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Billy Corgan was having a mid life crisis and he is nostalgic for the good ol’ days when he was rocking out with James Iha, D’arcy Wretzky, and Melissa Auf der Maur. So, he called up the strung out Jimmy Chamberlin and they wrote some songs together. At one point Auf der Maur confirmed Corgan and Chamberlin were working together and it was incorrectly assumed that she was involved with the reunion. Corgan never considered involving Iha and Wretzky in the reunion. Corgan wanted to silence his critics that claimed he was getting old and his sound was getting weak. The result was the Smashing Pumpkins seventh studio release, “Zietgeist.” Corgan plays every instrument on the album, besides the drums, which are provided by Chamberlin. The CD jacket actually says: “Jimmy Chamberlin: Drums, Billy Corgan: everything else.” Jeff Schroeder and Ginger Reyes will be playing guitar and bass respectively during the Pumpkins live shows.

Upon opening the album you will discover a pretty interesting jacket. The cover is the Statue of Liberty half way under water, perhaps a global warming reference? The there is the Smashing Pumpkins new logo, which feature a heart on top of a casket with SP writing inside it. Paris Hilton is featured in two pictures, one that has a large explosion occurring behind her while she is busy talking on her phone. Then there is some naked chick stabbing herself with some object right above her breast. The there is a picture of what appears to be a WWE entertainer. That is followed guy yielding a large gun with an ancient armor suit on, which I think is supposed to be a mock on the recent film 300. Then there is a shot in which Bush is depicted as the grim reaper. The pictures close with a bass guitar and a the new logo in a casket with a dude kneeling in front of it. I first thought it was supposed to be symbolic of the death of rock and roll, but I don’t think that’s right at all. Does anyone know what Corgan had in mind here? All in all it’s pretty interesting.

To be honest I wasn’t expecting much from this album. However, I think everyone is going to be surprised by how strong this album is. Corgan wanted to make an album that rocked and he definitely accomplished that. The album opener “Doomsday Clock” has an addictive chorus and can be found in the new movie Transformers. The thunderous drums in the beginning remind me of something out of a Metallica song. The first single is “Tarantula” and I think I have decided that it is my favorite Smashing Pumpkins song of all time. It is very musically advanced to what you will be used to. The call and answer guitar solo is incredible and the lyrics are pretty awesome as well. The song most likely to have mainstream success is “That’s The Way (That Love Is).” It is a nice slow down from the first three tracks. It is not even close to being “Tonight, Tonight” but it is a solid effort. The black sheep of the album is “United States.” Lasting nine and a half minutes it is a very painful listen. At points it just seems like noise with Corgan yelling “revolution” in the background. I really don’t get what this track is supposed to accomplish. The second half of the album has some more melodic tracks like “Bring On The Light” and the incredibly catchy “(Come On) Lets Go!” I also love “Stellar” because Corgan’s voice is more audible compared to some of the other tracks. The album closes out with “Pomp and Circumstances” which is a very slow experimental acid trip type song. It’s an weird way to close the album, but it sounds cool. Overall, I was very impressed with what Corgan had left in him. I give “Zeitgeist” an 8.

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