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When this disc was released, fans of the band quickly noted some major flaws with the album and its bonus disc. The song "Plume" on the main album had been replaced with a different take of the song, various songs on the bonus discs have digital "glitches," and many of the tracks on the bonus disc suffer from massive brick walling. That being said, this is still a treat.
With the exception of the wrong take of "Pulme," the remastered album sounds great, and is a nice sonic upgrade of a classic B-sides collection that stands up with the bands main albums. The music here shows everything the band is capable of from gently strummed acoustic ballads ("Soothe" and the band's famous cover of "Landslide"), psychedelic rock ("Starla" and Spaced") and gentle lullaby-like sing-alongs ("Blue," "La Dolly Vita," and "Whir") Of course, the band famous distorted guitars and generation-X rock anthems are here as well. "Frail & Bedazzled" and "Plume" in particular display the bands distinct duel guitar sound, while "Hello Kitty Kat" and "Pissant" stand as some of the most ferocious songs ever recorded by the band.
The bonus disc, on the other hand, remains a bit paltry. Besides the previously mentioned problems with loudness, some of the songs are double dipped ("Why Am I So Tired" and the live performance of "Slunk" can be found on Earphoria) and many of the songs (particularly the Pre-Gish stuff) has been widely circulated for years. Considering that this particular reissue seems more aimed for the hardcore fan, it seems like some more unreleased stuff could have been unearthed. There are some cool moments, in particular the stretch of "Crawl," "Cinder Open," and "Blissed" show the band at its most vulnerable and spacey.
What very much makes up for the errors of the bonus disc is the extra material that comes with it. First off is a 1988 performance of the band from a Chicago cable station. Once you get past the initial shock/humor factor of seeing the band so young (Billy has hair! James looks like he's 12! D'arcy is wearing ridiculous clothes! Jimmy has a mullet!) this show makes clear just how tight the band was early on, even if the songs are not perfect. Still, one cannot deny the songwriting prowess of bandleader/songwriter/guitarist Billy Corgan when the set opens with a song that sounds like a Cure b-side and ends with a songs that's riff sounds like it could be Iron Maiden, and still works together. Also present on the DVD are some clips of the band playing various songs from 1989 to 1994.
Also worth mentioning is the exact replica of the band's original demo cassette. Yes ladies and gentlemen, it actually comes with a cassette including the original cover art and track listing. While many may have problems finding a cassette player, it certainly still is a nice way to own a small piece of Pumpkins history.
So despite the amateur errors made on the album and the disappointing with some of the choices made on the bonus disc, the DVD and cassette are certainly worth the price of admission.
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