I recently went, for the first time, to a concert and had the honor of seeing the Smashing Pumpkins. Waiting outside the New Haven Coliseum fueled my adrenaline rush. This was a feeling of excitement I never had encountered. The doors opened and the crowd rushed into the arena. My friends and I quickly located our seats and counted down the minutes until the Pumpkins performed. After the intermission between bands, the lights went out as the crowd roared to a deafening tone.

Then the lights flashed on, and there stood the icon of alternative music. The concert was underway as the Smashing Pumpkins played many of their songs from the “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness” album. The music sounded better live than on any sound system. The audience seemed to be synchronized in a jumping beat as “Zero” blasted from the speakers for their opening song. Everyone in the coliseum was jamming.

As the concert progressed, the selection of songs began to bore me. Many I had never heard before. Many great songs from their latest album were omitted, which was a great disappointment. When the Pumpkins came out for their first encore, the music was okay but barely got my attention. Their second encore was even worse as they just made noise instead of music. It seemed as if they were teasing the crowd as they spoke of playing “Landslide,” then said they would not. If I had been left to decide if the Pumpkins should have to put on an encore, I would have said “No!” Overall, I would have to give the concert a grade of a B because although they started off well, they ended the concert poorly