You Know They're Not Dead!

"You know I'm not dead!" wails Billy Corgan on the first line of the first song on the Smashing Pumpkins newest album MACHINA/The Machines of God. The Everlasting Gaze is not only the first song but subsequently the first single. It's a reminder from Corgan and the rest of the group that they haven't gone anywhere since riding the crest of super-stardom in the mid-nineties with albums such as Siamese Dream, and Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Their last album Adore was unjustly drubbed by critics and doubters, and we were given a glimpse at how quickly a band can be critically dismissed. You have no idea how happy it makes me to say that MACHINA/The Machines of God is the best Pumpkins album since Siamese Dream.

Be forewarned: This is not the hard-edged heavy metal album that it is being marketed as. Actually the sound borrows more from a mixture of Adore, and Siamese Dream than anything else. The sound is occasionally quite heavy, but it's got more of the rock and roll feel of their earlier work than the bone crunching over produced Mellon Collie…. It definitely didn't hurt that they allowed original drummer Jimmy Chamberlain back into the fold… that single addition makes the group immeasurably better, and it should now be obvious to the world how a truly great drummer can be make or break for a band. Darcy, the bass player quit the band months ago, and so MACHINA/The Machines of God is the last chance that we'll get to hear all four original members play together. And play they do, with sweeping melodies, slick effects, and yes, bone crunching guitars. You can usually classify any Pumpkins music into two categories: the slow, simple sweet ballads, and the heavy screeching guitar wail (and Corgan wail) of their faster material. Both classifications apply once again on MACHINA….

So what is MACHINA about anyway? Some have speculated that Mr. Corgan is merely venting frustrations towards organized religion in general. A case can certainly be made for that, especially in the final few songs. I believe however, that this album is just a wake up call for all the people out there so quick to jump on the bandwagon and dismiss the Pumpkins and alternative rock in general. On more than one occasion in the lyrics Corgan uses Michael Stipe-like tactics in blasting every critic. Most importantly, This album is about the Smashing Pumpkins coming "back" to form (I would argue they never lost their form, they just took an interesting detour) and showing the world that they can still rock.

The Everlasting Gaze is by every account the hardest Pumpkins single we've heard since Bullet With Butterfly Wings. It's one of the few purely metal songs on the album, and Corgan even added a dreamy, effects-laden chorus to boot. From there, the album jumps right into the beautifully layered Raindrops + Sunshowers. Corgan's voice burns with his usual slow snarl, and the beat reminds me a lot of Perfect, the second single from Adore.

Stand Inside Your Love has hints of Corgan's guitar genius, and gives us little morsels of days of yesteryear, I'm referring of course to his incredible axe layers on Siamese Dream. Once again, the chorus is catchy, and the bass line is heavy but not overly so. Aside from the really bad title, I of The Mourning (wink, wink) deals I believe with Corgan's feelings about the hostile public feelings towards Adore. Lines like "No one's out there to hear if I care", and "I blow the dust off my guitars", are obvious references to the way the Pumpkins' change in style wasn't greeted with open arms. This is an excellent song with a great guitar line or two, and if this album takes off in the charts expect to hear this one on the radio waves quite a bit.

The Sacred and Profane is another slow effects layered song. It's definitely another highlight with Chamberlain's drum fills bringing a smile to my face. Try Try Try has some playful lyrics interspersed with some heavy undertones: "Envision a free world/of clear division/for too long they held us under/but I know we're getting over."

Okay, so far basically every song other than The Everlasting Gaze has been light and poppy. Not the heavy metal album I was expecting. Then we are treated to Heavy Metal Machine, a rock and roll anthem of Pumpkins proportions complete with a Kiss like chant near the end, and some of the best drum fills and guitar work that we've heard from these guys in years. Corgan's lyrics explore his frustrations further in lines like: "If I were dead, were my records sell?" and the Michael Stipe like "Could you understand that it's not yours to keep?"

This Time brings us back down in its dreamy echo chorus laden guitars and thumping bass. This is one of the more bittersweet songs on the album, and one of the greatest highlights. It's chorus jumps up and slaps you with the lines "Crashing down, crashing down again." The Imploding Voice brings us back into the heavy metal swagger. This could be a HUGE single if the Pumpkins decide to release it as such.

Glass and the Ghost Children is a downward jazzy spiral with glints of The Doors' guitarist Robby Krieger and drummer John Densmore. Of course, Billy Corgan doesn't have the same sexual charisma that Jim Morrison stirred up, but with Morrison-esque lines like "Black rooms are calling to men in leather coats/white labs are cooking up the silver ghost/the glass migrates under her translucent skin." Corgan seems to emote the same eerie inner demons that plagued Morrison on songs like The End, and in the same vein, there's a long pause near the end after which the music picks back up. Wound is another song that sounds like it may have been written during the Adore period. It's got a bit heavier edge, but the effects remind me of that album.

The Crying of Mercury is a slow groove, with lines like "I'm reaching through the noise across the dusk of time within the lilting lies/I am singing to you." Check out the full on distorted guitar solo, and the way every element in the music sounds like it was run straight through a fuzz box. With Every Light has a really playful beat (think Lily (My One and Only) from Mellon Collie…), which disguises its not so obvious references to the love of God with lines like "Could you believe in Heaven, if Heaven was all you had?" Blue Skies Bring Tears is twice as obvious than the previous song in its religious references.

MACHINA ends with Age of Innocence, which brings us yet more religious undertones with lines like "And in my prayers I dream alone/a silent speech to deaf ear/if you want love you must be love/but if you love you will die loved." It's a nice way to end this album.

I would be remiss if I failed to mention the absolute beauty of the album liner. You RARELY see covers, or inserts designed this nicely or with this much obvious time put in. MAJOR kudos go to art directors Gregory Sylvester, Thomas Wolfe, Billy Corgan, and Yelena Yemchuk, as well as the multi-talented painter/etcher Vasily Kafanov. Truly wonderful.

It's such a pleasure to see a band like the Smashing Pumpkins come full circle as they have. Like U2, and other bands that have strayed from their original styles on occasion, you must always remember that the talent still lies there. With MACHINA the Pumpkins have melded all the different styles from each of their unique albums into one cohesive masterpiece. If you are a Pumpkins fan, or have ever been one at any point in time, you must get this album. It is truly their best offering in years.

OVERALL GRADE: A