17 posts tagged “smashing pumpkins”

This is a great year for music. We are only a third of the way through, and already we've had...

January
- In Rainbows by Radiohead was released on CD (naturally, I already had the £40 discbox)
- American Gothic EP by Smashing Pumpkins
- In Field & Town by Hayden
- Field Manual by Chris Walla
- The Bedlam In Goliath by The Mars Volta*

January highlight...

February
- Here's To Being Here by Jason Collett
- Lucky by Nada Surf

February highlight...

March
- Ghosts I-IV by Nine Inch Nails
- Volume One by She & Him
- Diamond Hoo Ha by Supergrass*
- Saturday Nights & Sunday Mornings by Counting Crows
- Accelerate by REM
- Last Night by Moby*

March highlight...

April
- Keep Telling Myself It's Alright by Ashes Divide (aka Billy Howerdel from A Perfect Circle, I'm listening to it now)
- Mountain Battles by The Breeders*
- Walk It Off by Tapes N' Tapes
- Flight Of The Conchords by Flight Of The Conchords**
- Third by Portishead**
- Mercy by Ours**

April highlight...

* need to buy
** have on pre-order

It's not looking like it's going to slow up, either.

Show us a tattoo.

I have this on my inner left forearm:

It was originally a part of the artwork for Radiohead's OK Computer album, and later appeared on CD singles and the Meeting People Is Easy video/DVD.

Please.

Stop making.

Music videos.

Thank you,

Everyone xxx

Peter Hook of Joy Division/New Order, Mani from Stone Roses/Primal Scream and Andy Rourke from The Smiths have formed a supergroup called Freebass (the name being a reference to the fact all three are bass guitarists).

According to an article on Pitchfork, guest vocalists rumoured to be appearing on their forthcoming album are...

- Billy Corgan: no big shock, he's worked with Peter Hook before on New Order's 2001 album Get Ready, and toured with the band as keyboardist/guitarist.
- Rowetta: former Happy Mondays backing vocalist, X-Factor contestant and all-round nutter.
- Howard Marks: notorious drug smuggler, friend of Super Furry Animals and author of Mr Nice.
- Gary Briggs: frontman for indie also-rans Haven. The only connection I can think of is that they were discovered by Andy's former bandmate Johnny Marr.

Weirdest. Line-up. Ever.

Show us your favorite album cover.

I have three.

Dark Side Of The Moon by Pink Floyd

This remains one of the most iconic album covers since time began.

Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness by Smashing Pumpkins

Their artwork was just one of the many ways in which pre-split Smashing Pumpkins were vastly superior to the current incarnation. The Zeitgeist cover is just so... boring. The Mellon Collie booklet has inspired more tattoos amongst Pumpkins nerds than any other.

Goo by Sonic Youth

It's ridiculously simple but really eye-catching. According to Wikipedia:

"The cover is a Raymond Pettibon illustration based on a paparazzi photo of Maureen Hindley and her first husband David Smith, witnesses in the case of serial killers Ian Brady and Myra Hindley,[5] driving to the trial in 1966."

Until about 2001, Smashing Pumpkins were my favourite band. Then they had to spoil it all by reforming without James Iha and releasing numerous versions of their new, inferior album, only cementing the belief that this was nothing more than a cash grab.

As it stands, there have now been 12 versions of the album (discounting basic regional variations), with different-coloured covers and slightly different bonuses:

- Original CD
- Special Edition CD
- LP
- Best Buy CD
- Target CD
- iTunes (Original)
- Amazon.de CD
- Mueller CD
- HMV CD
- 101CD.com CD
- Best Buy CD/DVD
- iTunes (with American Gothic EP)

This must be a record... surely? Where's Norris McWhirter when you need him?

I stole this from Wendy, who stole it from Cliff.

Put your iPod/Zune/iRiver/Creative thingy on random and write the first line of each of the first twenty-five songs it plays, then see how relevant those lyrics are to your life. No skipping songs that make you look uncool, or manually selecting songs you like.

1. 'Ice Box' by Nada Surf
"Stay until you're sure that I'm asleep, warm and safe and very still."

This is very insightful. Every night, Jess waits till I'm asleep then goes and plays Wii Sports till the early hours of morning. That's why she's tired.

2. 'Love Affair' by Kylie Minogue
"Here in the moment I belong, in a waking dream."

