The Smashing Pumpkins Album: “Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness”

For all of their previous accomplishments, nothing could have prepared the world for what the Chicago-based Smashing Pumpkins would bring to the table with their double-album/masterpiece, "Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness." Co-produced by Flood (Nine Inch Nails), the set -- which marks the third effort the band -- is as lush as it is intimate, as ambitious as it is focused and every bit as grand as such an affair should be.

From the opening swells of the hit "Tonight, Tonight," the amount of growth marked between this and the band's previous effort, "Siamese Dream" is evident. A sweeping ballad that is unlike anything the band had poduced before, it's not only indicative of the what was to come, but also merely a sampler of the wide variety of sounds the album has to offer. From there we are treated to the retro-pop of "1979," a nostalgic anthem of sorts that finds the band working with a drum machine for the first time since recruiting drumming powerhouse Jimmy Chamberlin. Bassist D'arcy Wretzky dominates on heavier fare such as "Zero" (a signature song of the band) and the superior "Tales of a Scorched Earth," which threatens to overload and obliterate even the best sound system. It's not all sonic bombast, though, as some of the simpler tracks like "Muzzle" (which carries the trademark vintage Pumpkins sound) and "Thirty-Three" are the stars that burn the brightest.

From front to back, not a moment on "Mellon Collie" is wasted. Not only is the band in top form and firing on all cylinders (arguably for the first and last time in their career) but Corgan's songwriting hits an all-time high as well. Unlike many of their fellow rockers, Smashing Pumpkins weren't afraid to embrace accessibility and reach new heights creatively, and to that end, "Mellon Collie & The Inifinite Sadness" is one of the most competent and most compelling rock releases of the 90's. A true classic that no collection -- alternative or otherwise -- should go without.

Yeah, yeah, yeah, we know, Billy Corgan's an arrogant jerk who can't sing...insert your favorite nit-pick here. The juggernaut that is MCIS will roll right over them and never even notice. We're talking about 28 songs, nearly two-and-a- half hours of music here. Even back in '95 it was a gutsy move; double-albums do for most bands' album sales what the Jonestown Kool-Aid did for kid's soft drinks. But the ever-dysfunctional Pumpkins pulled it off in grand style, even dethroning the so-called King of Pop in sales.

Musically, this album is all over the map, covering basically every impulse the Pumpkins have ever even hinted at in their previous two albums. Want alt-rock? MCIS offers up the moody, blistering "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" and the surging, groovy "1979". Metal? Try the menacing "XYU" or the defiant "An Ode to No One" or the blitzkrieg "Bodies". Glam rock? The gorgeous "Thru The Eyes of Ruby" or the arena rock anthem "Muzzle" sparkle like sequins on Ziggy Stardust's stiletto heels. Prog rock? "Porcelina of the Vast Oceans" has the kind of weird time signatures and start-stop dynamics that would make Rush green with envy. Tripped out, psychedelic ballads? The swooning "Beautiful" and the playful "Cupid de Locke" should satisfy your sweet tooth. Oh and there's James Iha's shimmering, lovely twin contributions of "Take Me Down" and "Farewell and Goodnight". And let's not forget "Where Boys Fear to Tread", which sounds like the soundtrack to some sort of weird vampire motorcycle gang movie as directed by Joel Shumacher during his Batman tenure. And the industrial bite and scratch of "Love" and the subtle "In The Arms of Sleep" And...Well, you get the point.

Nirvana may have been the most talked-about and critically celebrated, Pearl Jam the most earnest, and Soundgarden the hardest but for sheer substance, for my money, even their best works can't hold a candle to what the Pumpkins achieved on MCIS. It's a feast for the ears and easily one of rock's true masterpieces.

Mellon Collie is an album very dear to me...the cover art and the imagery on the booklet, i found this very stunning when i was 14, ten years ago now. I remember vividly sneaking into brothers room to listen to his mellon collie cassette. I was captivated by the track stumbeline, and i began a 5 year infatuation with the band. How couldn't I?

I think this album was the point when the Smashing Pumpkins captured their image most brilliantly, and to a 14 year old they were mysterious, interesting, fascinating, brilliant, and so so so different and better than everything else at the time. Indeed the world realised this, this was a very popular album at the time.

