Zeitgeist, the first album of all new Pumpkins music in seven years, doesn't really feel like a Smashing Pumpkins album. It shouldn't matter that two of the band's original members are M.I.A.; after all, it's no secret that remaining Pumpkins Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin recorded pretty much the band's entire output by themselves. But as a band, the '90s Pumpkins transcended being the project of one of the most distinct singer/guitarist/songwriters in rock history and the drumming virtuoso who brought a live, spontaneous quality to songs with up to 40 overdubbed guitar parts. Kurt Cobain and Eddie Vedder destroyed the conventional idea of a rock star by seeming like guys you'd smoke pot with in the boys' locker room after school, but the Smashing Pumpkins stood out from Nirvana and Pearl Jam by seeming like they'd dropped in from another planet entirely. (And maybe they did?)
The Pumpkins were a smash because their music freaking ruled, but they were as memorable and intriguing visually as they were musically, and no matter how little D'Arcy and James Iha contributed to the actual music, their respective quirkiness and charisma played a role in the band's success. It's no wonder that both of them are more recognizable than many guys with actual songwriting capabilities, like Stone Gossard, Kim Thayil, or Jerry Cantrell.
Regardless of whether or not Zeitgeist counts as a real Pumpkins album, it has some very good music. The pounding 'Doomsday Clock' rocks even harder than it did in the Transformers movie, 'United States' grabs your ears for all ten minutes that it's playing, and the droning, hypnotic 'Bleeding the Orchid' could've found a spot on the Pumpkins' most underrated album, Adore. Some tracks, like the first single 'Tarantula' aren't in the league of anything on Siamese Dream or Mellon Collie, but offer more nerve and verve than the most recent music by Chris Cornell, Scott Weiland, Marilyn Manson, or Perry Farrell (featuring Fergie--ralph!) To Corgan/Chamberlin's credit, they can still rock without sounding like they're forcing it.
Even at its best, Zeitgeist is spotty. Corgan has always been excessive and self-indulgent, and those qualities allowed him to pull off a two-disc, genre-obliterating masterpiece with enough great outtakes to fill up a box set in his songwriting prime. However, with his creativity running dry, Corgan's inability to check himself is losing it's appeal. 'That's the Way (My Love Is)' wouldn't even see a b-side release from the '90s Pumpkins, and 'Starz' is one of the weakest songs Corgan's ever written. Elsewhere, Corgan's transition from angst-ridden alt-rock icon to incensed political crusader is not as smooth as Trent Reznor's earlier this year--'United States' is compelling due to the dynamic chemistry between Corgan and Chamberlin and not the song's "Revolution, revolution blues" lyrics. Elsewhere, 'For God and Country' is a synth and keyboard-heavy musing on both topics that says little about either, and the album's cover is probably meant to say something about global warming or some other way that we're hastening the apocalypse. It looks more like a scene from Planet of the Apes.
Zeitgeist is not an embarrassment--even when Corgan's boldness takes him further than his muse is willing to go, his inconsistency confirms his status as one of the most exciting figures in alternative rock. The problem is that Zeitgeist doesn't add anything to the Pumpkins' legacy--nobody is going to see the Pumpkins this year hoping they play 'Tarantula' instead of 'Cherub Rock,' Zero, or 'Muzzle.' As far as Billy Corgan goes, it's a reaffirmation of mad scientist-esque brilliance, a step up from his mediocre solo album, and another sign that we'll be still arguing about him for years to come.
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