Today, I am very sleepy and not concentrating as it's Thanksgiving and the office is so dead.

3. 'Steps Into Miles' by Hayden
"Your legs walk through the tide like a smile, turn every step into miles."

All the girls at work are wearing jeans, and they're all shorter than me, so this can't be about ogling legs; and we're nowhere near water. Am I thinking too literally?

4. 'Nothing And Everything' by Smashing Pumpkins
"Hiding behind my hair today, my eyes dance with fire."

I don't even own a hair, let alone many hairs that would necessitate an entire face hide.

5. 'One More Time' by The Cure
"I'd love to touch the sky tonight, I'd love to touch the sky."

I'd love to watch Sky Plus tonight, but alas.

6. 'A Man/Me/Then Jim' by Rilo Kiley
"I had one friend in high school, recently he hung himself with string."

I've not heard of any school friends committing suicide, but people I went to school have been adding me on Facebook recently. Hmm.

7. 'New Lace Sleeves' by Elvis Costello
"Bad lovers face to face in the morning, shy apologies and polite regrets."

Jess and I usually sleep butt to butt... although, we call each other butthead and buttface, so maybe it's a subtle nod.

8. 'Animal' by Pearl Jam
"One, two, three, four, five against one, five, five, against one."

Those sound like good odds. Put me down for $20.

9. 'Unison' by Bjork
"One hand allows the other, so much and me."

Thanks for clearing that up, Bjork. No really.

10. 'Goodnight Sweet Night' by Jason Falkner
"Nobody told me this, I could have just asked how you were, how you were."

Jason Falkner is a walking self-help guide. How ARE you, person reading this?

11. 'Darts' by System Of A Down
"May I please remain in this space, for darts screech by my desires?"

Watching darts or playing darts? Watching darts is more fun because you get to laugh at big fat guys.

12. 'Briefcase Full Of Guts' by Dethklok
"Punch your card 'cause your working day has started and you're pushing hard for employee of the month."

We don't have an employee of the month scheme yet. But I do work hard when I'm awake.

13. 'Once In A Lifetime' by Talking Heads
"And you may find yourself living in a shotgun shack, and you may find yourself in another part of the world, and you may find yourself behind the wheel of a large automobile."

I'm in another part of the world! Hurrah!

14. 'Sulk' by Radiohead
"You bite through the big wall, the big wall bites back, you sit there and sulk, you sit there and bawl."

If I tried eating wall, I probably would cry.

15. 'Trunk' by Kings Of Leon
"Well I got what she wants, ah her nose, a tied knot."

If by she you mean the generic woman, then yes, I have money. That's all women want isn't it? That or Mel Gibson reading their minds.

16. 'The Queen Is Dead (Take Me Back To Dear Old Blighty)' by The Smiths
"Take me back to dear old Blighty, put me on the train for London town!"

I might be thinking this when winter really kicks in here in Chicago, but right now all I miss about Blighty are people.

17. 'Monkey & Bear' by Joanna Newsom
"Down in the green hay where monkey and bear usually lay, they woke from a stable boy's cry."

I've got nothing.

18. 'Accidents' by The Prize Fighter Inferno
"Oh, come now father dear and turn this blood to choice."

Again, um... yeah?

19. 'Twisted' by Sleeper
"She's seen one and it looks funny, it made her cry said boo to her."

This must be about genitals. Jess is scared of my genitals?

20. 'What You're Doing' by The Beatles
"Look what you're doing, I'm feeling blue and lonely."

Today I am not feeling blue, but it is pretty lonely as everyone left for lunch.

21. 'White Collar Boy' by Belle & Sebastian
"You're a white collar boy and you gave in to the law."

The collar I am wearing is blue with thin white stripes in it. I always give in to the law.

22. 'Walking Higher' by Heather Nova
"I carry you with me like a ghost inside."

This must be about my parasitic twin, Desmond.

23. 'Time After Time Etc' by REM
"Ask the girl of the hour by the water tower's watch, if your friends took a fall, are you obligated to follow?"

I always stick up for my friends, even if they're someone else's HUSband.

24. 'Imaginary Love' by Rufus Wainwright
"Every kind of love, at least my kind of love, must be an imaginary love to start with."

This is true. When I started crushing on Jess, I wished she felt the same.

25. 'Regret' by New Order
"Maybe I've forgotten the name and the address of everyone I've ever known, it's nothing I regret."

