The Smashing Pumpkins Album: “Pisces Iscariot”

The Smashing Pumpkins' music that made the actual studio albums were, for the most part, nothing short of enigmatic, yet positively beautiful, otherworldly, mood-inducing and cathartic. The songs that didn't make the albums, however, are just as stunning and deserving of the attention from any Pumpkin fan. In fact, some of these songs could surpass some of the ones that actually made the albums; further evidencing the need to own the B-sides.

_Pisces Iscariot_ is a collection of B-sides and outtakes deriving mostly from the _Siamese Dream_ sessions, while a couple derive from the _Gish_ sessions, and one track is taken from the (now) hard-to-find _Lull_ EP.

A reviewer below makes a great observation: _Pisces Iscariot_ doesn't feature the overall grandiose, bombastic consistency of mood found on _Siamese Dream_ and subsequent Pumpkins studio albums. Instead, there's more of an intimate, lo-fi and subtly nostalgic mood that permeates these recordings. But, regardless, the trademark Pumpkins' mix of soft, dreamy ambience, and overdriven sonic extremeties are here aplenty.

Some of my favorites: "Soothe" is a track recorded in Billy Corgan's bedroom. An intimate, low-key acoustic track featuring autumnal chords, which provide as the backdrop for Billy's equally intimate, breathy mannerisms. "Frail and Bedazzled" is a retro-sounding rocker with a tint of psychedelic mannerisms. The swirling guitars, the precise, yet seductively-rhythmic drumming from Jimmy Chamberlain (this guy was mind-blowing on the kit), and D'Arcy's bottom-heavy basslines coalesce to create this indescribably beautiful number.

"Whir" is simply one of the most preciously beautiful things this band ever did, and they have done many, to say the least. The dreamy melody, punctuated by the strumming of the seemingly-unplugged strings, the willowy, subtle line overdubs, and Billy's breathy vocals are some of the few things that help to create this monumental beauty. The minor-key ending was a nice way to round off this one. "Blew Away" is a dreamy number by James Iha. The first part starts off slow, only to end on a heavier note.

The next two songs are the Pumpkins at their explosive best: "Pissant" is almost punk-like in it's rhythm and lyrics, yet you would rarely find overdriven guitars as thick and heavy as this in most punk songs. "Hello Kitty Kat" is almost ambient in it's heaviness; the heaviness and overdriven sonics are so extreme, that it nearly crosses over into house & techno. The wall-of-sound is massive here, and Billy's soft voice is beautifully drowned in the explosive mix. It creates a wonderful effect, and the noise only gets more intense as the song progresses. What's more astounding? The noise is actually melodic and almost trance-inducing.

After those last two sonic powerhouses, we are brought back into the band's softer side. "Obscured" is a beautifully-meandering, mood-inducing number, which actually ends on an eerie, fuzzed-out note. "Landslide" is the Pumpkins' cover of the famous Stevie Nicks/Fleetwood Mac track. Billy and gang actually did a nifty job on this performance. Billy claims that this song is quite an inspiration on him, and that he highly identifies with it. "Starla" is an 11-minute powerhouse. Starts off smoothly and melodically, with a few psychedelic-like backdrops. Then, later, it concludes with a swirling, drawn-out instrumental jam that you could easily lose yourself in.

Not much else needs to be said. If you're a Pumpkins fan, you won't want to be without it. Of course, if you really are a Pumpkins fan, you already do have it. But, by the subtle chance that you fall into the former, you've got my recommendation, to say the least.

What surprises me most about Pisces Iscariot is the sheer eclecticism that it represents. These are songs that range from the barely-there acoustic opener Soothe to the all-out amps on 11 grind of Pissant. Corgan forces sounds out of his guitar that don't seem to all be coming from the same place.

The guitar on Plume sounds more like a truck revving its engine than any instrument I can think of, but the sound doesn't overcome the dry sarcasm of the line "Oh yeah, another day. Oh yeah, gotta play." There's a juxtaposition of the empowerment of being a rock star with the self-realization that life is boring.

Pisces Iscariot is a statement of what music the band felt had gone too far to fit on a conventional record; material that's too personal, too indulgent. There's a cover of Landslide on here. There's an epic monster. The booklet itself is made as if just thrown together at the last moment on rice paper.

It's an album of disparate songs, but they somehow fit together. You can hear cars going by in the background. It sounds like Chicago.

Ironically, it's in the b-side collection that I find music that I think best reflects what the pumpkins were about.

And it's totally great.

If you want a classic Pumpkins Album then get this! In my Opinion, it even tops Siamese Dream. Like every Pumpkins Record, this one has a very special feeling to all the songs, even if they are B-Sides and have nothing to do with one another. "Soothe" is one of my favorite Pumpkins Songs ever, it's so simple and perfect at once. Most songs on the Album are extremely mellow, like "Whir", "Obscured" or "La Dolly Vita". You also hear James Iha singing on "Blew Away". It's really hard to name the highlights of this album because every song is an enormous highlight for itself. Not one weak point in 14 songs, most other bands can only dream of this. You won't realize that this is a B-Sides sampler! It would be silly to compare the Pumpkins Albums, but I like this one better than Siamese Dream and Gish. It isn't as monumental as "Mellon Collie" and not as special as "Adore" or as big as "Machina", but I think it's the heart of the band's career. It is an essential piece of any nineties-Rock Collection.

Billy Corgan...was there a more prolific songwriter of the 90's? For a guy that wrote 300+ songs in a decade (yeah, it's true) it's hard to say no. Back early in the game with only two albums to their name the Pumpkins put out this excellent collection of B-sides in 1994 (and it wasn't even close to a complete collection, where's Purr Snickety or Glynis or ....?). And the scary thing? There really isn't much pure filler here. A lot of these could have been A-Sides. Hell, a lot of them SHOULD have been A-Sides. With B-side collections you usually get an album with two or three good songs and then about 10 half-baked ideas. That's not the case here. This album runs the course from moments of beauty (the opener 'Soothe', the cover of 'Landslide') to furious rockers (the excellent one-two punch of 'Pissant' and 'Hello Kitty Kat'). With this release you can tell that the band (young at that point in time) was really having fun in the studio (something they lacked on later releases). Tracks such as 'Frail and Bedazzled' seethe with youthful exhuburance and the attitude is contagious. Sure, there are some tunes that don't altogether work; their take on'Girl Named Sandoz' exchanges manic soloing for an actual tune while 'Whir' floats gently down the stream without ever really catching hold, but contained on the album are many excellent tracks as well as two absolute astonishing numbers. The first of these two is 'Obscured', a dream-like song that hovers around your ears without ever quite falling in. It's one of those wonderful 'shoulda made the album' type of songs that you'll want to put on repeat. The second of the two is 'Starla', an epic 10+ minute song that begins softly before building into a sonic freakout. The band rocks out here like they're fighting for something they believe in. Back in '94 they were a band with something to prove and with this song, they did.

This album is so often overlooked and swept in the shadows of the Pumpkins anthology, and it is a shame. This is a more stripped down album compared to more extravagant productions like Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie, but at its core, it is still just undeniably good music. There is more of an acoustic touch to this album, and a more airy feeling throughout, with not as many heavy, raging tunes. Even the harder-edged songs (pissant, hello kitty kat) seem to have a soaring quality in the context of this album. However, the more acoustic songs demonstrate the softer side of the pumpkins, from the simple, yearning, "Soothe", to the lilting "Whir", to the hauntingly beautiful "Obscured". Either way, this album has a definite overall texture to it, one that is both ethereal and tangible. Very good stuff. Give it a try.