I am forced to admit that, despite my frightening teenage obsession and subsequent mature appreciation, I was afraid that the show might not live up to my expectations of complete awesomeness. I am delighted to say that I couldn't have been more wrong. My 3 friends and I had the best night of our lives. At first I wasn't sure if the new band members would measure up to their predecessors, but they most definitely did. I don't know how I managed it, but our seats were in the 2nd row of the left side of the pit (that's right, the freakin' pit!!), and my friend and I got the best still photos and video we could've dreamed of.
And, most importantly, I got to fulfill at least one of my teenage fantasies-I got to meet (and touch) Billy himself. And Jimmy Chamberlin signed my pants! I even got a photo of Billy touching my friend's pregnant belly. "It's not mine! I don't care what she says!" he joked. He was so nice, and so friendly. He told us the story of how he broke his pinky finger at a show, and how he thinks it has affected his playing. Hah! The man is awesome, and I'll remember the night till I'm dead.

Dare I say that this was the best concert I have ever seen in Knoxville. I was blown away by all of the band members. I hope they come back soon.

After reading the reviews from the louisville show I have to admit that I was a little concerned about how the SP concert in Knoxville would be but after the lights went off and that weird techno song started playing and the crowd went nuts all my fears were put to rest.

The crowd's energy and enthusiasm was awesome and I only saw about 5 people sit down around me the entire show. I was seated dead center row 18(R) and I could see the band perfectly. The Tennessee Theatre was very beautiful and was a perfect venue for a show like this. The songs sounded great and the best part for me was how excited billy seemed to be to be playing for us. At one point he asked when the last time they were here and no one seemed to know "96" he asked, then looked at Jimmy who was also stumped "never" he asked. (I still don't know if or when they played in Knox. last)

After performing a few songs Billy talked to the crowd assuring is that they were going to be around for a long time which was great. I guess the highlight for me was Heavy Metal Machine and Today. Right after Billy finished talking to the crowd and telling us "I always said we were your band for the apocalypse and now we are, so before we all go up in a big fireball I want to play this song for you" the band led into Today which was amazing. The crowd sang almost the entire song and people were actually jumping up and down around me. Heavy Metal Machine from Machina was a pleasant surprise and Billy really really got into this one swinging his guitar and jumping around like a teenager, at one point he was on his back kicking in the air, it was worth the admission just for that song in my book.

My experience was EPIC and the show will be with me forever. Thanks to the band, the crew, the venue and the fans for making this the experience of a lifetime for me. I hope the SP will come back to Knoxville soon!!!

I would like to see some more reviews of the show so I can see how accurate my perception of things is.

I toured professionally for two years, so I know how hard it can be to play a 'be all end all' show every night. Last night's show was excellent, though. The more ambient moments like Set the Controls were my favorite. It takes a lot of skill to shape feedback and noise into a song. The acoustic set was a pleasant surprise too. The musicianship was flawless, and the set list was varied and fluid. Billy is also, shockingly, a very funny guy. He reminded me of Conan O'brian when he was talking. The Zeitgeist songs sounded a lot more powerful live. I'll never listen to the new album quite the same way.
And to play for nearly two and a half hours strait with no breaks! Bravo and such!

Last night's show in Knoxville was dotted with some real killer tunes (Set The Controls, Eye) played around the usual expected singles from a Pumpkins show (BWBW, Tonight, Today) The Zeitgeist material played (U.S. Tarantula) was heartfelt but I fell the encore fell flat. (We Only Come Out At Night, In the Summertime) could have been omitted altogether as far as I am concerned. Some electric joints such a Muzzle, Rocket would have been a more fitting conclusion for a little more than a half-hearted effort from the Pumpkins. This show was not nearly as rockin' as the Nashville show last November, but all in a all it was a good time!