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The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music

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The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music is a collection of previously unreleased demos and two live tracks by The Smashing Pumpkins which was originally created as a mix tape by Billy Corgan and passed to a fan with instructions to distribute the songs to other fans.[1]

Composition and distribution

In April 2000 while touring in support of the first Machina album, Billy Corgan gave Smashing Pumpkins Fan Collaborative creator Eric Agnew a 60-minute cassette with explicit instructions to circulate the recordings. The songs overran the end of each side of the cassette, so "Here's to the Atom Bomb" and an untitled instrumental are cut short.[2] The tape was received without a verified track list labeled, so Eric was forced to form one himself based on his knowledge of previous releases and performances.[3]

The online distribution was so successful that when Virgin refused to release the follow up to Machina due to poor sales, Corgan made the decision to follow the previous route of the original Friends & Enemies and released Machina II in a similar manner.

Compilation

With the exception of "The Everlasting Gaze", alternate versions of the songs from the entire first side of the tape would surface on Machina II. "The Everlasting Gaze" is an alternate version of the song that appeared on Machina. "Le Deux Machina" was used in portions in the middle section of "Ghost and the Glass Children" from Machina. A full-length and uncut version of "Here's to the Atom Bomb" would appear as a B-side to the "Try, Try, Try" single. "Real Love" would appear on Machina II and Rotten Apples. "X.Y.U" and "Where Boys Fear to Tread" are live performances of the songs that appeared on Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. "The Ethers Tragic" is a live performance of the song that appeared as a B-side to "The End Is the Beginning Is the End" single. "Once Upon a Time" and "Crestfallen" are demo versions of the songs that appeared on Adore.

"Money (That's What I Want)", "Never Say Never" and the untitled instrumental are the only songs that have not appeared on any other releases in any form.

Track listing

All songs written by Billy Corgan, except where noted.

Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Glass" (listed as "Glass' Theme")1:57
2."The Everlasting Gaze" (listed as "Disco King", an early working title)4:33
3."Dross"3:23
4."Blue Skies Bring Tears"4:09
5."If There Is a God"2:15
6."Le Deux Machina"5:44
7."Heavy Metal Machine"5:51
8."Here's to the Atom Bomb" (cut, appears full-length on Try, Try, Try single)2:20
Side two
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Real Love" (appears on Rotten Apples and Machina II) 4:07
2."Money (That's What I Want)" (live)Janie Bradford/Berry Gordy3:21
3."X.Y.U." (a live medley, including "The Ethers Tragic", "Never Say Never" and "Where Boys Fear to Tread")"Never Say Never" by Romeo Void12:02
4."Once Upon a Time" 4:22
5."Crestfallen"  
6."[untitled Siamese Dream-era instrumental]" (cut) 1:39

Footnotes

  1. ^ All Music, "The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music". Accessed July 15, 2008.
  2. ^ "Friends & Enemies of Modern Music". The Smashing Pumpkins Fan Collaborative Bootlist (SPFC.org). Retrieved 2007-03-04.
  3. ^ Smashing Pumpkins dot com "Interview with Eric Agnew"