slunk (Live On Japanese TV, 1992) 11: French Movie Theme 12: Geek U.S.A. (Live On German TV, 1993) 13: Mayonaise (Acoustic) (Live Everywhere, 1988-1994) 14: Silverf (Live In London, 1994)/Over The Rainbow 15: Why Am I So Tired

emotional
Generaly speaking I do not like live versons of songs or cd's but I thought this was a very good cd. This cd is mainly a live verson of some of their songs, although there are a few on here I don't think are on any other albums. These songs weren't the same songs you hear on the albums but with screaming fans in the backround, no, these songs have a feel quite different from their album counter part. It is mainly a more emotional feel in my opinion, and I like it. There are longer crazier improvised guitar solos, more lyrics, and just more of the moment in the songs. If you are a casual pumpkins listener I don't think this is the album to get, but for any real pumpkins fan this is a must for your collection.

(3.5 stars) NOT for the uninitiated
But here's what goes down: it began life as an oft-bootlegged collection of live recordings. Most people probably have never even heard of this album, unless they're huge Smashing Pumpkins fans. By 2002, though, someone finally decided to officially release these recordings, with a few b-sides that missed Pisces Iscariot and some random outtakes tacked on, even though at this point most fans already owned a bootlegged copy. As for the music. . . on a whole I like it, but two of these songs are awful. I never thought I'd say I hated "Disarm", but this version is ugly, all feedback and power chords and squeals. It's remade as heavy metal nonsense, and it was one of the most beautiful songs ever! Billy? Never do that again. Please. "Why Am I So Tired" is even worse, because it's a fifteen-minute instrumental where absolutely nothing happens. Blah. And I do like parts of "I Am One". I just wish he hadn't gone off on one of those "`I Am One' rants". "Pulseczar" is the sound of Billy torturing his guitar, and I don't like that. Now, for what I like. There's a lot from Siamese Dream here, and while a lot of those performances are a lot like the originals, that doesn't matter because they're well done. Besides, the original versions of all the songs on Siamese Dream, bar "Sweet Sweet", rule. "Soma" has some weird synthesizer sound in it for whatever reason, but other than that there's no difference between it and the original; "Quiet" and "Geek U. S. A. " still beat you over the head with their RAWWWK awesomeness; "Today" is also pretty similar, though the audience sings a lot of the lyrics. On the other hand, "Cherub Rock" is redone as an acoustic shuffle, and it's amazing. Total change of pace, but I like changes of pace - if they're good changes, and this sure was. It really brings out the melody. Another little magic change of pace is on "Silverf***", which has a little vocal bit from "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" and a weird instrumental section added on, which brings the length up to thirteen minutes. It's pretty cool. Better than "Why Am I So Tired", at any rate. "Mayonaise" is here, too! And it's acoustic! With bongos! I like it! Then again, I just love "Mayonaise" in general. You could make a country-thrash version of that song, and it would still be one of my favorites of all-time. I don't know where "Slunk" came from - it's almost punk-rock, not something the Pumpkins are known for - but I like it. It's fun. So that's that, then. You only really need this if you're a Pumpkins fanboy like me, but if you are, enjoy! Watch out, though, because some of it's crap.

This promotional CD finally got a commercial release...
This CD was finally made commercially available in 2002. Earphoria was originally a promotional CD released in 1994, as a kind of "soundtrack" for the Vieuphoria videotape. This disc contains live performances and previously unreleased studio material. Overall, the sound quality for the live material is rather decent (except for "Geek USA" and "Silverf***," which both have a more "hollow" sound to them).

Most of the studio material is pretty good, except for "Why am I So Tired. " This is a fifteen-minute long intrumental that starts out promising, but it never really progresses and becomes redundant and boring rather quickly.

The tracks on the CD are arranged in the same order that they appeared in Vieuphoria. Unfortunately, this means that the two longest tracks appear back-to-back on the disc, and it makes the last half hour of the disc very tedious to listen to.

Overall, this is a decent CD and should be in the collection f any die-hard Smashing Pumpkins fan or collector. However, it's unlikely that a more casual fan of the band would get very much out of this CD.

AMAZING live disc
I honestly think they are one of the greatest bands of the 90's, much less one of the greatest bands of all time. I worship Smashing Pumpkins. This live album by them contains tracks from siamese dream, gish, and a couple b-sides as well as a few studio interludes. the live tracks all differ from the studio versions in interesting ways and in general this album is incredible.

The album opens with "Sinfony", a 50 second drony intro. Then it goes into an awesome rendition of "Quiet", which is very similar to the original but sounds great nonetheless. Then comes an electric version of disarm, which is a little too raw in places but is very cool, possibly better than the original! Then comes an accoustic version of Cherub Rock, which is very good with some awesome brushwork on the drums. Today live is a lot faster and just overall sounds sooo much better. Bugg Superstar is a quick interlude which sucks, but thats okay. I Am One sounds great live with a lot of jamming. Pulcesar is another interlude which is just kind of wierd, but cool. Soma and the b-side Slunk both are awesome here. French Movie Theme is probably my favorite of the interludes, with a kind of cool haunting melody. Geek USA live is AMAZING. Mayonaise accoustic is really pretty, though its shortened and the intro is gone. Silverf-ck live is GODLY. At 11 minutes, there is tons of jamming and lots of other stuff. the main riff is sped up to like twice the tempo. its brilliant. The last track, Why am I so Tired? is a 15 minute jam thats boring in places but really cool in others. its a nice relaxed way to end the cd.

All in all, this album is actually some of the pumpkins best work! I need to see the dvd of this stuff, cause its all amazing. Really, really amazing. Check it out!.

Great!!!
With great alternative and acoustic versions of their biggest hits alongside a varitety of fun, generally lighthearted original material. This album is amazing, with the highest possible quality recording of the band at its live and creative peak. Some of it, especially the annoying "Pulseczar", can come off as filler, but it generally balances out quite well and shows the band's variety. The only thing better is the DVD of Vieuphoria, an even amazing documentary on one of rock's most underrated live bands.

You can see a complete list of all Smashing Pumpkins discography, or go back to the Smashing Pumpkins tabs. There is also a good guide on how to read guitar tabs here.