Jesus and Smashing Pumpkins
Pumpkins are crucial to Thanksgiving. It’s a holiday that gives pumpkins a reason to grow…there is a nod to these gourds in nearly every menu item or decoration. You might not even like the taste of pumpkin, whether it’s in pies, cookies, a roll, or spiced up and a flavoring in your coffee but you’re gonna see or taste them one way or another. I’m kinda indifferent towards pumpkins to be honest. But this week I became more of a fan of pumpkins not because of what I tasted but from what I felt.
That sounds odd, especially when I will tell you that by pumpkins what I really mean is “Smashing Pumpkins”, the alternative/rock/grunge band from the 1990’s. They aren’t a band you would play at the Thanksgiving table and they have your typical rock and roll band history…just a lot of drama, drugs, unhealthy relationships, etc. They aren’t wholesome and their lyrics, if you can even discern them aren’t what I would call uplifting or encouraging. And yet it was this band’s fans that gave me a perspective on the message Jesus wants us to live out and share.
I stumbled upon a video on YouTube this week that captured The Smashing Pumpkins performing an album release party in a record store in 1993. As the concert started I was in awe of the nostalgia that came roaring back… the 1990s were so different but so vivid in my memory! I grew up in the 80’s and 90’s so while it was a bit of a flashback it was also reliving my youth. Maybe you are of another generation and most likely have different musical tastes but when you see something from your early years it really catches your eye and attention.
Apparently, this little thrown together concert was only available on bootleg tape recordings for 30 years. The sounds and scene were memorable though and from reading the comments on the video it was legendary, at least to those that declare the Smashing Pumpkins as musicians! For decades this performance was only talked about or listened to on grainy tapes…and then out of the blue a real video surfaced that captured not just the band but the response of the people that were there.
I continued to watch this old-new video and I see the store packed with teens and 20-somethings. They had no phones. No cameras. And nothing other to do than stand and listen. Then all stood shoulder to shoulder and the first row was 3 feet away from the 4 chairs the band members sat in…you couldn’t get much closer to the sound and away from distractions than that. Then I heard the first chords of the first song on their then-new album and it sounded totally different. The real album had a sonic and extremely loud and full sound from the first chords; this was all stripped down and completely new. You could tell it was the same song but a new way to hear it…
I’m not a musician but I know enough that the album and style of music the Smashing Pumpkins were known for had a heavy-dose of distortion and other electric ways of manipulating the sounds that came out of a guitar. I’d say that they had a lot of different sounds that came out of one band, all with the help of technology and experimentation. The chords may be the same between the electric and acoustic guitar when playing their songs but the sound sure was different listening to that simplified set in a Chicago record store. The riff from that first song on the album version was intense…because it was so loud. It fills your ears with all kinds of adjustments made in a sound booth. The acoustic version was none of this and yet the crowd was full of life from the simple sounds.
Now this is where Thanksgiving, the Smashing Pumpkins, and Jesus all collide in my mind. I’m watching this concert and I see the crowd fully engaged to the music. I see them all looking forward, without a phone in their hands, and I see them moving and grooving to the simple sounds that came out from musicians’ hands. I don’t even hear the lyrics to the songs, which to be honest, I know aren’t exactly life-giving, encouraging, or anything uplifting. But I see a generation that fully is onboard with the sounds that aren’t distorted, manipulated, or tweaked to be “better” than they really are. Even though the sounds were super simple compared to the sounds of the electrified-album, the crowd was closer to the original artists than they ever could be at a stadium or arena. The closeness and simplicity were amazing to watch. The attendees wanted the same songs but in a stripped-down way and were ready to give their full attention. That’s what made this little performance legendary to those that were there.
We are in a time that people are hungry for something that moves them and satisfies their soul. It just needs to be presented in a way that’s not run through a million different distortion pedals, amps, or synthesizers. Simple. Real. From the heart. Authentic. Jesus teachings were so simple and yet the playback can get so muddled that others don’t want to hear it because it sounds…not relatable. Jesus seems made up and far away.
To know Jesus is enough. But to feel His presence is precious to those that seek it. It makes you move because it’s personal. Simple. It’s like you are 3 feet away from a sweet-sounding song…far better than any alternative-grunge band from the 90’s could ever make you feel. It’s captivating and pure. And it’s important to take that feeling, that Holy-Spirit driven emotion, and to come alongside others in their pursuits and lives. Help them seek Jesus. Find purpose. Strip it down, make it simple, keep it real.
We have a lot to be thankful for on Thanksgiving. So much. But I keep coming back to the simple message that Jesus offers. A distorted version might be catchy and sell records, but the stripped down and personal version is what people remember. Stay close to Him. Stay close to those that need Him. And keep it simple and stripped down. I promise you THAT song will be better than anything a pumpkin-themed band could ever come up with.
