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+--- Thread: Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania (/showthread.php?tid=7178)
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - Music Head - 19-06-2012
online listen
well.......I thought I liked em
sounds like over production to me
always wondered what that meant, now I know
can't describe it, but I can hear it
don't be goin' all electronic on me
surprised, nothing I can say I liked
1.2 from me and a converted 2.4 from the pros at allmusic
from the album - Quasar
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bMTWN3TPZ9A
released June 19th, 2012
![[Image: 220px-The_Smashing_Pumpkins_-_Oceania_cover.jpg]](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/thumb/8/81/The_Smashing_Pumpkins_-_Oceania_cover.jpg/220px-The_Smashing_Pumpkins_-_Oceania_cover.jpg)
Bio - from allmusic
Of all the major alternative rock bands of the early '90s, Smashing Pumpkins were the group least influenced by
traditional underground rock. Lead guitarist/songwriter Billy Corgan fashioned an amalgam of progressive rock, heavy
metal, goth rock, psychedelia, and dream pop, creating a layered, powerful sound driven by swirling, distorted
guitars. Corgan was wise enough to exploit his angst-ridden lyrics, yet he never shied away from rock star
posturing, even if he did cloak it in allegedly ironic gestures. In fact, Smashing Pumpkins became the model for
alternative rock success. Pearl Jam shunned it and Nirvana was too destructive. The Pumpkins, on the other hand,
knew how to play the game, signing to a major-subsidized indie for underground credibility and moving to the major
in time to make the group a multi-platinum act. And when The Pumpkins did achieve mass success with 1993's Siamese
Dream, they went a long way to legitimize heavy metal and orchestrated prog rock, helping move alternative rock even
closer to '70s AOR, especially in the eyes of radio programmers and mainstream audiences. Unlike many of their
contemporaries, they were able to withstand many internal problems and keep selling records, emerging as the
longest-lasting and most successful alternative band of the early '90s.
The son of a jazz guitarist, Billy Corgan grew up in a Chicago suburb, leaving home at the age of 19 to move to
Florida with his fledgling goth metal band, the Marked. After the band failed down South, he returned to Chicago
around 1988, where he began working at a used-record store. At the shop he met James Iha (guitar), a graphic arts
student at Loyola University, and the two began collaborating, performing, and recording songs with a drum machine.
Corgan met D'Arcy Wretzky at a club show; after arguing about the merits of the Dan Reed Network, the two became
friends and she joined the group as a bassist. Soon, the bandmembers, who named themselves Smashing Pumpkins, had
gained a dedicated local following, which included the head of a local club who booked them to open for Jane's
Addiction. Before the pivotal concert, the band hired Jimmy Chamberlin, a former jazz musician, as their full-time
drummer.
In 1990, Smashing Pumpkins released their debut single, "I Am One," on the local Chicago label Limited Potential.
The single quickly sold out, and in December the band released "Tristessa" on Sub Pop. By this point, Smashing
Pumpkins had become the subject of a hot bidding war, and the group latched on to a clever way to move to a major
label without losing indie credibility. They signed to Virgin Records, yet it was decided that the group's debut
would be released on the Virgin subsidiary Caroline, and then the band would move to the majors. The strategy
worked; Gish, a majestic mix of Black Sabbath and dream pop produced by Butch Vig, became a huge college and modern
rock hit upon its spring 1991 release. While it earned a large audience, many indie rock fans began to snipe at
Smashing Pumpkins, accusing them of being careerists. Such criticism did The Pumpkins no harm and they embarked on
an extensive supporting tour for Gish, which lasted over a year and included opening slots for Red Hot Chili Peppers
and Pearl Jam. During the Gish tour, tensions between bandmembers began to escalate, as Iha and D'Arcy, who had been
lovers, went through a messy breakup, Chamberlin became addicted to drugs and alcohol, and Corgan entered a heavy
depression. These tensions hadn't been resolved by the time the group entered the studio with Vig to record its
second album.
Toward the beginning of the sessions, The Pumpkins were given significant exposure through the inclusion of "Drown"
on the Singles soundtrack in the summer of 1992. As the sessions progressed, Corgan relieved himself of his
depression by working heavily -- not only did he write a surplus of songs, he played nearly all of the guitars and
bass on each recording, which meant that its release was delayed several times. The resulting album, Siamese Dream,
was an immaculate production owing much to Queen, yet it was embraced by critics upon its July 1993 release. Siamese
Dream became a blockbuster, debuting at number ten on the charts and establishing Smashing Pumpkins as stars.
