Old Composer REACTS to The Smashing Pumpkins CHERUB ROCK Music Reaction & Breakdown

👀Oh man, Billy Corgan's voice - the ultimate Hook Bomb!!👀
🎧AKG 240 HEADSETS: amzn.to/2MaYgFR
🎶The Smashing Pumpkins CHERUB ROCK: • The Smashing Pumpkins ...
🎶The Smashing Pumpkins Vinyl/CD/MP3/Stream: amzn.to/388fpIF
🎶The Smashing Pumpkins Spotify: open.spotify.com/artist/40Yq4...
Buy me a cup of ☕ ? - Actually, if you do drop into the Venmo or PayPal.me it goes towards the non-profit kid's things I do to spread the ALOHA! www.venmo.com/AbbaGeebz or paypal.me/abbageebz
🦕Kids Mission - www.abbageebz.com
🐢"Abba Geebz" Kids Show KZbin / abbageebz
👍THE DECOMOPSER FACEBOOK: / thedecomposer
🐦THE DECOMPOSER TWITTER: / geebz
📷THE DECOMPOSER INSTAGRAM / keyofgeebz (NEW as of 3/5/21)
#thesmashingpumpkins #cherubrock #musicreactions
The Smashing Pumpkins Reactions

[@spackle9999]

Honestly, this entire album is a fucking masterpiece.

[@cantdance9786]

Totally agreed! They never really fully captured what they captured in ‘91. Although they still have a respectable discography, this is the one that really makes me yearn for those times again. Melancholy is up there too, but Siamese Dream is top ten rock album of all time for me.

[@spackle9999]

@@cantdance9786 I love Siamese dream but I love Pisces Iscariot almost as much. SD is a better overall album, but Pisces is just such a dreamy, beautiful, brutal experience I can't help but love it more.

[@KingofCrusher]

My favorite album of all time. Quiet is my fave song ever.

[@chrisdavis4149]

Gish!

[@jbarton8508]

"Siamese Dream" album saved my life. Oddly, never "Disarm" I wore out the tape 3 months straight in my tape deck. My twin brother was relieved it died. And bought me a new copy next time he was paid. I miss him.

[@widower]

im 21 years old and smashing pumpkins have recently struck gold with me. really helped me through the loneliness of the pandemic. some talent billy is

[@cuteasxtreme]

I’m just 22 but the pumpkins got me thru high school

[@JpuddN]

@@cuteasxtreme I love hearing this. I'm 31 and they also got me through high school.

[@SaintGabriel11]

I'm 36 and they helped me through highschool Wtf is this Smashed Pumpkins Anonymous????

[@danielward3929]

@@SaintGabriel11 hi my name is daniel i'm 39 and the pumpkins also helped me high school lol

[@justinmann1629]

I’m 41 welcome to the club

[@linusfotograf]

Jimmy Chamberlin: one of the best rock drummers ever. Incredible sense of space and pocket. Groovy AF

[@TheAlibabatree]

And he’s only gotten better! His Complex records are fantastic!

[@blastbeatindustries3191]

Robo-drummer. Even heroin couldn't stop him.

[@ShaqPlaque]

@@TheAlibabatree Life Begins Again is one of my favorite oddities, especially Billy's turn on "Loki Cat"

[@TheAlibabatree]

@@ShaqPlaque Interestingly, that’s one of my least favorites on that record. But the whole thing is great.

[@ShaqPlaque]

@@TheAlibabatree I think one thing I love about Loki Cat is that it's possibly the only song in existence where Billy hands over creative control. I'm pretty sure he didn't even write the lyrics. His voice is just one instrument in the song. It's such a humble and beautiful performance

[@williamsoule6498]

Also one of the reasons this album is so impressive is that Billy Corgan played all the guitars and bass on this album in addition to vocals. And Jimmy Chamberlain is a ridiculously underrated drummer.

[@FutureExitsMedia]

Butch: Hey, Billy, how many guitar tracks you want? Billy: Yes.

[@O0othiago0o0o0o]

Actually, Butch was the one who pushed the band to the limit.

[@FutureExitsMedia]

@@O0othiago0o0o0o if you think it was all Butch then you're sorely mistaken, Billy was the mastermind behind the album and he found a collaborator in Butch who could get the sounds he was looking for. This is well documented.

[@BlemishesNow]

@@FutureExitsMedia Yeah, Billy was super into shoegaze bands like My Bloody Valentine at the time and wanted to emulate the washy drowning sound they were doing it his own way

[@FutureExitsMedia]

@@BlemishesNow I know; I've been obsessed with this band since 94 :D

[@robertrogers7938]

There's no way you can reproduce that sound in concert. You don't have enough guitars. Billy: Watch me.

[@tylero8595]

I was 16 in 1993 when this came out. I played this over and over on my walkman. A cassette walkman. The Pumpkins, Tool, Nirvana, Faith No More, Sonic Youth, Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Rage, STP, Portishead, REM, Depeche Mode, Anthrax, The Verve, AC/DC, Ministry etc, etc were the soundtrack of my teenage youth. You honestly couldnt ask for a better group of bands to grow up with.

