This edition of The Smashing Pumpkins (basically Billy Corgan and one lone musician – guitarist Jeff Schroeder) has decided it is time for them to explore the synth pop genre. Interesting coming from a band that started off as an alternative or even gothic rock band. Is Billy Corgan lightening up? Could it be? Let’s not get excited though some of the lyrics are more hopeful than we’re used to from the band but paired with Corgan’s sharp and bitter sounding voice it evens things out with equal parts light and dark. Somehow he manages to delve into this new sonic arena while at the same time keeping the songs sounding like The Smashing Pumpkins. It is poppier a sound and yet still guitar led. They have moved on from the typical nineties sound to something a little more modern. The best example of this is the track “Being Beige” which is rather emotional and yet still has some kick to it. Bottom line is that the result is a rather New Wave sound. A short nine songs making it seem lighter than any other album from the band but it sort of makes sense due to the shorter attention span of the younger music fan. If they are aiming at attracting new fans, that is.
The Smashing Pumpkins – Monuments to An Elegy
