Post by stubert9 on Oct 2, 2008 21:40:41 GMT 7
For the fun of it i have decided to start using my time to write album reviews. I thought i would start with my favourite album. I know it is a little biased 
but i am trying to sharpen my writing skills. Please can you give me feed back.
"As many of you may know I am an avid fan of the Smashing Pumpkins. So for my next blog I have found it to be most appropriate to review my favourite album. So here goes.
Siamese Dream is the second album from Chicago band Smashing Pumpkins. It was released on July 27th 1993. It was met with much critical acclaim but does it still stand the test of time. Is the teen angst guitar driven rock sound of the 90's still relevant to modern youth. In short yes, yes it is.
The Album opens with the light strumming of Cherub Rock. This song sets the scene as it transcends the typical songs of the 90's e.g. Nirvana Nevermind ( which whilst still highly praiseworthy is still very predictable.) Cherub rock continues with light strumming before the guitars become heavier and the lyrics start. The song then cycles between a mix of heavy over driven guitars and lighlty strum clean ones. After this the dubiously titled Quiet begins. Which is not what the name suggests. It is a loud in your face distorted guitar track. With some excellent riffs and some decent lyrics "QUIET, i am sleeping." Whilst not the height of corgans lyricisim it still melds well with the song. After being blown away with the two oppening tracks the album quiets down for a while. With the track Today "Today is the greatest day i have ever known." Whislt still containing the distortion guitars for the chorus the song is generally seen as a lighter song comparable to the opening chords of Cherub. Hummer is next up off the line "hummer and a chicken feed all in one" Not really. This song is one of the most underated Pumpkins songs ever written. Featuring a contrast between light strumming and booming vocals through to Heavy guitars with lighter almost chioritic vocals. Whilst Corgan may not be the best singer of all time he still does an excellent job of voicing the song and presenting it in the way it was intended. "ask yourself a question anyone but me, I am free" the lyrics are quite touching and convey a differnt message to each listener. The thing that is so enjoyable about this song is that some of the riffs are repeated cleanly and distorted which adds to the charm of the song. That and it has two guitar solos one with over driven guitar and a cleaner one, that is just uplifiting. Ah, next of the rank is Rocket. One of the more popular Pumpkins songs reciving a lot of air time and selling thousands of singles. It begins with a riff based around the 6th fret of the g string and the 5th fret of the b string. From here it advances into a melody of powerchords and major barre chords. This song is one of delving deeper inside of yourself to gain your ultimate freedom " I shall be free" and proving to the world that youre intentions are good " ill touch my soul, to show the world that i am pure." This song has the hall mark of being one of my first favourite pumpkins songs and it still has that effect on me of thinking about myself and what it is that i do. Next along is Disarm. A song about being abused as a child. "Disarm you with a smile, Cut you like you want me too" He sings of how his emotions were destroyed and that he had to grow up quickly "what i choose is my choice" "i used to be a little boy" he also fears becoming what had happened " the killer in me is the killer in you." This song is based around a simple yet memorable chord progession accompained by a violin and the simulation of church bells. This song is more one of forgivness and moving on than one of hatred. Thats the first half of the Album. Which has gone through many differnt artistic directions with Rock and also heart felt acoustic songs.
The second half begins with another underated pumpkins song. Soma which is similar to Hummer in that it has soft guitars for the majority with loud distortion in the second half. Soma is purely a work of art and is a song that you will either love or hate there is no inbetween. For this song the guitars caught my attention a lot more than the lyrics but that being said i also quite enjoy the words " i'm all by myself as i have always feared." Although it sounds like a typical teenage angst poem it is still something that I and many other pumpkin fans can relate to. Geek USA is much like Soma but with a stronger emphasis on drums than guitar. Although it does feature rhythmic strumming and lead bits. Soma is much more personal song than Geek USA. Though that being said the song does contain a lot of themes that many teenagers can relate too " disappear like they were never here" the fear of alienation and not being noticed. The song also covers the aspect of teenagers thinking no one understands them "words cant describe what i feel inside". The solo in this song is technically awesome but lacks the heartfelt message of Soma. MAYONAISE I simply cannot praise this song enough. In my eyes this song is almost perfect. It contains the perfect balance of guitars, drums and lyrics. The chorus stuck with me and has become my signature "Try to understand that when i can i will." The song starts slowly to set the mood but i must urge you to listen to this master piece. Although many of you will gawk at this i beg you to listen to it before you judge it. Listen to it a few times and it will just click for you. This song has converted many a pumpkins fan from a casual listener into a rabid fan. Words cannot describe this song, so just go forth and listen.
Spaceboy. This song is about Corgans brother who has Cerebral paulsy. It is a fitting tribute and i will say no more other than it is beautiful. Ah, Silverfuck this song is just about the angriest song on the album which is sort of odd when you consider the preceeding songs. The song has an errie suprise in the mid section which i wont spoil. But the song is quite good.
Sweet sweet and luna. I think these two songs are the Achilles heel of siamese dream. I dont like these tracks as they seem to me to be filler material. They are b sides at best due to them sounding out of place on the record. They seem to fit into the adore era a lot more than this early pumpkin era.
This record is fantastic I strongly urge you too listen. I cannot say that enough. The music is just as valid in 2008 and it was in 1993 and i am willing to bet that my kids will more than likely experience the joys of this album, even if i have to force the old people music down their throats.