The band seemed to have an understanding of what it was to be the Smashing Pumpkins. To this day i am captivated by the video clips accompanying the singles. This wasn't a shallow garage band, i believe that everything they touched at this moment was magic.

I would disagree with the people saying that too much was crammed on Mellon Collie, and filler, FILLER? Maybe you just want to justify a negative respone. No there isnt any filler, each track is alive with melody, a subject matter, dynamic, beauty. To me each song has it's own life which means no two songs are alike.

Maybe I'm a bit sentimental but this CD captured a time. I would love to be 14 again and soak in all the imagery and sounds all over again for the first time. Mellon Collie was responsible for me beginning a life long interest and obsession with music. I think music is the best friend you can have, Mellon Collie is my oldest friend.

This double disc has to be considered the greatest effort from the Smashing Pumpkins. It was a bold and risky move for them to release a more expensive album for consumers when they could've just released a single LP with bascially the hits at a cheaper price. Thankfully, they didn't do this. The songs here are very different from one another, but each holds immense emotion, and this makes it a success without question. The experimental, somewhat techno-vibe of "1979" became one of the band's biggest hits, while other rock epics like "Bullet With Butterfly Wings" and "Tonight, Tonight" became radio and music television staples. I find some of the best moments though come from the songs not heard on the radio or always played at concerts. "Muzzle" and "We Only Come Out At Night" should've been hits because of the honesty Corgan exerts as he reflects on childhood and thinks of the meaning his life has. Two other solid tracks are the light and beautiful "In The Arms Of Sleep" and the positive mid-tempo rocker "Here Is No Why," which has a great chorus speaking of optimism. Some of the songs also have a true, roaring hard rock vibe that continues from start to end, and the best of these are probably "Bodies," "Tales Of A Scorched Earth," and "F-ck You (An Ode To No One)." Corgan's softer and even more experimental side comes out in both discs on the many love epics like "Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans," "Lily (My One And Only)," and "Beautiful." The love songs are very mushy and remind me of soft rock, but they do show how much variety exists on MELLON COLLIE AND THE INFINITE SADNESS. No matter what happens with the cloudy future of this band, this epic double release will be one of the 90's best pieces of rock music, and it also may bring new fans who can hear the many sides of the Pumpkins just through this album.

"Siamese Dream" was pretty epic, but nothing compared to this. "Mellon Collie" is The Smashing Pumpkins' massively successful double album; a bloated, 28 track affair that works a good 95% of the time.

This is obviously Billy Corgan's animal, and he put painstaking effort into it to make sure that every song sounds different from the last. Thus, it's like "The White Album" - massively diverse, with no common theme. It worked with The Beatles, and it works here.

Thus, you have everything from gentle piano instrumentals (the title track) to raucous, raging rock anthems ("Zero", "Bullet With Butterfly Wings", "Jellybelly") to sweeping prog-rock epics ("Porcelina of the Vast Blue Oceans") to orchestral pop bliss ("Tonight Tonight") to power pop ("Muzzle") to sonic noise assaults ("An Ode to No One") to wistful, beautiful ballads ("Galapogos", "To Forgive") to elegant dream pop ("Cupid De Locke") to sappy James Iha fluff ("Take Me Down").

And that's just the first disc!

The second disc is all over the map as well. There's towering, tempo-shifting guitar freakouts ("X.Y.U."), raging rockers ("Bodies", "Where Boys Fear To Tread"), blistering death metal ("Tales of a Scorched Earth"), new wave pop perfection ("1979"), gorgeous ballads ("Farewell and Goodnight", "Thirty-Three"), stark accoustic confessionals ("Stumbeline"), soul ("Beautiful"), more majestic prog rock ("Thru the Eyes of Ruby"), carefree romps ("Lily"), sugary love songs ("By Starlight") and weird crap I can't describe ("We Only Come Out At Night").

I don't even think I named every song, and I'm still exhausted! However, don't be afraid of the sheer length of this album; "Mellon Collie.." is The Pumpkins' most accessible work. You're bound to find something you like, if not everything.

Best Songs: Tonight Tonight, Thru the Eyes of Ruby, Where Boys Fear to Tread, Bodies, Galapogos, Thirty-Three, Zero, Farewell & Goodnight.