Zeitgeist
Today was the release date for The Smashing Pumpkins‘ long-awaited 7th album, Zeitgeist. I have been a huge fan of of Billy Corgan‘s previous works, so needless to say, I eagerly rushed to BestBuy and purchased a copy.
I have not been disappointed! This album shows that the essence of the Pumpkins still lives on, despite the unfortunate absence of former band members James Iha and D’arcy Wretzky. Mr. Corgan’s unique voice has not lost any of it’s power and expressiveness. Jimmy Chamberlin‘s trademark drumming is still as precise as ever. Bottom line, the core Pumpkins sound is still there.
The German word “Zeitgeist” means “Spirit of the Age,” and that’s an appropriate title for the album. As I see it, Zeitgeist is an examination of the modern age, dealing with topics such as politics, materialism, etc. Sound like another trite teen-angst album? Don’t worry — it’s not. Mr. Corgan does a great job of focusing on the big-picture issues instead of ranting about petty controversies.
The BestBuy version contains a bonus track “Death from Above,” which seems to refer to the Apocalyptic visions of the Book of Revelation. My favorite track is “Starz,” a beautiful song which seems to be an exhortation for us to live up to our full potential:
Born of love and cast in light,
Don’t you know we cannot die –
We are stars.
The Smashing Pumpkins definitely did a great job with this album, showing us once more that they are (and always will be)… stars.
Posted: July 10th, 2007 under Music.