The Smashing Pumpkins
(ROTTEN APPLES) THE SMASHING PUMPKINS GREATEST HITS
(VIRGIN)

Even compromised by a second CD of B-side and rarities, some of which (like the aimless "Marquis in Spades") have already been released, this is a marvelous set. At their best, which is on essentially all of disc one, the Pumpkins built sky-scratching cathedrals of sound that rest on a foundation of leader Billy Corgan’s expressive blend of guitar pyrotechnics, clever orchestrations, and pure noise. "Disarm," "Tonight, Tonight," "Cherub Rock," and "Siva" are all pages from the alternative-rock prayer book on which the Pumpkins create melodies out of feedback and Corgan’s inimitable nasal whine, an ugly voice as capable of growing on a listener as Dylan’s rasp.

If only Corgan possessed more of a gift for lyrics. Gems like "Today" and "Bullet with Butterfly Wings" are offset by the clumsy ranting of "Lucky 13" and the ambiguous bile in "Set the Ray to Jerry." But time and again the music saves things before Corgan’s bitterness becomes overwhelming — whether it’s chimes and tribal drumming leavening the love-hate tug of war in the "Set the Ray to Jerry" or the expansive psychedelic guitar acrobatics of the band’s explosive cover of David Essex’s "Rock On."

Issue Date: December 20 - 27, 2001

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