The Smashing Pumpkins: “Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness” (Album Review)

Genres: Alternative Rock, Dream Pop, Grunge

        Have you ever laid awake at 3 A.M. in an introspective daze, and felt your deepest desires and pains pushed to the forefront? The Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan clearly has. Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness might represent the truest reflection of one’s entire self. Looking back at life from childhood to the current stage of adulthood brings a comprehensive view of different emotions and perspectives. 

        Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness has a lot of ground to cover with how conceptually diverse it is. This works perfectly with Corgan’s layered and meaningful writing. Over two hours of space is given to make a complete story filled with vivid scenery. The album’s duration is created by the songs, instead of making songs to pad out the duration. Dozens of recorded tracks were cut, leaving only what was seen as the most important cuts. Even if there’s drag created by being so lengthy, Corgan holds your attention with thoughtful and poignant lyricism. “Zero”’s concept of being someone’s “zero” is beautifully tackled, showcasing the choice to have an identity of being less than an individual. Corgan himself took on this role in real life, shaving his head and performing wearing a shirt with “ZERO” boldly emblazoned on the front. Becoming a blank canvas and not letting the world define you on its terms, is just one example that showcases the album’s narrative density.

        Much like the lyrical highs and lows, there is a diverse range of sounds created by the instrumentation. “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” features heavy drums and an intense electric guitar, while “Cupid De Locke” is a majestic ballad created with household items, like a bottle of aspirin as a shaker. Not only does this make for a unique and gripping listening experience, but it also prevents the audience from getting bored. Creating a grand sense of cohesion while being able to explore different avenues of sound is an incredible strength of the album. Avoiding overstimulation, the mix of various sounds makes for a more exhaustive record. These moments of intense creativity are scattered across Mellon Collie, but it doesn’t prevent the songwriting from feeling repetitive at times. Although consistently strong, the songwriting hurts the flow of the album during these moments. The tracks with intense and distorted guitar lose some of their emotions when it becomes too familiar, and don’t have a sound that stands on its own. Thankfully, these moments aren’t constant, but it is noticeable enough that the oomph is taken out of certain songs.

        Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness is an exhaustive summarization of a life up until the present, reflecting on these past experiences. There is an inherent fascination presented by such a great concept, and Billy Corgan does an incredible job at developing this narrative. Although the record's length and occasional lack of focus can make it feel more like a compilation than an album with a structured direction, there is a clear thoughtfulness behind each song. Even if it may have been too much, I am glad that Corgan had so much time and space to explore a concept that he obviously had much to say on. Mellon Collie is a beautiful tale of all the hopes, dreams, fears, and pains that are so present within humanity. The record's emotional weight brings power to these various ideas; The closing track "Farewell And Goodnight" wouldn't be a tearful ending if it wasn't the conclusion of such a moving story. When Corgan sings, "Goodnight, always to all that's pure that's in your heart", there is a note of finality that wraps up over two hours of content. After dwelling on all the highs and lows created by the day, there is only one word left to say: Goodnight.

Favorite Tracks: 1979, Cupid De Locke, Farewell And Goodnight, Zero, Take Me Down, Bullet With Butterfly Wings, Galapagos, Here Is No Why, Tonight, Tonight, Muzzle, Thru The Eyes Of Ruby, By Starlight, Beautiful, Porcelina Of The Vast Oceans, X.Y.U., An Ode To No One, Thirty-Three

Least Favorites: Where Boys Fear To Tread, We Only Come Out At Night, In The Arms Of Sleep, Tales Of A Scorched Earth

Enjoyment: Low 9

Critically: Low 9

Arbitrary Number: 9.2/10