"Cherub Rock," the first single, was a modern rock hit, yet it was "Today" and the acoustic "Disarm" that sent the
album into the stratosphere, as well as the group's relentless touring. Smashing Pumpkins became the headliners of
Lollapalooza 1994, and following the tour's completion, the band went back into the studio to record a new album
that Corgan had already claimed would be a double-disc set. To tide fans over until then, The Pumpkins released the
B-sides and rarities album Pisces Iscariot in October 1994.
Working with producers Flood and Alan Moulder, Smashing Pumpkins recorded as a full band for their third album,
which turned out to be, as Corgan predicted, a double-disc set called Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.
Although many observers were skeptical about whether a double-disc set, especially one so ridiculously named, would
be a commercial success, Mellon Collie became an even bigger hit than Siamese Dream, debuting at number one on the
charts. On the strength of the singles "Bullet with Butterfly Wings," "1979," "Zero," and "Tonight, Tonight," it
sold over four million copies in the U.S., eventually being certified platinum over eight times (each disc in the
set counted separately toward certification). The Pumpkins had graduated to stadium shows for the Mellon Collie
tour, and the band was at the peak of its popularity when things began to go wrong again. On July 12, prior to two
shows at Madison Square Garden, the group's touring keyboardist, Jonathan Melvoin, died from a heroin overdose; he
was with Jimmy Chamberlin, who survived his overdose. In the wake of the tragedy, the remaining Pumpkins fired
Chamberlin and spent two months on hiatus as they recovered and searched for a new drummer. Early in August, they
announced that Filter member Matt Walker would be their touring drummer and Dennis Flemion, a member of the Frogs,
would be their touring keyboardist for the remainder of the year. They returned to the stage at the end of August
and spent the next five months on tour. During this time, Corgan contributed some music to Ron Howard's Ransom.
Early in 1997, once The Pumpkins left the road, Iha and D'Arcy launched Scratchie Records, a subsidiary of Mercury
Records. In the spring, Smashing Pumpkins recorded two songs for the soundtrack of Batman & Robin. Iha's solo debut,
Let It Come Down, appeared in early 1998; Adore, the new Smashing Pumpkins LP, followed a few months later to
disappointing sales and reviews. Chamberlin returned to the group and D'Arcy exited prior to the early-2000 release
of MACHINA: The Machines of God. Several months later, Corgan announced his intentions to dissolve the band before
the year was out. With former Hole bassist Melissa auf der Maur replacing D'Arcy, the band launched its farewell
tour in 2000. Fans received one last treat when Corgan and company worked feverishly to finish off tracks that were
left over from the MACHINA sessions. Surprisingly, Virgin Records balked at the idea of releasing the 25-track set
so close to the release of their previous album, so the band put the entire album (going by the official title of
Machina II: The Friends and Enemies of Modern Music) on the Internet for fans to download for free. On December 2 of
the same year, The Pumpkins played a mammoth final show at Chicago's Metro (also the venue at which the group played
its first show back in 1988) before officially calling it quits.
But the former members of the band didn't wait long before carrying on with other projects -- Corgan spent the
summer of 2001 playing guitar with New Order on select concert dates, and later in the year unveiled his new band,
Zwan, including Chamberlin on drums (as well as former Chavez guitarist Matt Sweeney and bassist David "Skullfisher"
Pajo). The other two former Pumpkins, Iha and auf der Maur, began putting together an alt-rock supergroup dubbed the
Virgins. The same year, a pair of postmortem Pumpkins collections were issued for the holiday season -- a double-
disc collection and a DVD both called Greatest Hits. Corgan released his first solo album, The Future Embrace, in
2005, and on the day it came out, he took out a full-page ad in The Chicago Tribune to announce that Smashing
Pumpkins were reuniting. He hadn't informed any of his past bandmates, and only Chamberlin went along. Zeitgeist, a
heavier album than any past Pumpkins album, was released in 2007.
Smashing Pumpkins promoted the album heavily well into 2008, but at the end of the year, Corgan announced that the
group would no longer record albums, and would instead only issue singles. It wasn't the only change in the band.
Corgan announced the departure of Chamberlin in March 2009, making him the last remaining original member of the
band that by then consisted of guitarist Jeff Schroeder, bassist Nicole Fiorentino, and drummer Mike Byrne. Once the
dust settled, Corgan followed through on his promise to issue only short-form releases, putting out the track "A
Song for a Son" in December of 2009. Scattered songs from the band's Teargarden by Kaleidyscope concept were
released over the next two years as free downloads, with physical collections of the tracks released in 2010 by way
of the EP box sets Songs for a Sailor and The Solstice Bare. In 2012, Corgan decided to take a break from the
single-centric concept and released Oceania. Ostensibly Smashing Pumpkins' eighth studio album, Oceania is also part
of the 44-track Teargarden concept.
