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the phenomenal '95 album by the now disbanded smashing pumpkins. its got practically everything: ballads, alt rock, metal, etc. i dont buy albums regularly (limewire, duh) so i actually just discovered this recently.
Music: most 2-disc sets end up being 5 great songs, some pre-released "greatest hits" and a couple of horrible fillers you skip over in order to submerge urself in the "real" songs. 'tis not the case with the pumpkins. excepting a few oddballs like "Tales of a Scorched Earth" and "We Only Come Out at Night," (the first being way too metallic and feedback-dominated for me to enjoy and the latter with melodies and lyrics reminiscent of children's lullabies) this album is an adventurous journey into the heart of alt. rock. from the solid hard rock melodies of "zero" to the psychadelic guitar riffs and techno waves in "1979" the album takes you on a rollercoaster ride of cheap thrills, emotional motifs of loneliness and lost loves, and just plain smart rock. billy corgan's voice is a bit whiny at times, i must admit, but the phenonmenal musical composition easily makes you forget any inadequacies in the vocal department.
Lyrics: from the moment you open that little brown lyric-book, you know that this is just poetry. from anger to frustration to loneliness and want, it seems that almost every emotion is explored to its fullest in this album. although at times the the music and somewhat lacking vocal department leaves you wishing for something just a bit more, the lyrics more than compensates. billy corgan takes risks and thats a good thing, because the rock he presents is not just some shallow, head bobbing tune, its an odyssey into the human soul.
(e.g., from "Tonight Tonight")
And the embers never fade in your city by the lake
The place where you were born
Believe, believe in me, and believe, believe.
In the resolute urgency of now
And if you believe there's not a chance tonight
Tonight, Tonight.
So bright tonight, tonight.
We