Smashing Pumpkins – 'Zeitgeist' review
Things change. When Smashing Pumpkins last troubled our stereos, The Strokes, iPods, MySpace and 9/11 didn’t exist. Radiohead were still a rock band, and people were still mildly surprised that all of Christendom hadn’t gone down with the millennium bug. Seven years on, maybe Zeitgeist, the Pumpkins’ return, genuinely is Corgan et al regrouping to capture the spirit of the millennial world – after all, there’s pretty good Corgan-esque inspiration kicking about (war, existential angst, uncertain world future, science versus religion, etc). Unfortunately though Zeigeist falls short of being the generation-defining album that its title proclaims.
If it were 1991, maybe this LP would represent a decent stab at zeitgeisting. But if not, never has a record been more inappropriately titled. Not since the last Stereophonics outing has an album captured less the spirit of our times, its grunge production, derivative songwriting and say-what-you-see lyrics completing a trinity of modern cultural redundancy. If there’s anything to credit here, it’s some great drum parts from the ever-reliable Jimmy Chamberlin. Other than that, this is whiny, shallow, irrelevant cack.
0/10