[@Demention94]

All greats.. 👍

[@user-xg6zz8qs3q]

Ha true! Don't neglect newer bands though! A lot of amazing albums are released every other week and nobody seems to notice 😅

[@noblestsavage1742]

That was pretty much my playlist then too. Except I was 18 in 93

[@tommj4365]

I remember hearing Tool and Portishead for the first time like it was yesterday

[@TheRestartPoint]

I',m the same age as you and was listening to all those. Pixies Trompe Le Monde too.

[@robriginio530]

I’m still here. This entire album is amazing. “Soma” is a masterpiece.

[@joelinasia8401]

My favorite track by the Pumpkins.

[@TheHashCookie]

Came here to say this. My favourite album of all time. Soma is AMAZING.

[@jace3891]

Yes sir

[@arius116]

Beautiful song

[@Alexisrae79]

That song got me through some difficult times. Much love.

[@PeaKaeCee]

This is literally what started the soundtrack of my life. Smashing Pumpkins is track one, I hadn't heard ANY "alternative" music before then. I was in 8th grade, around 1995.

[@MultiUnreal]

Check out Hum. Especially their songs Dreamboat, Suicide Machine, and Puppets.

[@PeaKaeCee]

@@MultiUnreal Thanks for the suggestions!

[@GoodfellasX21]

@@PeaKaeCee hum has better songs than that even. None of those crack my top 5

[@spillyrichX]

​@@MultiUnrealwtf how did I ever miss this band. Thank you 🙏🙏🙏

[@HenritheHorse]

This whole album is basically Jimmy on drums and Billy on everything else.

[@zxbc1]

Jimmy was doing drugs during this period and was hardly in studio. James and D'arcy were mooding over their breakup and probably didn't want to see each other, so they were both gone. It was almost entirely Billy on everything 24/7. He said he slept in the studio and was so overworked he had suicidal thoughts.

[@patthewoodboy]

yep.

[@colebenoit3606]

@@zxbc1 - It's all Jimmy on drums. They literally locked him in the room and made him play until his parts were done because they were worried that he would disappear.

[@colebenoit3606]

Everything else was Billy though. Well, the strings were hired players but all of the guitar/bass were Billy.

[@johnmordecai2776]

@@colebenoit3606 James did play a little, though it's not been specified which parts (I might assume he's on bits of "Mayonaise" and "Soma", sine he co-wrote them, and scattered parts throughout). And D'arcy, aside from some backing vocals, played bass only on "Luna." Either way, anything not drums is 90-something percent Billy.

[@omarceniceros4589]

The bestfrom this album are hummer and mayonaise

[@mpd370]

💯

[@bigchiefbc]

Soma and Mayonaise for me, with Hummer a very close 3rd.

[@dullknife0490]

mayonaise and geek usa *

[@ajaxender12]

Soma Geek USA Mayonnaise, gotta be one of the best 3-track runs from any album

[@mingzeyu7525]

Soma

[@cuteasxtreme]

“Hummer” is my favorite song by them. I feel like it captures that Siamese Dream album sound. Still here btw I was in high school when I first heard this.

[@isntanything12]

Yes! "Hummer" is majestic. Perfect blending of psychedelia, a tinge of metal, and an undercurrent of shoegaze. Love this album's sound.

[@parts80]

I'm still here! I was 14 when this album was released, and it still carries the emotional drive almost 30 years later. Jimmy Chamberlin is my favorite drummer of all time.

[@gatorlover1969]

I’m not even a big Smashing Pumpkins fan, but this song seems to just get better with age. I need to go back and listen to more of their stuff.

[@CaptnTrips]

Absolutely! Check these comments for some great suggestions. Or just do the whole albums 🤷‍♂️👌

[@alh4z7]

The entire siamese dream album is amazing. My favorite on it is probably mayonnaise.

[@justinmann1629]

Don’t forget the B sides there are a lot of amazing songs in there

[@Dolphins-ov5oe]

First three albums will not fail you

[@cass2303]

@@Dolphins-ov5oe none of their stuff will fail you.

[@NeoVoodooTech]

That riff takes me right back to high school, skipping class riding in the back of an old shit brown Lincoln headed to the beach with my best friends. Takes me back to that invincible time the future was endless just like the possibilities of life and we would never grow old.

[@EmberGyaru]

Man, this comment seeeriously struck a chord with me. That last sentence... So very true.

[@matthewholbrook9153]

So you know!

[@vinniep9562]

Haha so true. Now we groan getting up off the couch.

[@michaelharmon7052]

OMG greatest comment ever. You've dissected my teens!

[@GabzitoHD]

omg I literally commented react to anything from Siamese Dream yesterday and now you post this

[@Tawper]

i swear dude if i see one more comment from you, you are everywhere i go when I listen to music. pumpkins, my bloody valentine... good music taste. might as well sub to you

[@freitinhas7106]

Gabzito here??? wow

[@queenshersei896]

I have total immersed into Siamese Dream many many times. The alumna is a perfect album for that.