Album Review from allmusic
Following up on, and in many ways amending, much of the bombastic overcompensation of 2007's Zeitgeist, Smashing
Pumpkins 2012 release Oceania is an exuberant, gloriously melodic, fluid return to form for Billy Corgan. While
Zeitgeist certainly contained many of the elements that make for a classic Smashing Pumpkins release -- including
slabs of distorted guitars, passionate vocals, and poetic lyrics, not to mention drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, who was
the sole remaining original member besides Corgan and who subsequently left the band -- there was something cold and
perhaps a bit too calculated about the production. Ultimately, Zeitgeist didn't do much to dissuade audiences that
Corgan, undeniably the mastermind behind the best Pumpkins work, was now overvaluing his abilities in an attempt to
recapture fans disillusioned by his various side projects. Thankfully, none of these concerns are applicable to
Oceania. Ostensibly an "album within an album" of the greater 44-track Teargarden by Kaleidyscope concept project,
Oceania works as a stand-alone album. Conceptual conceits aside, these are some of the most memorable and rousing
songs Corgan has delivered since 1993's Siamese Dream, the album that Oceania most closely mirrors in tone and
aesthetic. Which isn't to say that Corgan is treading old ground; on the contrary, there is something fresh and
inspired about the songs on Oceania. Admittedly, kicking the album off with the heavy psychedelic acid rock groove
of "Quasar" -- in which Corgan croons several EST-era-style affirmations including, "God right on! Krishna right on!
Mark right on!" -- is a move that almost begs comparisons to Smashing Pumpkins' euphoria-inducing 1991 single
"Siva." A similar sentiment comes to mind with the latter album rocker "The Chimera," a classic rock-sounding
groover that sparkles with crisscross laser-beam guitar lines recalling the jewel-toned guitar heroics of Queen's
Brian May. But these are welcome comparisons, born out of Corgan finally delivering a gorgeous and cohesive set of
songs that balance some his more arch, cerebral inclinations with his generously romantic and sweepingly cinematic
gift for revelatory guitar rock. Elsewhere, we get the soaring "Panopticon" and the minor-key, prog rock-inflected
drama of "Violet Rays." However, Oceania is perhaps best represented by the euphoric mid-album ballad "Pinwheels."
Starting with a repeated keyboard line and building to swells of acoustic and electric guitar before settling into
one of the most swoon-worthy melodic anthems Corgan has ever written, "Pinwheels," much like the rest of Oceania, is
a masterpiece of pop songcraft and rock production. As Corgan croons on the song's chorus, "Sister soul, lovers of
the tune, sing!/I got you/I got you." On Oceania, the Smashing Pumpkins definitely have us.
Track Listing
1. Quasar
2. Panopticon
3. The Celestials
4. Violet Rays
5. My Love Is Winter
6. One Diamond, One Heart
7. Pinwheels
8. Oceania
9. Pale Horse
10. The Chimera
11. Glissandra
12. Inkless
13. Wildflower
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - CRAZY-HORSE - 19-06-2012
Corey mentioned this one today...said its their worst album and he s a fan
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - SteveO - 20-06-2012
A band that I liked some material ...but not all
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - Sam Therapy - 02-07-2012
Well I'm sorry, I'not really concerned about this thread, I am just trying to see if at least I've been enabled to post in this forum... LOVE and PEACE to you ALL, see you soon... Sam Therapy
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - bubba2match - 19-07-2012
Just gave Oceania a listen. It got my interest through the first minute or three...then it started to become a bit "BLAH" for my tastes. I stopped listening about 7 minutes in. Should I have gone further?
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - TraceNspace - 19-07-2012
I like a handful of smashing pumpkins songs, 'Drown' being my favorite but I'm kind of tired of them. And after trying to listen to this album I'm really tired of them.
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - hatchetman - 28-07-2012
TraceNspace Wrote:I like a handful of smashing pumpkins songs, 'Drown' being my favorite but I'm kind of tired of them. And after trying to listen to this album I'm really tired of them.
Kind of feel the same way about them
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - Music Head - 28-07-2012
bubba2match Wrote:Just gave Oceania a listen. It got my interest through the first minute or three...then it started to become a bit "BLAH" for my tastes. I stopped listening about 7 minutes in. Should I have gone further?
no........
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - CRAZY-HORSE - 28-07-2012
i have one album...its in the current pile to listen to, thought it was pretty average,the bad out weighed the good on the last listen....so dont expect a high score!!!!!
Smashing Pumpkins - Oceania - lizwright04 - 30-07-2012
The only original member left is Billy Corgan, I saw his guitarist video, he have his own band. Well I saw their poster they are on tour and I am thinking if I will watch their concert or not because I don't like their new album.