#341 The Smashing Pumpkins, 'Siamese Dream' (1993)

Previously #360

The Smashing Pumpkins’ second album was their most ambitious yet. Once again produced by Butch Vig, who two years before had produced the mega-album, ‘Nevermind,’ by Nirvana, this album almost killed everyone involved. Literally even. Billy Corgan admitted in 2011 that during recording sessions he was planning his suicide. He had gotten rid of most of his things and was making an album that he imagined would be played at his funeral. Jimmy Chamberlin was in the midst of a major heroin addiction and James Iha and D’arcy Wretzky had just broken up. According to Vig, Wretzky would lock herself in the bathroom, James Iha would spend days in silence and Corgan would lock himself in the control booth. Corgan even landed up performing most of Iha and Wretzky’s guitar and bass parts respectively himself as he could nail them in far fewer takes than them. Corgan and Vig would often pore over small sections of music for days. Seriously, the band was a mess. Above all, being hailed as the new Nirvana, there was a lot of pressure on the band to deliver.

And deliver they did. This is my favourite Pumpkins record by far. The triple threat of ‘Disarm,’ ‘Today’ and ‘Mayonaise’ set this record up, and then complemented by ‘Cherub Rock,’ ‘Rocket,’ ‘Soma’ and ‘Luna.’ I don’t feel that there is any filler on this record. Corgan was tyrannical; harsh on the band members and harsh on himself (apparently after Chamberlin disappeared for a few days on a drug bender, Corgan punished him by making him play the drums on ‘Cherub Rock’ until his hands bled). A real cornerstone of ‘90s alt-rock, this album truly is a dream. 

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