[@Keilnoth]

This song reminds me of my bro, who made me discover it along with the band. My bro died in a motorcycle accident 6 months later so when I listen to Smashing Pumpkins it's taking me back to him, and I still see my bro dancing awkwardly on the song when we were hanging out in bars. Pretty fun times. That was about 20 years ago now, so I can visualize these images with a smile. But writing this made me drop a few tears, to be honest. It's quite interesting how songs bring up memories. Thru The Eyes of Ruby is another one from TSP that is just bomb! Cheers

[@michaelrandolph4258]

Zero by smashing pumpkins is a banger

[@Comrade_mommy]

You should do “through the eyes of Ruby”. It’s a really epic song and one of my fav. Also rhinoceros. Both are great pumpkins songs.

[@separator94]

Those are both good choices. Have you heard 'Porcelina of the Vast Oceans' from Mellon Collie?

[@JaySay]

Rhinoceros is fantastic! I got a best of for Smashing Pumpkins a few years ago, and before that I haven't heard much besides some of their middle year singles. Was really surprised at the musicianship to that song.

[@nickparsons337]

Spoken like a true Pumpkins fan.

[@Comrade_mommy]

@@separator94 yes, but not my fav pumpkins song, but I don’t hate it. For some reason a lot of slower and usually beloved Pumpkins songs, I’m just not that into. Like I’ve never liked disarm and 1979. Which I know is sacralidge to some. But soma, through the eyes of ruby, rhinoceros, today, wound, I love those songs. But it’s like my ears and brain are weirdly picky about music. It’s something of a curse, bc between that and how quickly I get tired of songs, I’m often without anything I really want to listen to. I have to save my fav songs to only listen to occasionally bc I get tired of music so fast. I’ve always wondered why that’s a thing we humans do. Why music we love can stop sounding as good. Is it some evolutionary adaptation or is it just some quirk? But Smashing pumpkins for me is one of those bands that has songs I love but also ones I hate. One of the only bands that has songs I almost always at least like is Radiohead. Though tool is a close 2nd.

[@Comrade_mommy]

@@JaySay rhinoceros is on my special playlist of my all time fav songs. That and through the eyes of ruby. They’re both songs that I have a hard time getting sick of and I get sick of a lot of music fast. It’s why I like longer more complicated songs. But rhinoceros was one of those songs I heard at a unique time in my life so there’s a lot of feeling tied to that song.

[@flangmasterj]

Pumpkin's have such a rich quality to their music. Used to fall asleep with my Siamese Dream cassette playing through my Walkman. That era I tell ya.

[@PointOfLife333]

“Soma” another good one. Billy is the lead guitarist and Darcy is the bass player she’s smoking. Highschool I was 16 years older saw them 8 times live!! IM STILL HERE BRO!! 🤙

[@CaptnTrips]

Soma has my favourite guitar solo ever. Maybe not the BEST solo ever, but certainly my favourite. It just has so much expression! A voice of its own ❤️

[@marcovtjev]

Billy also did a lot of guitar and bass parts on Siamese Dream. So this could be billy.

[@ResourceHawaii1]

I was in Alaska working in a cannery in the Summer. I read the album write up in Rolling Stone. When I got off work while it was still light out one day I walked into town and bought the cassette. I jammed on the Walkman and smiled from ear to ear. The SP will always have a special place for me to jam and appreciate. Aloha.

[@ih8urband]

Jimmy is easily one of the best 5 drummers in the world. Guy is a master of the craft

[@masonb9788]

Hum - “Stars”. Really. Check them out.

[@EricGrassi]

Seconded

[@jimmyninjapants3467]

HUM! Criminal that they weren’t bigger.

[@cbretschneider]

I was taking a smoke break with my hot supervisor in her car during one of my shifts at the local movie theatre when I was in high school, I think it was 1994. I was looking for something new to listen to after having become a huge Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, and STP fan. This blew my mind. Not only was she hot, older than me, and my boss, but she had great taste in music! Good memory.

[@erictheded]

We need an "i'm still here." t-shirt with like 70's blacklight poster designs. Yeah I had a gummy a while ago. What of it.

[@MinimumGnome]

I would totally buy an "I'm still here" t-shirt

[@StfuFFS]

What are you drunk, Mr. Herlihy?

[@jmc7676]

With the dinosaurs 🦕🦖 he has in the background in black light colors saying " I am still here..." I want the first print bro...

[@mtgguiltfeeder4111]

Take my money

[@mrmoonbike]

Gotta include “awwwwlright!” on the upper back of the shirt! 😎🤙

[@seanbrent8294]

I’m still here. Try some Kyuss mate Gardenia, space cadet or one inch man

[@aotea6983]

Yes yes yes. Would add Whitewater to that list and Freedom run

[@seanbrent8294]

@@aotea6983 catamaran, demon cleaner too

[@severallemmings]

+1 for Kyuss

[@ip3948]

Yeah do Kyuss

[@rudi_tabootie]

Literally any Kyuss song

[@deeebaser]

I was 16 and already a huge fan of “Gish”. I felt like the first person in my home town to have heard of the Smashing Pumpkins back then. They were the soundtrack to my mid teens. Loved the reaction from a trained ear’s POV. Keep up the good work.

