The Smashing Pumpkins

[implanted_microchip]

According to that radio host the new album comes mid-November which would be in line with Billy's Insta Q&A hints. Personally I don't like either of the new songs (even after seeing Solara live I think it's weak all around). Silvery feels like something from MTAE, it's summery and upbeat and kind of airy. I don't think Rubin brings out the best in this band at all (and in general I've always felt he's best for hip-hop, he rarely benefits rock-oriented acts).

I miss the sound Oceania had, where for the first time in a while, it sounded like a full band playing. I don't think Silvery sounds at all like the full band and the beat feels like a test demo for a drum machine, which isn't a bad thing necessarily but if you told me this was Jimmy and I didn't know better I'd think you were hallucinating. I get the vibe that this is a sort of "last three tracks of the album winding everything down" song but lacking in any of the energy and vibrance that most of those kinds of songs have when Billy writes them.

[armogi]

i prefer solara...

[neorev]

Will I ever intentionally seek out and play Solara and/or Silvery Sometimes ever again?










No.
These tracks are forgettable and do nothing for me emotionally nor are they entertaining.

[sonic_discord]

I was actually very pleasantly surprised with how much I liked Silvery Sometimes and I'm really looking forward to hearing the rest of the album, which comes out November 16. Also, the album title is apparently "Shiny And Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun." I kinda hope it isn't, though. That's an excruciatingly long album title. Hopefully it's just "Shiny And Oh So Bright: No Past. No Future. No Sun." or "Shiny And Oh So Bright, Vol. 1." Maybe Billy wrote the announcement and it's full of the whimsical poetry he usually indulges in (which can sound great as lyrics, but when he posts like that on Instagram, it often comes off as pretentious and verbose) and they couldn't tell where the album title ended and the "No Past. No Future. No Sun" part was just part of the fluff statement he wrote to promote it.

[Soma]

These new tracks are ok.. I like them more than anything since Zeitgest. The concert in KC was epic. I hope they're hiding some gold for the album actually drops, but my expectations aren't too high

[Shadaloo]

Fuck all of the "last few albums we thought were bad in light of the new stuff were actually really good" bullshit. Silvery's IMO the best track they've done in a clear decade, really reminds me of SP1, and while I don't think Rubin's production's doing Jimmy's drums any favors I'm legitimately excited to hear the rest of the album which is something I haven't felt in fuck knows how long.

[fillow]

IAlso, the album title is apparently "Shiny And Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun." I kinda hope it isn't, though. That's an excruciatingly long album title.

Amen to that. 98 different variations of it on last.fm are incoming.

[implanted_microchip]

Even the cover art is facepalming at the bad title

[neorev]

The artwork looks as bland as these two songs sound.

Call me crazy, but my honest feelings...

The Fellowship and Astral Planes > Solara and Silvery Sometimes (Ghosts)

Superchrist > Solara and Silvery Sometimes (Ghosts) put together

Superchrist > Zeitgeist thru to these singles

The last song Billy has done that has truly given me classic SP feels was Superchrist

"Burn down this album"

[thefragile_jake]

I really, really like this new song, but the production makes it feel so plastic.

Also, is there any discussion about more tour dates this year?

[imail724]

Including "Volume 1" on any release is so stupid unless volume 2 is already planned and ready to go. Especially coming from Billy. I'll eat my shoe if a volume 2 ever sees the light of day. Hoping they drop the volume 1 before release.

[Shadaloo]

Whatever. Everyone's just going to call it No Past No Present No Sun anyway, or abbreviate it as No Past/NPNPNS/NPNS/No Penis etc. That'll be good enough.

A wealth of bundle purchase options are available. They've got my dollarydoos.

[imail724]

I'll probably call it Shiny and Oh So Bright, actually. No one refers to Machina I and Machina II as The Machines of God and The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music (I actually had to google what both were called just now).

[Shadaloo]

A counterpoint to that would be that "Machina I" and "Machina II" are quick abbreviations which kind of roll off the tongue, and they had the benefit of being released without some all-encompassing project title, kind of like how everyone just blankets TG 1 and 2 as "Teargarden". Both Machina titles are committed to my memory, but I've been a psycho-fan for decades. I'm guessing it'll be "Shiny" if not "No Past" or something similar. Also depends on whatever the next one's called.

Also an advisory: As I've just discovered, the instant download you get on purchase of Solara and Silvery is an mp3 and not lossless, for anyone hoping. I didn't see any option to select format during checkout.

[dvdglss]

is the gold record already sold out?!!! FUCKKK....

[Shadaloo]

I think it's only available on the UK Store

What a fucking crazy morning full of news and bundles this has been to wake up to

[dvdglss]

i saw it standalone on my phone for US$26 or so this morning... but when i went to buy just now, all gone from us store


AND yes, i am the olds who has stop reading internet so good... lol

[Piko]

New song's alright. Chorus is very underwhelming. First listen I was waiting for the chorus and it never came. The chorus felt like it was leading to something that never came.

[armogi]

at least we got a CD and it's not all about vinyl only

[neorev]

My problem with the new tracks, Billy's vocals ruin Silvery Sometimes and Solara for me. It just doesn't sound sincere. He seems to have chosen singing this way because he thinks it sounds technically better, but where is the emotion? He has chosen technique over conveying emotion. His voice sounds so sterile and lackadaisical. Solara was the same. The feeling is gone. He may think he wasn't the best vocalist back in the day and that is probably true, but jesus at least you felt something in his singing. It didn't need to sound perfect or technically flawless, it just needed to convey emotion. You could feel his pain or longing. His singing felt human and honest. People say the drums are lifeless as a drum machine, well I say the vocals sound lifeless as a guy just going through the motions. People ripped Billy's voice back in the day, but you felt their intention: the rage, the sadness, the bittersweet. This? Sterile, stagnant, empty, lifeless. Rick Rubin's glossy production doesn't help, but even an amazing producer like Flood or Butch Vig can't do a thing if the singer doesn't sound like he truly feels the lyrics he is singing. These newer tracks, he just doesn't convey any emotion to me. They sound so... just blah. This is my biggest issue.

