Earphoria

1	Sinfony 0:55
2	Quiet 3:44
3	Disarm 2:56
4	Cherub Rock Acoustic 4:24
5	Today 3:38
6	Bugg Superstar 1:29
7	I Am One 7:55
8	Pulseczar 2:27
9	Soma 6:32
10	Slunk 2:37
11	French Movie Theme 1:50
12	Geek U.S.A. 4:49
13	Mayonaise Acoustic 4:23
14	Silverf***/Over the Rainbow 13:30
15	Why Am I So Tired 15:15

Barnes & Noble

Smashing Pumpkins were generally known as studio creatures -- thanks in large part to the perfectionist streak that's so deeply ingrained in leader Billy Corgan. This collection of live performances -- culled from shows on their '94 world tour for Siamese Dream -- strives to present the band's less tidy side and, to a large extent, does a good job of it. Fans will be familiar with ten of the songs here from the Vieuphoria VHS (which has been revamped and reissued on DVD), and it's hard to find fault with the performances: "Disarm" does exactly that, and an acoustic rendition of "Cherub Rock" tempers the tune's bitterness with a dose of sweet melody. Some tracks, such as "Today," find the band straining under the pressure of trying to replicate studio versions note-for-note, but the set-ending punch of "Silverfuck" and "Why Am I So Tired," which add up to half-an-hour of loud, loopy digressions, make up for that. Earphoria is punctuated with five tracks of studio ephemera that ice the cake for devout Pumpkinheads. The meat of the set, however, is the live material, which fleshes out the portrait of one of alt-rock's most mercurial and exciting bands. David Sprague

All Music Guide

The Smashing Pumpkins rarely fail to please, especially when they're well ensconced in the middle of live performance. Their brutal truth, Billy Corgan's vision, is a stylish and highly stylized slab of fuzz guitar and noise that defies just about any category one would care to put them in. In 1994, the bandmembers were touring the world, walking the fine line between falling away from fame and the glammed-out superstardom that would soon bedevil them until the day they disbanded. That year, ten live performances, culled from American and European concerts and television appearances, were cobbled together and released on VHS as Vieuphoria, now reissued on DVD but also on CD as Earphoria. Earphoria is a straight video to audio reissue of the original ten tracks with five more songs cobbled on for fun. With fabulous sound quality, this set showcases the Smashing Pumpkins roiling and rocking across material that is raw and raucous, yet strangely fragile, and these stunning live performances easily convey that magic just fine on their own -- visual distraction isn't necessary at all. From the acoustic "Mayonaise" to "Silverfuck" and "Disarm," played across time zones in Japan, Germany, and England, as well as across our own stateside venues, the songs on Earphoria are a gripping alternative to their now-familiar studio counterparts. Also of note, and of interest, is an acoustic version of the Pumpkins' hit "Cherub Rock" taken from an MTV Europe performance. With such heavy-hitting material to proffer, it's no wonder that the Smashing Pumpkins transcended every genre and pigeonhole they were shown, cruising past their peers with reinvention and pluck and forever leading where others could only dream of following. And it's discs like this one that really drive the point home. Amy Hanson