[@DaystarNJO]

I’m still here. The Pumpkins are my favorite group of all time. The musicality of the genius that is Billy Corgan is so much fun to listen to and get lost in.

[@separator94]

*Porcelina of the Vast Oceans* is an incredible song by the Pumpkins. It's an epic track and encapsulates a lot of their different talents. Perfect for a reaction. Love the channel and think it's great that you do stuff for the kids. That's seriously awesome, man.

[@hortonwho211]

That’s one of my favourite songs...once it gets started. I actually edited my own version of it that trimmed like the first 1:40 of the introduction. Don’t get me wrong, I love long songs (Tool is my favourite band), and I love this song in particular. I’m just not fond of the extended intro.

[@SSsacas]

@@hortonwho211 you butchered an epic song like 'Porcelina of the vast oceans' by removing one of the best intros I've ever heard?... Shame on you!

[@hortonwho211]

@@SSsacas Hehehehe. To be fair, I didn’t chop out the whole intro, just about 2/3 of it. I like long intros, like the one from Soma, but that one didn’t seem to grab me.

[@jasonmgomez]

one of my favorite songs to play bass to....

[@separator94]

@@SSsacas I agree. Its intro is perfection.

[@streetsurgery]

I suggest Drown is a great Pumpkins song that I don't hear that often brought up.

[@oviate1]

Hands down one of my favorite pumpkins songs. Even almost 30 years later, I still get absolutely lost in the beauty and cacophony of the last 4 minutes.

[@Simpobee]

There's an version with alternate guitar on it too, so it might be fun to contrast and compare

[@streetsurgery]

@@Simpobee don't think I've heard that, where can I find it?

[@Simpobee]

@@streetsurgery search Drown Alternate Guitar, it'll come right up!

[@Simpobee]

@@streetsurgery I remember them being more different than they are tho :D I think the 'alternate' one is just longer...

[@monkeyfarm]

This one brings back memories when this was on MTV all day every day. My Fav. SP songs: Thru the Eyes of Ruby; Here Is No Why; Rocket; Geek U.S.A.

[@reverendaero]

Please check out Between the Buried and Me's cover of Geek U.S.A. So damn powerful

[@jamesmarshall7885]

@@reverendaero Yes Geek USA is a must

[@internetguy8075]

OMG I love Rocket so much.

[@bvades]

Thru the Eyes of Ruby is such an underrated song. Also Jellybelly and Mayonaise .

[@rite2beararms]

@@internetguy8075 Lol. Remember the video?

[@TheAlibabatree]

Billy Corgan to me is like Zappa, or Prince. Everyone has heard a song or two, and everyone kind of thinks they know who they are, but their genius is only understood by very few. Corgan is one of the best, and certainly most prolific pop songwriters of all time. He’s also one of the best modern lead guitarists (yes that’s him on the solo), he also laid down all of the backing tracks including the bass on this album. A lot of people focus on their first 3 records, and they are great, but as a fellow musician, I highly recommend you check out some stuff from their Machina album. A reaction to the song “I of the Mourning” would be amazing.

[@sarahzentexas]

Machina is my favorite SP album, and that is a great song.

[@rosswhart]

One of the best explanations of the Pumpkins I’ve ever read. He really is in that same ilk.

[@erictheded]

My favorite Pumpkins song is "Drown" because it gave me really wild dream one time I fell asleep to the radio in the 90's.

[@riccardocampana1489]

one song by the smashing pumpinks that's really amazing is "An Ode to No One". Blows my mind every time i listen to it

[@depechekin]

I'm still here. This album came out a few months before my dad passed away in my senior year in highschool. It was one of the only thing that kept me sane during that time. It still stands the test of time today and they are still my favorite band and Siamese Dream is my favorite album. I am glad you are enjoying it :)

[@Mike-ix5sv]

Im still here, was 12 when it came out, still an all time favorite record 30 years later. Im mainly a listener of heavy metal and punk rock, but siamese dream and melancholy are definite top 10 all time albums for me personally.

[@matthewgarrison-perkins5377]

End of High School, Beginning of College, discovering hallucinogenics. Life was gooooooooood, and I'm still here.

[@kruggerme]

I discovered the use of octaves with this song, it was such a blast in my brain, years went by after I understood what an octave was, I was already using them heavily on my playing.

[@doh4828]

Highschool. I was 17 and to this date when I hear songs like these, my cells start to vibrate. It’s real hard not to get emotional when I realize this song is 27 years old. Feels like yesterday when Siamese Dream rocked my Sony autoreverse Walkman!

