Song · The Smashing Pumpkins
“Freak” by The Smashing Pumpkins
From the EP Teargarden by Kaleidyscope, Vol. II: The Solstice Bare (2010)
“Freak” by The Smashing Pumpkins appears on 13 radio countdowns from 12 stations between 2010 and 2011. It was first released in 2010 on the EP Teargarden by Kaleidyscope, Vol. II: The Solstice Bare. Its best result is #26 on the KJEE Top 92 Songs of 2010. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #80 alternative song of 2010 and #340 of the '10s.
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"Freak", also known as "Freak U.S.A.", was the second single from Teargarden by Kaleidyscope, the Smashing Pumpkins' sprawling 34-song project, and the first track out from its second EP, The Solstice Bare, in 2010. Billy Corgan wrote it alone, and like everything else on the EP it went out as a free download from the band's website. He'd debuted it in July 2009 at the first Spirits in the Sky show, a tribute to Sky Saxon, and the band played it through their 2010 tours.
Spin heard a grab bag of Corgan's past lives in it: a chirpy chorus of bright guitars that recalls his short-lived side project Zwan, heavy, fuzzed-out bass that nods to the goth corners of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and lyrics straight out of the early Pumpkins years.
Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.
RockLists rankings
Alternative & Modern Rock
All Rock Formats
Year-end countdowns
| Year | # | Station | Countdown | of |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | 31 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 2010 | 91 |
| 2010 | 54 | Q101 Chicago, IL | Q101 Top 101 Songs of 2010 | 101 |
| 2010 | 72 | CD101 Columbus, OH | CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2010 | 101 |
| 2010 | 73 | CFNY 102.1 The Edge Toronto, ON | 102.1 The Edge Top 102 Songs of 2010 | 102 |
| 2010 | 37 | 88.3 The Sting Cleveland, OH | 88.3 The Sting WBWC Top 88 Songs of 2010 | 88 |
| 2010 | 94 | 99 Rock Lebanon-Hanover-White River Junction, NH-VT | 99Rock WFRD Top 99 of 2010 | 99 |
| 2010 | 87 | 103.1 The Buzz West Palm Beach, FL | Buzz 103.1 The 103 Most Played Buzz Cuts of 2010 | 103 |
| 2010 | 73 | 94.1 The Zone Rochester, NY | 94.1 The Zone Most Played Songs of 2010 | 91 |
| 2010 | 74 | 89.7 The River Omaha, NE / Council Bluffs, IA | 89.7 The River Top 89 of 2010 | 89 |
| 2010 | 26 | KJEE 92.9 Santa Barbara, CA | KJEE Top 92 Songs of 2010 | 91 |
| 2010 | 65 | 94.5 The Buzz Houston, TX | 94.5 The Buzz Top 94 of 2010 | 94 |
| 2010 | 78 | WBRU Providence, RI | WBRU Top 95 Songs of 2010 | 95 |
| 2011 | 88 | 91X San Diego, CA / Tijuana | 91X Top 91 Songs of 2011 | 91 |
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