I am the most forgetful person in the world. Except Ricci. And my mum.

Today, Jess and I were out. We got brunch, then we went in Best Buy to see if a game I wanted (Zack & Wiki: The Quest For Barbaros' Treasure for Wii) was available. It was, so good show. Also out today was Guitar Hero III on basically every games console on the market right now. We picked it up for the Xbox 360 - we had Guitar Hero II and wanted a second guitar, this way we have a second guitar AND a bunch more songs and stuff.

The new guitar is a fake Les Paul and they're doing custom faceplates for it. I spotted a Fall Out Boy one and jokingly said we should get it. Then Jess spotted a Smashing Pumpkins one, with this glorious typo on the box:

The game is good fun. Tom Morello and Slash appear as boss characters. You have to play against them, and if you beat them, you then duet with them on 'Bulls On Parade' and 'Welcome To The Jungle' respectively. I played it for a good while and I was actually decent at it. A full list of songs can probably be found on the internet. Oh, and celebreality sleazebag Bret Michaels also appears, but as a guest vocalist in your virtual band when you play 'Talk Dirty To Me' by Poison.

So Jess is now the proud owner of our old faux-Explorer while I have a faux-Les Paul so we can be faux-rock stars in our faux-lounge.

On a Smashing Pumpkins note, I think its now more than official that this year's reunion was to make money. No, I know, it was blatantly obvious to anyone with sense, but I don't think the super fans get it. 30 October sees the release of a new special edition of comeback album Zeitgeist featuring a DVD and three extra songs.

Nothing wrong with a special edition, but this is the SEVENTH different version of the album after the regular, deluxe, iTunes, Best Buy, Target and HMV versions. I cannot name any other album that has had so many different versions in its first year on sale... or after any amount of time on sale.

And back from that bald twat to another one... me. I also got my hair cut today. My hair gets to a certain length and then does whatever the hell it wants, and I couldn't take it anymore. I got the same hairdresser as the last time - the woman who was impressed with how thick my hair is. Hot.

Show us your favorite local band.
Submitted by Soup.

There are a lot of local bands I like. My favourite is some obscure alternative rock combo...

... but I also like the following acts and artists who are from the Chicagoland area:

- Alkaline Trio
- Andrew Bird
- Cheap Trick
- Chin Up Chin Up
- Crucial Taunt
- Fun Club
- Headlights
- Liz Phair
- Miles Davis
- Sam Cooke
- The Shitty Beatles
- Wilco

Bonus points to anyone who spots the acts that shouldn't be on that list and what they have in common.

PS: In writing this, I discovered that Chicago, Styx AND REO Speedwagon are from the area. Josh paradise.

Show us which album tops your best of 2007 list so far.

It's a three way tie so far:

The Crane Wife by The Decemberists apparently came out last year - as did Mercury-nominated Irishman Fionn Regan's album, The End Of History; and In Rainbows by Radiohead isn't out yet. Closely following behind these are Nux Vomica by The Veils, Under The Blacklight by Rilo Kiley, 23 by Blonde Redhead and An End Has A Start by Editors.

Here is a list of everything released this year that I have on my iPod, which in theory is everything released this year that I own but it may be incomplete:

Pocket Symphony by Air
Neon Bible by Arcade Fire
Favourite Worst Nightmare by Arctic Monkeys
Fur And Gold by Bats For Lashes
Volta by Bjork
23 by Blonde Redhead
Cassadaga by Bright Eyes
On Letting Go by Circa Survive
Some Loud Thunder by Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
An End Has A Start by Editors
The Best Of - The First Ten Years by Elvis Costello
The Reminder by Feist
Our Love To Admire by Interpol
Further North by Johnathan Rice
Spirit If... by Kevin Drew
Because Of The Times by Kings Of Leon
Singularity by Mae
Heresy And The Hotel Choir by Maritime
We Were Dead Before The Ship Even Sank by Modest Mouse
Year Zero by Nine Inch Nails
Planet Earth by Prince
My Brother's Blood Machine by The Prize Fighter Inferno
Under The Blacklight by Rilo Kiley
Young Modern by Silverchair
Zeitgeist by Smashing Pumpkins
In Our Bedroom After The War by Stars
Beauty & Crime by Suzanne Vega
Nux Vomica by The Veils
Sky Blue Sky by Wilco