Hey everyone! This is a thread or shall I say list, that I've been very interested in doing for a while now.
The band may not be the biggest on this forum, but they have quite a group of fans, and I know some people might have heard the name but don't really know the music, so a thread like this one is a good way to introduce people to a new band.
While I did knew about the band and had heard 3 songs before, I didn't get into this band until this year. The songs I had heard were great, and when I finally checked the band out I was blown away by how much I loved it.
So within the course of a few months, this band quickly went up among my favorites, and they're now sitting very comfortable in my top3 favorite bands. (together with Oceansize and Godspeed You Black Emperor if that matters)
All their albums are featured on the list, some more than others, and there's also quite a few B-sides. (though I'll admit that I haven't heard all of them, there's so many!)
50. Pale Horse (Oceania)Starting off the list, we have a song from the latest album; "
Pale Horse" from
Oceania, which came out earlier this year.
Oceania was sort of a "
will they/won't they" album, because the previous efforts were met with mixed feelings. The band broke up in 2000, and when they came back in 2007 with the album "
Zeitgeist", it didn't quite live up to what the fans were expecting. Not only that, but the following project called "
Teargarden by Kaleidoscope", with the idea of putting out music song by song and focusing more on songs and the EP format than the album also didn't receive the best feedback. Oceania was the return to making an album.
Pale Horse is a song that focuses a lot on a very dreamy guitar-pattern, which has a very oriental-sound to it. The song has a very simple structure and is very mellow. It doesn't build up to a huge climax or give you a lot of tempo changes, instead it takes a more "laid back" approach.
I think the key of liking this song lies in the guitar-pattern that I mentioned earlier. Right when I heard it the first time, it grabbed me and was one of those instant hooks, and I just loved it right away. I've seen pretty mixed feelings towards this song, but to me it is one of the better ones on this album, and the guitar-parts is a big reason.
49. Spaced (Pisces Iscariot)Next up we have "Spaced" from the B-Sides collection;
Pisces Iscariot, which came out in 1994. Initially it would be leftovers from the highly successful breakthrough album,
Siamese Dream which came out two years earlier, and while it was very much a B-sides album, the reception was great, and many fans consider it a studio-album, at least in terms of quality.
Spaced is a very odd tune. Is it a real song? Is it just a kind of outro? Different opinions I guess. One of the biggest strengths of Pisces Iscariot as an album is that while it's a collection of songs put together, it doesn't necessarily feel like it. It does actually feel cohesive as an album, and this song works perfectly at closing the album.
Spaced is a 2 ½ minute short track that features no singing and very minimal instrumentation. There's a very chilled out tune being played with some talking over it, creating a very special atmosphere.
This is a very unique song in their discography and also very unique on this list, but I love it. Amazing closer, great atmosphere, and it's just very haunting in a way.
48. I Am One (Gish)First song from the first album, "
I Am One" opens up the wonderful debut-album;
Gish.
The album starts off with some drums, setting up for the guitars which comes in soon after. The song is very charming in the sense that it feels quite unpolished in one way, a band trying to find their sound, but it's also fairly representative to how the band sounded at the time, a sound that became very successful.
The song also features a really nice bassline that gets some time to shine about halfway through before the guitar-solo kicks in, and Billy Corgan delivers the lyrics. One of the better songs from the debut for sure.
47. Zero (Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness)First song on the list from my favorite Pumpkins-album, "
Zero" was a huge hit-song, and one of the main-singles from the huge double-album,
Mellon Collie.
Zero is one of the heavier hits from the band, and displays the heavy side of The Smashing Pumpkins. The intro-riff is really badass and very catchy.
While the song is only 2:40 long, it's just a very strong and cohesive tune all the way through. Most fans would rank this much higher, but the band has so many awesome tunes, and I feel comfortable about it being around this spot.
46. Today (Siamese Dream)Together with
Mellon Collie,
Siamese Dream is considered the biggest album the band put out, and this song is one of the biggest hits from it, and also the first song from the album to be featured on this list.
You may recognize it from Guitar Hero: World Tour, or just hearing it from a radio channel somewhere, it was a huge hit in the 90's for sure.
The song is mostly mellow but features some electric guitars as well. Lyrically this song brings IT.
"
Today is the greatest day I've never known
Can't wait for tomorrow I might not have that long
I'll tear my heart out before I get out"
A very catchy tune that is pretty uplifting. A Pumpkins-classic, and I might get shit for not having it in my top15, but hey - it's still on the list!
And it's a damn fine tune.
Should be able to squeeze in 5 more tomorrow.
But yeah, comments, feedback and other stuff is appreciated.
Topic: Zantera's Top 50 The Smashing Pumpkins Songs! (Finished) (Read 7049 times)