[seasonsinthesky]

My problem with the new tracks, Billy's vocals ruin Silvery Sometimes and Solara for me. It just doesn't sound sincere. He seems to have chosen singing this way because he thinks it sounds technically better, but where is the emotion? He has chosen technique over conveying emotion. His voice sounds so sterile and lackadaisical. Solara was the same. The feeling is gone. He may think he wasn't the best vocalist back in the day and that is probably true, but jesus at least you felt something in his singing. It didn't need to sound perfect or technically flawless, it just needed to convey emotion. You could feel his pain or longing. His singing felt human and honest. People say the drums are lifeless as a drum machine, well I say the vocals sound lifeless as a guy just going through the motions. People ripped Billy's voice back in the day, but you felt their intention: the rage, the sadness, the bittersweet. This? Sterile, stagnant, empty, lifeless. Rick Rubin's glossy production doesn't help, but even an amazing producer like Flood or Butch Vig can't do a thing if the singer doesn't sound like he truly feels the lyrics he is singing. These newer tracks, he just doesn't convey any emotion to me. They sound so... just blah. This is my biggest issue.

He hasn't sounded sincere singing since TheFutureEmbrace, by my estimation.

[Piko]

He hasn't sounded sincere singing since TheFutureEmbrace, by my estimation.

I'd say Zwan.

[sonic_discord]

I'd say Zwan.

I'd say Oceania. That album is supremely underrated.

[Piko]

I'd say Oceania. That album is supremely underrated.

It is. I meant just his vocal approach changing with Zwan onward.

[implanted_microchip]

I like his vocals a lot on Pinwheels, Pale Horse and Wildflower a lot. I think he gets a good performance in on almost every album but they’ve become fewer and farther between with each album.

More interestingly though is that on his Insta Billy said James sings on the new album.

[Shadaloo]

My problem with the new tracks, Billy's vocals ruin Silvery Sometimes and Solara for me. It just doesn't sound sincere. He seems to have chosen singing this way because he thinks it sounds technically better, but where is the emotion? He has chosen technique over conveying emotion. His voice sounds so sterile and lackadaisical. Solara was the same. The feeling is gone. He may think he wasn't the best vocalist back in the day and that is probably true, but jesus at least you felt something in his singing. It didn't need to sound perfect or technically flawless, it just needed to convey emotion. You could feel his pain or longing. His singing felt human and honest. People say the drums are lifeless as a drum machine, well I say the vocals sound lifeless as a guy just going through the motions. People ripped Billy's voice back in the day, but you felt their intention: the rage, the sadness, the bittersweet. This? Sterile, stagnant, empty, lifeless. Rick Rubin's glossy production doesn't help, but even an amazing producer like Flood or Butch Vig can't do a thing if the singer doesn't sound like he truly feels the lyrics he is singing. These newer tracks, he just doesn't convey any emotion to me. They sound so... just blah. This is my biggest issue.

Someone on Netpho put it well: to sing the way he used to he'd really have to use his stomach muscles and diaphragm, and doing it the way he used to would have caused his voice to deteriorate in the long run. So it was a conscious choice to change his delivery method, and the problem I don't think is that he's singing emotionlessly, it's that the way he's doing it makes it much harder to convey that sense of urgency and emotion when it comes to a song like Solara which kind of begs immediacy.

For my money, Silvery is much better than Solara in the vocal delivery department, and I think he does a much better job of conveying a sense of wistfulness in this one. There's absolutely a sense of desperation in "we're in the middle". Song seems to be about the feeling of being a helpless passerby while awful events happen in the world - it would also help if his lyrics were a bit less abstract, but he's a bit more down to earth here than recently. We're quite a few steps above "lover you're strange" x100.

Three days on and I'm still waking up with it in my head. It's a keeper for me.

[katara]

What would be a good album for someone new to the band to get into? (I'm talking about myself)

[implanted_microchip]

What would be a good album for someone new to the band to get into? (I'm talking about myself)

Sismese Dream is classic start to finish, maybe the only universally agreed on SP album and heavy on fuzzy guitars if you dig that sound. If you like that a lot, try Gish after.

Mellon Collie is the gigantic, sprawling, 2-disc “every radio hit ever” opus and is probably the one with the most songs you’d recognize. Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Thirty Three, Zero, Tonight Tonight and 1979 are all on here. Like any double album its tracklist can feel imperfect or odd at times but it’s best material is their best material and well worth the ride, from there you can really figure out what “sides” of the band you prefer. Hearing your favorites from it could help in recommending more.

Adore is amazing if you love quieter, moodier, gothier work. Described as a funeral march by Billy it’s nothing but sad songs and has become a fan favorite over the years but isn’t the best representation of the rest of the discography.

Machina is probably best appreciated once you’ve already gotten into other work.

Oceania is the best album of post-reunion SP and gives a good idea of how they’ve sounded since Billy brought the name back.

[Piko]

I'd say Mellon Collie or Siamese Dream first. Then branch out from there. Adore is a great album. But it's also a very huge departure from everything before it and after. Don't expect a rock album. It's requires an open mind for sure.

[Shadaloo]

What would be a good album for someone new to the band to get into? (I'm talking about myself)

Siamese, MCIS, Pisces Iscariot, Gish to start with. Aeroplane Flies High if you really love the MCIS sound. Adore and the Machinas afterwards.