[@epicmage82]

Smashing pumpkins were a big band for me growing up in the 90s. They really helped me embrace the expansion of my musical tastes, and to be open minded. I definitely know what you mean when you say you listen to the singing as an instrument. I've learned to listen to music from many countries, and languages, though I only speak English.

[@holesintheground38]

I really love how you are pointing out the bass in this song. you FEEL the bass on this album. It's interesting because if you listen to the bass track by itself it actually has a lot more grit and tone on it than comes through on the record, there's only a few times in the song you really hear the bass stand out by itself but you ALWAYS feel it there just completely grounding the guitars and the drums. The mixing on Siamese Dream is damn near perfect. This is one of those albums that will always feel like a hot summer day where you put the windows down and crank this as you drive somewhere, every track is a classic no need to skip around. Some other Pumpkins you should check out: Hummer Mayonaise Soma Geek U.S.A. Zero Tonight, Tonight Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans Here Is No Why Drown Mostly stuff from their peak, you can find great stuff on all of their albums Keep on doing your thing man!

[@cactustactics]

honestly a lot of recorded bass has a fair bit of drive on it that you don't really hear in the mix, but it helps it push through and sound nice and full without getting drowned out by fuzz guitars. I love those moments where you do actually get to hear it, and it's like "whoa that's dirty"

[@cdreyes81]

Yeah the bass doesn't have to stand out and compete with everything else. It just need to be felt. I have a nephew he just started wanting to play bass and hes like I dont hear it barely. I'm like you're not listening. Meanwhile he just got into Korn so everything is super bassy

[@Jeebizz101]

I think billy actually played a lot of the bass parts in the recordings as well

[@holesintheground38]

@@Jeebizz101 he played all the guitars on the record

[@pauljansen1137]

great you are doing the smashing pumpkins!!! Siamese Dream is amazing..."Soma" might just what you want to react on next!! have a good day!

[@cactusonashelf]

The intro still gives me chills 20 years on... it's the waiting for the riff to begin. Then that riff moves like water flowing between stones, never still. I think I've never heard another song with such fluidity.

[@baTonkaTruck]

Just found your channel, love it. Ok so this album, and this song in particular, is a huge mile-marker in my life. I was around 10 years old when this album dropped. “Today” was the first single, and I was obsessed. By the end of the opening phrase of “Today’s” intro I was a massive Smashing Pumpkins fan. I was a moody kid, a bit dour and aggressive, prone to anger and sadness. I took to music very young, and it always had a calming and uplifting effect on me, but Today amplified the effect. It was some kind of deep resonance that’s beyond the capabilities of neuroscience or any kind of cognitive understanding. For the first time in my life I HAD to buy something. Myself, with my own money, of which I had none. I had to own that song. Forget recording the radio edit on a blank Maxwell, I needed the record. There was an element of personal ownership of this music that I couldn’t escape. So I begged my parents for extra chores and negotiated a higher allowance, I mean they thought I’d lost my damn mind because I hated chores, and by the end of the week I paraded chest-first out of that mall CD store with my treasure in a tiny plastic bag. I was so excited to get home and listen to it on my black Sony Diskman through my cheap, dingy headphones about the size of a quarter wrapped in scratchy foam on a tinfoil strap that I had to press hard onto my ears to hear the bass. But I remember getting really nervous as I struggled with the CD’s infernal cellophane wrapping. “What if the rest of the CD sucks? What if they’re just one of these one-hit bands?” For some reason that would have broken my fragile 10-year-old heart, which hadn’t yet been wrapped in the layers of armor and repressive instinct that come with adulthood. So I pop the cd on the center spindle and close the lid in the Diskman, press the shitty earphones hard onto my ears and think “Well, here we go..” And this song, Cherub Rock, track 1 side 1 of Siamese Dream started with that tight, perfect roll. And from that moment on I was absolutely transfixed. The song blew out even my wildest expectations. And at the end of that, the next song, great. The next song, Today, such a high. By the time it ended and “Hummer” started I thought surely there will be a dud on here but no Hummer took it even higher. I listened to the album 3 times all the way through back-to-back without stopping or getting up. The experience was a dichotomy of feeling transported elsewhere, but I had never felt more grounded, more tethered to this Earth, like I truly belonged here and deserved to be alive, if for no other reason, to experience THAT. My arms almost fell off squeezing those headphones into my ears, and from that moment on, I had a special relationship with music. Hearing the solo today for the thousandth time on my phone’s tragic speakers streamed via your video, even with youtube’s compressed audio, gave me full body chills.

[@woodchuk1]

Awesome comments, dude (or dudette). I was 13 when it came out and had just started getting into guitar. This song had my jaw on the floor…and I couldn’t stop playing it. The “wall of sound” guitar approach was exactly what I was looking for at the time. And the rest of the album just left me speechless. It’s easily one of the top ten, if not top five, guitar oriented albums of my lifetime. Almost 30 years later (!!!), I love it as much as I ever have.

[@metallaholic]

Billy the singer plays the solo in this and most leads. He usually played the bass on the albums as well.

[@internetuser8922]

The guitar overdubs are insane too. He recorded and overdubbed the guitar so many times for this track.