Stuart Francis"
Thank you.
but i am trying to sharpen my writing skills. Please can you give me feed back."As many of you may know I am an avid fan of the Smashing Pumpkins. So for my next blog I have found it to be most appropriate to review my favourite album. So here goes.
Siamese Dream is the second album from Chicago band Smashing Pumpkins. It was released on July 27th 1993. It was met with much critical acclaim but does it still stand the test of time. Is the teen angst guitar driven rock sound of the 90's still relevant to modern youth. In short yes, yes it is.
The Album opens with the light strumming of Cherub Rock. This song sets the scene as it transcends the typical songs of the 90's e.g. Nirvana Nevermind ( which whilst still highly praiseworthy is still very predictable.) Cherub rock continues with light strumming before the guitars become heavier and the lyrics start. The song then cycles between a mix of heavy over driven guitars and lighlty strum clean ones. After this the dubiously titled Quiet begins. Which is not what the name suggests. It is a loud in your face distorted guitar track. With some excellent riffs and some decent lyrics "QUIET, i am sleeping." Whilst not the height of corgans lyricisim it still melds well with the song. After being blown away with the two oppening tracks the album quiets down for a while. With the track Today "Today is the greatest day i have ever known." Whislt still containing the distortion guitars for the chorus the song is generally seen as a lighter song comparable to the opening chords of Cherub. Hummer is next up off the line "hummer and a chicken feed all in one" Not really. This song is one of the most underated Pumpkins songs ever written. Featuring a contrast between light strumming and booming vocals through to Heavy guitars with lighter almost chioritic vocals. Whilst Corgan may not be the best singer of all time he still does an excellent job of voicing the song and presenting it in the way it was intended. "ask yourself a question anyone but me, I am free" the lyrics are quite touching and convey a differnt message to each listener. The thing that is so enjoyable about this song is that some of the riffs are repeated cleanly and distorted which adds to the charm of the song. That and it has two guitar solos one with over driven guitar and a cleaner one, that is just uplifiting. Ah, next of the rank is Rocket. One of the more popular Pumpkins songs reciving a lot of air time and selling thousands of singles. It begins with a riff based around the 6th fret of the g string and the 5th fret of the b string. From here it advances into a melody of powerchords and major barre chords. This song is one of delving deeper inside of yourself to gain your ultimate freedom " I shall be free" and proving to the world that youre intentions are good " ill touch my soul, to show the world that i am pure." This song has the hall mark of being one of my first favourite pumpkins songs and it still has that effect on me of thinking about myself and what it is that i do. Next along is Disarm. A song about being abused as a child. "Disarm you with a smile, Cut you like you want me too" He sings of how his emotions were destroyed and that he had to grow up quickly "what i choose is my choice" "i used to be a little boy" he also fears becoming what had happened " the killer in me is the killer in you." This song is based around a simple yet memorable chord progession accompained by a violin and the simulation of church bells. This song is more one of forgivness and moving on than one of hatred. Thats the first half of the Album. Which has gone through many differnt artistic directions with Rock and also heart felt acoustic songs.
The second half begins with another underated pumpkins song. Soma which is similar to Hummer in that it has soft guitars for the majority with loud distortion in the second half. Soma is purely a work of art and is a song that you will either love or hate there is no inbetween. For this song the guitars caught my attention a lot more than the lyrics but that being said i also quite enjoy the words " i'm all by myself as i have always feared." Although it sounds like a typical teenage angst poem it is still something that I and many other pumpkin fans can relate to. Geek USA is much like Soma but with a stronger emphasis on drums than guitar. Although it does feature rhythmic strumming and lead bits. Soma is much more personal song than Geek USA. Though that being said the song does contain a lot of themes that many teenagers can relate too " disappear like they were never here" the fear of alienation and not being noticed. The song also covers the aspect of teenagers thinking no one understands them "words cant describe what i feel inside". The solo in this song is technically awesome but lacks the heartfelt message of Soma. MAYONAISE I simply cannot praise this song enough. In my eyes this song is almost perfect. It contains the perfect balance of guitars, drums and lyrics. The chorus stuck with me and has become my signature "Try to understand that when i can i will." The song starts slowly to set the mood but i must urge you to listen to this master piece. Although many of you will gawk at this i beg you to listen to it before you judge it. Listen to it a few times and it will just click for you. This song has converted many a pumpkins fan from a casual listener into a rabid fan. Words cannot describe this song, so just go forth and listen.
Spaceboy. This song is about Corgans brother who has Cerebral paulsy. It is a fitting tribute and i will say no more other than it is beautiful. Ah, Silverfuck this song is just about the angriest song on the album which is sort of odd when you consider the preceeding songs. The song has an errie suprise in the mid section which i wont spoil. But the song is quite good.
Sweet sweet and luna. I think these two songs are the Achilles heel of siamese dream. I dont like these tracks as they seem to me to be filler material. They are b sides at best due to them sounding out of place on the record. They seem to fit into the adore era a lot more than this early pumpkin era.
This record is fantastic I strongly urge you too listen. I cannot say that enough. The music is just as valid in 2008 and it was in 1993 and i am willing to bet that my kids will more than likely experience the joys of this album, even if i have to force the old people music down their throats.
Stuart Francis"
Thank you.
