Cover Nostalgia: Smashing Pumpkins go adult contemporary

I came across this cover whilst poking around nostalgically through some great Pumpkins songs of yesteryear – songs like Rhinoceros and Cherub Rock; songs from the time when Billy Corgan was coming up to (Gish), hitting (Siamese Dream) and just dropping off of (Mellon Collie…) his peak.

∞ Random Interest Snippet: Corgan has stated that the line “but can you fake it / for just one more show” refers to the band’s headlining slot on the 1994 Lollapalooza tour, where they supposedly became disillusioned with the idea of “alternative” rock. [Wikipedia]

Young swede singer Frida Snell takes the simmering energy of “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” down a notch or ten and adds the thirds back to create an adult contemporary tune a la The Corrs. Without the nasal snarl Billy had begun to develop around the time of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, the alt-pop minor melody of “Bullet…” shines through.

Give it a chance to get rolling (I was skeptical at first); the arrangement of Frida’s version is dynamic enough and the sound expands with the progression of the song e.g. I liked the way she held back on the so familiar riff until the second verse. What do you think?

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