[@metallaholic]

I first saw them live opening for The Rolling Stones in the late 90s then again a few years ago during a 3.5 hour long reunion show. Absolutely amazing.

[@heatnationwpb]

This definitely qualifies as Soundtrack of My Life material. I was about 22 years old & living less than an hour from New Orleans. So concerts were plentiful, but the first time I saw Pumpkins was special. We bought tickets to see the Red Hot Chili Peppers in a small auditorium (BSSM just dropped) with Smashing Pumpkins (Gish) opening, but when we arrived an unknown Pearl Jam was added to the bill as well. It was an amazing experience to say the least! The second time that I saw the Pumpkins was the night that Cobain had passed away. It was announced on the radio as me and my friends were traveling to see SP and our little 3-car caravan pulled over on the side of the highway to freak out. It's all everyone was talking about at the show of course, so the vibe was really strange. Billy Corgan seemed out of his mind with pain and grief - it was the most abrasive Pumpkins show you could imagine. LSD flowed freely and groups of people hung out for hours in the parking lot after the show in disbelief. Little Kurt vigils. It was messed up, but also it was cool to be around 15,000 other kids that night.

[@tony_1980]

The vocalist (Billy Corgan) did all the guitar and bass tracks on the entire album (Siamise Dream) - a masterpiece.

[@whatdothlife4660]

This was my very first CD purchased in 1998. I feel blessed.

[@cebrinpitts]

One of my favorite records to date. Butch Vig, and Billy really went full mental breakdown on producing this thing. It's so loud, and messy yet articulate, and held together. I was just picking up the guitar when this came out. Back when you had to learn the hard way. I had this on cassette. Would stop, and start until I got it right. I owe Billy a lot of thanks for giving me some great groundwork for playing. Favorite tracks on this album are "Hummer" and "Soma"

[@lennonmahoney7302]

“Mayonnaise” is considered their greatest record by fans. That song will take you to another place.

[@cannotwaittoseedavanteadam4301]

I love Mayonaise, Rhinoceros and Tonight, Tonight (everyone knows this song tho, lol). They have a ton of great songs throughout their discography.

[@rickc2102]

Gotta second Mayonnaise! Talk about a song that takes me back, holy crap.

[@collintrinityfitnessphoenix]

Mayonaise! Upvote!

[@imbroken8]

This may have already been pointed out... James Iha, the “other” guitar player in the band, now plays guitar in “A Perfect Circle”... there’s your Tool connection for the day... Now listen to OSI... Radiologue or Kicking....

[@RastaSaiyaman]

Err... James left APC three years ago to re-join the pumpkins for their "Shiny and oh so bright" album and tour.

[@thomasanderson3068]

@@RastaSaiyaman Both of you are incorrect. Iha toured with APC in 2004. He never recorded a record with them, and moved on to do this own thing after 2004.

[@RastaSaiyaman]

@@thomasanderson3068 But I WAS correct about him having re-joined Smashing Pumpkins

[@thomasanderson3068]

@@RastaSaiyaman 100% =D

[@Agostoic]

@@RastaSaiyaman hate to break it down for you but although Iha rejoin STP for a new record last year he still did record guitars for APC on his "comeback" Eat the elephant album of 2018.

[@InsideBilderberg]

Jimmy Chamberlin is one of rocks greatest drummers.

[@wiltchamberlain9920]

My favorite SP song right there. At 21 seconds when that full sound comes in with those fuzzy guitars, that sort of tone just continues throughout the rest of the song and I love it. It's like a warm, audio hug around my ears that whole time. Several SP songs have that sort of thing where there's always constant fuzzy sound going on (Rocket and Mayonnaise are others I can think of off the top of my head). Absolutely adore it.

[@vinniep9562]

As a bass player I can't praise D'Arcy's playing on this enough. There's so much I love about it. I've spent hours playing along with it. Let's also never forget just how epic Jimmy's drumming is on this song. Not only this song, he's an awesome drummer in his own right, but this is even one of his finest pieces.

[@vinniep9562]

*edit, yes I'm aware it's actually Billy playing on the record.

[@stat_nine]

Geek USA is a good one as well from SP

[@shawnroberts5179]

jimmy c on those damn drums

[@boostedhatchb16]

So good.

[@justinsane3909]

At the end of Geek USA, you can't remember how it started. Like a drunk bender in a car, where the hell are we?

[@montyhaltiner739]

Porcelina of the Vast Oceans, its my favorite of theirs.

[@NathanDarvish]

I was a college radio dj when this dropped. Great days.

[@bryanbeard843]

I'm still here! I bought my first guitar right before I left for bootcamp in the fall of 1988. I got turned on to SP when I was stationed in North Chicago, and their 1st album Gish was popular locally. I got out of the service I'm 1993 (post-gulf war) and was living in an apartment complex in Illinois when the video for "Cherub Rock" premiered on MTV. When Siamese Dream came out later that year, Cherub Rock shaped how I played guitar for the next 20+ years

[@UbiDoobyBanooby]

Anyone suggested Mad Season yet?

