The Hunt for Tickets
Alright, so the Smashing Pumpkins announce a Milwaukee show. Huge news. I’m a big fan from way back, so obviously I wanna go. Tickets go on sale Friday morning at 10 AM sharp.
Friday morning rolls around. I got my laptop fired up, coffee brewing, fingers poised over the keyboard like some kinda concert ninja. Hit refresh like a maniac right at 10. Bam! Site crashes. Keeps timing out. It’s a freaking nightmare. Like trying to swim through molasses. Refresh, refresh, refresh… sweat starting to bead on my forehead.
Finally, 10:23 AM, after probably fifty refreshes, the darn thing loads. Section 200 pops up, I mash that “Buy Now” button faster than a kid grabbing candy. Checkout feels like forever. Confirm the payment… boom! Ticket secured. Print that sucker out immediately. Felt like winning a tiny lottery, no joke.
Getting There Was Half the Battle
Show night arrives. Figured leaving two hours early for a 90-minute drive would be safe. Silly me. Hit construction traffic almost immediately. Then rain started dumping – like buckets, zero visibility type stuff.
Sitting on the interstate barely moving, wipers going full tilt, feeling the panic rise. Eyes glued to the clock on the dash. GPS recalculates endlessly, adding more and more minutes. Thought for sure I’d miss the opener or maybe even the start. Heart pounding, knuckles white on the wheel.
Rolled into the Fiserv Forum parking lot with maybe 10 minutes to spare before the Pumpkins hit. Forget finding cheap parking – just grabbed the first spot I saw, threw cash at the attendant without waiting for change, and practically sprinted for the doors.
The Arena Chaos
The lines. Oh god, the lines. Wrapped around the building. Security check was its own special kind of cattle call. Held my breath hoping my ticket wouldn’t glitch when I scanned it. Big sigh of relief hearing that beep.
Inside was chaos:
- People everywhere, shoulder to shoulder.
- Beer lines stretching a mile long (and prices? Forget it).
- Merch booth looked like a feeding frenzy. People grabbing shirts like they were free.
Noise, lights, just sensory overload walking in. Found my nosebleed seats way up top. View wasn’t terrible, but felt miles from the stage. Crowd up there was… lively. Let’s leave it at that.
The Freaking Show
Lights cut. Place goes absolutely nuts. That roar when Billy and the guys walk out? Goosebumps. Straight chills down the spine. They kick in and… it’s loud. Like, rattle-your-bones loud. Seriously regretted not grabbing earplugs halfway through the first song.
Setlist was killer:
- Blasted right into “Empires.” Insane energy.
- “Today” hit – whole arena singing along, top of their lungs.
- “Bullet with Butterfly Wings”? Complete mayhem. Everyone screaming “DESPITE ALL MY RAGE” together. Unreal feeling.
- New stuff sounded raw and heavy live. Old classics felt fresh.
Light show was nuts, like lasers and projections going crazy behind them. Billy’s voice sounded exactly like you’d hope – powerful, a little scratchy in the best way. Crowd energy didn’t dip once. Couple near me just started slow dancing during “Tonight, Tonight.” Was kinda weird but also sweet? Anyway.
The Aftermath
Final encore fades. Lights come up. Feels like waking up from an amazing dream. Reality hits: exhausted, ears ringing like crazy, voice totally shot from singing/screaming.
Now the escape. Tried leaving quick – bad idea. Ended up stuck shuffling down stairs, then got funneled into the concourse scrum. Took forever just to get out the darn building.
Then came the parking lot. Total gridlock madness. Sat in my car, engine running, watching taillights go nowhere for close to 45 minutes. Took a solid hour just to crawl back onto the highway. Got home stupid late, legs aching, brain fried, still humming “1979.”
Was it worth the chaos? Every single freaking minute of stress, traffic, expense, and ringing ears. Hearing those songs live, surrounded by thousands of people feeling the same vibes? Pure magic. Total pain getting there and back, but the middle part? Absolutely smashed it. Would do it all over again in a heartbeat.
