Smashing Pumpkins Albums Ranked

The Smashing Pumpkins (or Smashing Pumpkins) are an American alternative rock band from Chicago. Formed in 1988 by frontman Billy Corgan (lead vocals, guitar), D’arcy Wretzky (bass), James Iha (guitar), and Jimmy Chamberlin (drums), the band has undergone many line-up changes. The current lineup features Corgan, Chamberlin, Iha, and guitarist Jeff Schroeder. Disavowing the punk rock roots of many of their alt-rock contemporaries, they have a diverse, densely layered, and guitar-heavy sound, containing elements of gothic rock, heavy metal, dream pop, psychedelic rock, progressive rock, shoegazing, and electronica in later recordings. n 2006, Corgan and Chamberlin reconvened to record a new Smashing Pumpkins album, Zeitgeist. After touring throughout 2007 and 2008 with a lineup including new guitarist Jeff Schroeder, Chamberlin left the band in early 2009. Later that year, Corgan began a new recording series with a rotating lineup of musicians entitled Teargarden by Kaleidyscope, which encompassed the release of stand-alone singles, compilation EP releases, and two full albums that also fell under the project’s scope—Oceania in 2012 and Monuments to an Elegy in 2014. Here are all Smashing Pumpkins albums ranked.

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10. Monuments To An Elegy (2014)

“Billy Corgan keeps moving forward musically. Never content to simply recap the nostalgic sound of his 90’s classics, he progresses on Monuments, creating 3-minute pop rock gems that are (to my ears) much more listenable than the prog epics of Oceania. While Corgan does sometimes allude sonically to previous work, he always re-combines these sounds to create something new. My personal favorite track on the album is “Dorian,” a new wave Gothic track with a deeply lyrical sweep. The “epic wizard” interlude of “Tiberius” is also a highlight. There is not a bad track on this album, and there are several excellent ones.”

9. ZEITGEIST (2007)

“Great Music. Billy really can do no wrong. SP has always provided thought-provoking lyrics, great drums, and classic guitar riffs. Such a wonderful man, a great Artist! Every song Billy is full of surprises whether a diff tempo and ghostly vocal in the back, on sudden changes in progression of style. SP for life!”

8. Oceania (2012)

“Getting to “Oceania”, the new band Billy has assembled sounds excellent and doesn’t try to imitate their predecessors which is refreshing. Billy is in top form in every way; his voice sounds better than I’ve heard it in years, his songwriting is top-notch, and the musicianship is amazing. This album sounds like the logical progression from an album like “Machina”. It isn’t all distorted-guitar driven tracks; there is a wide variety of sound ranging from synths to strings to electronics. The songs never go into the territory of sounding too pretentious or self indulgent, they always stay true to the actual songwriting and soul of the song.”

7. SHINY AND OH SO BRIGHT, VOL. 1 / NO PAST. NO FUTURE. NO SUN. (2018)

“The opening track Knights of Malta does this immediately with a distinctively light, upbeat atmosphere. This album’s aesthetic is deliberate. Corgan’s views on pop and the industry are well documented.e sings with a gorgeously developed vibrato and bravado, and he arranges with that musical intuition he’s always excelled at. Jimmy Chamberlain performs with a restraint and versatility that demonstrates the spectrum of his abilities. “

6. Machina II: The Friends and Enemies of Modern Music (2000)

“This is my favorite music album ever created. But I, personally, can not describe it – I can’t share with words how I feel about it.There are many different moods this music puts you through: Crying on your knees in an empty field in the middle of the night; plunging directly into the jaws of a spidery hell; running and echoing through an empty mansion lit only by starlight; silently walking along a dense forest, usurped in twilight isolation.”

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5. Machina / The Machines Of God (2000)

“MACHINA: The Machines of God” is a monster of an album. While previous outings were certainly grandiose, “MACHINA” takes the Pumpkin sound into a new, strange dimension. The songs still possess the Pumpkins’ tademark melancholy, but this time around there’s less focus on the univeral themes of depression and anger. Instead, Billy Corgan decided to write songs that came straight out of his experience as the leader of one of the biggest bands in the world. “

4. Gish (1991)

“Gish (1991) is The Smashing Pumpkins debut album, and a blinder it is. Raw. Experimental. I Am One, Bury Me, and Tristessa blast along at break-neck pace, showcasing Billy Corgan’s heavy riffs and individual guitar sound. Rhinoceros is psychedelic rock, with a haunting undertone, dreamy, hypnotic. Jimmy Chamberlin’s drums are sharp, tuned high, sounding tight; amazing fills; quick though subtle.”

3. Adore (1998)

“This is the most somber and emotional SP album. At the same time there is quite a bit of emotional range found on the album as a whole. If you haven’t heard it before, it’s definitely worth a play through from start to finish. If you are a SP fan, it’s a must have.”

2. Siamese Dream (1993)

“For the uninitiated, this is arguably the band’s best album to date as well as one of the best albums in musical history. Not fact of course but it is arguable. There are no low points. Granted it does take a while to absorb and on first listen (hard to remember my first time as it was so long ago now) it doesn’t particularly make much of an impressionurely songs can’t be THIS good?! ‘Hummer’ is a sleeper hit. After the 3rd or 4th spin it becomes classic material. One of my all-time favourite SP tracks. ‘Rocket’ is more of a companion track but it’s still awesome. And the sublime ‘Disarm’ does just that.”

1. Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness (1995)

“This album takes you on a journey. Literally. Once you flip the album on, your mind soars out of reality and into pure space. You can see planets and the moon. The front cover and other art from the album really sums up what I mean. Take the first song “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.” A gorgeous piano song that perfectly opens the album. I find this song to be complimentary to the next song “Tonight, Tonight.” At this point, your mind is calm and tearful, since both songs are really gripping and emotional.”