[@twanja08]

Mad Season, indeed.

[@JungleScene]

I'd like to see him do more Alice before mad season so he doesn't fall into being locked too much on Layne.

[@queenshersei896]

This song is an overview of what the whole album is... a slow burn which builds and builds and then goes slow again only to bring you right back up. It’s easy to just totally immerse you’re self.

[@williamsoule6498]

I love that you did Smashing Pumpkins. Nobody does that. They were so influential but never really got their due. Thank you for doing that!

[@TanguyBlanchard]

I think I was in the studio when I first heard it. My bandmates had went back home to get some gear they forgot and I was alone in the dark with headphones on, great moment

[@michaelmarhal]

i've listened to cherub rock over 200 times and it still sounds as exciting as the 1st time i heard it. top 50 song ever for me. insane production!

[@dampersand]

This album came out just as I was starting high school, and by the time my friends and I formed our first band a year later we were all huge fans. This Smashing Pumpkins were hugely influential to me early on as a musician, and songs like this from the Gish through Mellon Collie era are just a huge hit of nostalgia.

[@imhavingaverygoodtimehere1221]

how successful was you band lol?

[@spiderjerusalem100]

This album has the nicest guitar sound. It's so full and warm sounding.

[@YeloFelo]

I played bass on this song in a summer camp teaching young kids grunge music. It was a ton of fun, especially playing this with my fantastic guitar player friend. Incredible song.

[@manudosde]

I'm still here. For me this song is pure high school nostalgia.

[@PenumbraPlays]

SP is a great band to get lost in. They have so many good b-sides that could have easily been singles. The band's musical influcenes will lead you to a lot of other great bands too. Still my favorite band easily.

[@Bridgercraft]

I'm still here. Smashing Pumpkins are probably my favourite band of all time so I'm glad your're having a look at them. This song was one of the first I ever heard of theirs (along with "Today" I think), I must've been about 13 or 14 and it blew me away! Billy Corgan's voice and guitar playing were like nothing I'd ever heard before and I still maintain that Jimmy Chamberlain is one of the finest rock drummers of all time.

[@imaweerascal]

I listened to this so much when I was doing my PhD, I put an acknowledgement to Billy Corgen in my thesis. Honestly it was pretty much on loop. But haven't played it in at least 15 years! Going to go and rectify that now :) I saw them live twice, they were an amazing band at the top of their powers then. Quite inspiring performance.

[@mikemaas9944]

Billy Corgan is amazing. Hope it doesn’t get taken down.

[@semajidoe]

SHE is back there on the bass LOL. Darcy is amazing and wish she could rejoin the band.

[@leoharper1492]

Darcy didnt play the bass on the album. Billy played bass on everything but Luna. So technically he is right. But I knew somwbody would say thia.

[@jace3891]

There are a few interviews with B.C talking about trying to get her back and she just won't. She barely says a word to him. It's really sad but I think she is done

[@theoffering7000]

You should really try this extremely underrated Smashing Pumpkins song, 'Rhinoceros'! I have always been perplexed as to why it isn't one of the pumpkins favourites (at least from my observation).

[@illiiill9057]

I’m still here. Back then, I wasn’t a fan of this band until I saw them live at the Tibetan Freedom Concert. Much respect.

[@JungleScene]

If you do more pumpkins, check out mayonaise Imo it's probably their best song, but it's got some really interesting recording stuff I'd like to get your take on.

[@SaintGabriel11]

Do you know the lore behind the squeal sound effect?

[@kylelewis4685]

Agreed

[@jaimeecherivel2927]

This solo always gives me chills aka chicken skin. And that dirty tone with the stacked Big Muffs

[@linusfotograf]

Best guitar tone ever

[@MattVogt2]

Collectively, the guitar solos on this album are just about my favourites ever. Mostly short and always memorable, they just burst with personality and expression!

[@lucasbartel3240]

I'm still here. Yes it's Billy playing that solo and this song is always in the soundtrack of my life. One of my favourites. Thanks for reacting to it!

[@kruggerme]

I miss the 90s, I took it for granted 😪

[@twanja08]

Mayonaise

[@guyontheinternet6371]

Hey everyone

[@maynarddrivesfast804]

Hey Guy!

[@blipbobeep8345]

Still here! The Pumpkins really were a soundtrack for my life. I was a angsty teenager, mad at the world and somehow there was a whole catalogue of music for me out there! As a depressed kid, SP albums like Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness were a release from the pain that was in my mind back then (and still is). Through the love for this kind of music I found some kindred spirits in my town, joined a band and so on. Tough times, great music!

[@THEDEEPDIVE]

man it is so great to see someone like you dig into this song. this is one of the best guitar compositions. I do believe there are literally hundreds of guitar tracks on this. We are going through the TOP 50 SP SONGS OF ALL TIME on our channel. this band changed my life and is the reason I am married and have children.

[@TheMrgrieves0914]

I know it would be far cooler for me to suggest a more obscure song of theirs, but I think Tonight, Tonight is their most definitive song. Or, maybe, Disarm, which is a less elaborate, more subdued melancholic track. Mahalo.

[@hortonwho211]

Interesting take. I like both songs, but I think if I wanted one song to sum up their “core” sound it would probably be Mayonnaise.

[@clashcor_4685]

I know you said you’d go down the Between the Buried and Me rabbit hole, and not sure if you’ve started that, but it would be great if you went down that hole with the channel. Obviously with anything you haven’t listened to yet, the one you’ve done is Astral Body, and no, nothing else they have is very radio friendly but all very different. They have 11 releases. A few great examples of theirs to try, even though it’s a long list... White Walls Ants of the Sky Swim to the Moon Selfies: The Endless Obsession Disease, Injury, Madness The Black Box/Telos Famine Wolf (Early Stuff and more raw) Ad a dglgmut Mordecai

[@benjaminflasher]

Nice! I keep recommending their Anatomy Of album. Here I'd say Between the Buried and Me - Geek U.S.A. (Smashing Pumpkins cover). Two birds/one stone... kzbin.info/www/bejne/r4XYhqVvlM53gM0

[@divid3d]

would love to see his take on mordecai

[@tylercaldwell4539]

I’m still here. This and the rest of the Pumpkins discography from the 90s was a huge part of the soundtrack for my teen years. Such a great band.

[@jannikah]

I'm still here. This song and 1979, also by the Pumpkins, for me, are the soundtrack of aimless winter car rides with my two best friends. I had just turned 17, I was in Kentucky as a foreign exchange student. I felt alienated by the performative religion and the overprotectiveness of the society, and at the same time awed by the natural beauty of the landscape around me and the freedom of being a teenager with access to a car.

[@user-xg6zz8qs3q]

I'm so annoyed by Siamese Dream because it's so perfect. It's the album that ruined rock'n'roll for me, and I can't stop listening to it.

[@cdreyes81]

Boom.

[@dubyajay7860]

High School. I'm still here. Now back to Tool.

[@johngoss2258]

I'm still here :) I was finishing up high school when all these excellent albums hit around '91'94. Strong memories of a shiny new driver's license, plugging the portable CD player into a cassette adapter and cranking up Smashing Pumpkins, Pearl Jam, Nirvana, Soundgarden, RHCP, STP, Sponge... so many great albums in those few years.

[@Kenji802756973]

I'm still here man! The Smashing Pumpkins albums Melancholy and The Infinite Sadness and Siamese Dream helped me get through highschool. ('97-'01) Hearing these songs helped me connect, and feel less alone while secretly battling depression. I was so happy to see them in concert when they showed up in Toronto 2018!

[@illuminateyourlife3401]

You had to have been in your 30s when this came out!!! Were you not paying attention 🤨

[@des-trina]

I don't know if anyone else posted this for you. Billy Corgan is the lead singer and rhythm guitarist. James Iha is the lead guitarist. D'arcy Wretzky is the bassist. Finally, Jimmy Chamberlin is the drummer.

[@mikeet207]

This album changed my entire perspective for playing guitar. I remember exactly where I was and how I felt....I almost fell of the edge of my bed with the distortion guitar kicks in. Still one of my favorite songs ever.

[@hermanbretveld1514]

I was the Smashing Pumpkins on tv at a Festival. Shortly after on a highschool trip to Prague. I walked into a record store. I listened to this opening track for the record. It blew me off my feet.

[@Alexisrae79]

I’m still here!!! The pumpkins were my favorite band in high school. They mixed the heavier sounds with meaningful poetic lyrics that spoke to me.

[@nyetmnyet]

Im still here! I was introduced to Smashing Pumpkins in my first year of college in 2011. For me, its the soundtrack to hot summer days just driving around town without a care in the world. It all felt so boring at the time but this music makes me realize just how nostalgic I am for it all.

[@smittmasterflex]

This band was the theme of my teens on the 90s. Smashing Pumpkins was to me what Pink Floyd was to my dad. Radiohead too. I was a moody loner and this music was angry, sad, beautiful and comforting to me. Today it's my security blanket and makes me feel like I'm home. It's a time machine that brings me back to an event or reminds me of friends I've lost touch with. It can bring back a strong emotion and gives me chicken skin or depending on the mood makes my chest ache. Music is an amazing thing. I have zero music talent, only a crazy appreciation.

[@ScarlettRob]

I'm still here. I saw the Pumpkins in '90 or '91 when they were touring for Gish. There were only about 50 people in the crowd. It will stand out as one of my favorite live performances ever. I didn't have good headphones so I would lie on my bed and put my speakers up against my ears and play their entire albums and just get absorbed. Definitely a band that influenced me and gave me positive escape. BTW I've just discovered your channel today. I've been on a Primus kick and your Tommy the Cat breakdown showed up in my feed. So, yeah, I've been on here for like 3 hours watching your vids of Muse, Radiohead, Pumpkins, etc. GREAT channel and great commentary!