From a production standpoint I agree 100%. I think it’s the most meticulously executed album of my lifetime. Attention was given to every single note. It’s almost too polished. For this reason I find Mellon Collie more interesting and fun to listen to, and from a pure songwriting standpoint, Adore is my favorite.
Better, but sadly it would be a bit hard to sell since it doesn't have a puch chorus that anyone can sing along like the other two songs@@christopherhendricks4369
VERY TRUE.. long since pawned my CD and cassette of this brilliant masterpiece... Actually pulled the Spotify version to give this whole album a re-listen after Abigail's excellent 30 year review..
I don’t even like vinyl…like, at all (but I didn’t come here to criticize or start fights; you guys do you), and I absolutely agree. This was a phenomenal video and I’m gonna have to watch a whole mess of her stuff.
I think you're right that the pumpkins were at heart a psych band. At that time, Gen X was just coming into it's own as adults, and we were mining the 60's vibe in music and other artforms in the late 80's and early 90's. Even Britpop bands like Blur and Charlatans were doing this.
I’ve felt like the 90s, at least in terms of rock music, echoed a lot of the fundamentals of 60s and 70s music because, like you said, Gen X were becoming adults and were obviously impacted by the music of that time in their youth. I’m hopeful that we’ll see a similar rejuvenation of older sounds in the current landscape before too long. We’ve already seen it with many popular references to 80s, 90s, and even some 2000s trends which a lot of young millennials and older zoomers would be more familiar with
I was handed this cassette tape in 1993 when I was 11yrs old. I was also handed a box some time after that with: Weezer - Blue and Pinkerton Soundgarden - Superunknown Stone Temple Pilots - Core and Purple Pearl Jam - Ten Alice in Chains albums Green Day's first three albums And tons of others. Siamese Dream is probably the most important piece of music in my whole life. SP have been my favorite band ever since that moment. The 90's were great for everything. Music, movies, video games, etc. You had to be there. Anyway, I enjoyed your video and subscribed. You are a lovely person inside and out it seems, and I am glad this means so much to you as well.
@@ruddyguzzman My friend's older brother was being deployed to the Middle East during that time and left it to his younger brother who then gave it to me. Then another few more boxes since I enjoyed them.
"Siamese Dream" is my absolute favorite album of the 1990's. I had actually went back to listening to it about 6-months ago after probably a 20-year lapse, and I love it just as much as I did then. It's like a time capsule of the 1990's, which was a really fertile time period for alternative music. There are so many vivid memories of the time that I can feel & actually relive when I listen to it, almost as if it's something tangible. It was a special time and we where so caught up in it that we didn't realize we where witnessing music's last hurrah. It just kind of died afterwards.
You put into words what I felt about Billy's writing so beautifully, I was 9 when SD was released although understanding the gravity of the lyrics damn near impossible at that age I some how still just got it and as I got older it was like I was able to unlock the code and it made more sense ! Ty for this you fucking rock !
That outfit is legit. I had so many friends that thought their stereos were messed up at the beginning of “Hummer.” After 30 years, “Silverfuc*” is now my favorite.
Step 1: Start Siamese Dream Step 2: Raise volume until it’s pretty dang loud. At this point, Cherub Rock will continue to build and get louder until you fear for your equipment and safety. Step 3: Keep the volume right where it is for the entirety of the album.
Whenever I feel the need to really crank the volume for a bit, "Geek USA" is typically first in line. So many great moments on this album. I'll forever love how the Pumpkins made feedback so artful. Oh yes, first favorite album... the first money I was allowed to spend went in part to a Ghost In the Machine cassette at Bradlees.
I was a freshman in college and didn't fit in anywhere. I was in the jazz program (tenor sax) but outside of that didn't really have any friends. I was musically ignorant outside of classical and jazz at the time and the odd show tune here and there. My brother sent me to school with this cassette tape. I started out with side one and became a bit obsessed. I must have spent a whole month just listening to side 1. I was actually kind of afraid to listen to side 2 because I didn't know if it would hold up to side 1 in my mind. I ended up listening to the whole thing. I was so alienated from my course work and classes that I just started roaming the campus listening to this album and skipping classes. I ended up dropping out shortly after. Happy ending though, I am a successful IT manager now...I just wasn't ready for college course work at the time. But this album definitely helped me get through.
your story is fascinating. usually college kids are oblivious to classical and jazz, not the other way around! i didn't have a clue about jazz until college. i understand being afraid of the end not being as good as the beginning, truly phenomenal openers always worry me
@@abigaildevoe Thank you for the kind words. I've always been a bit strange when it comes to music. I spent most of my early years (elementary school) listening to Dixie land and ragtime. Basically whatever my dad was listening to. It's a bit embarrassing but in middle school I was obsessed with Christmas music. I would like listen to it while mowing the lawn lol. Later in life I was diagnosed with a pretty bad case of OCD and it all started making sense. After listening to Pumpkins and a bit of Nirvana I actually started playing my own musing and listening heavily to Pumpkins, Flaming Lips, Radiohead, Ween and The Beatles. Almost forgot, my favorite songs on the album are Soma and Sweet Sweet. Hope you don't mind me posting my new band; czcams.com/video/dEjqHSVjr4w/video.html
A couple few things here about Siamese Dream. 1. I was turned on to SP by a good friend when Gish was picking up steam. I think we were in 11th grade. I was anxiously awaiting the follow up and summer before 12th grade, I bought a double colored vinyl pressing of Siamese Dream at a place called Theory Shop in Jax beach. It was attached to an underage club where bands like Nirvana, Soundgarden, 10,000 Maniacs, Screaming Trees, RHCP (you’re getting the drift here, right?) et all played in the late 80s and early 90s. It was amazing. So was this record. 2. I always assumed James Iha played the leads because Billy sang and played guitar… those dudes usually play rhythm. Not the solo for “Cherub Rock” (HOLY SHIT). But when I saw them on SNL the first time, my head exploded. 3. Billy Dr. Midnighted the bass because they were already forty eight billion dollars over budget. 4. I don’t remember what else. You’re great. Don’t stop. 🤘🏽
Oh. Also. I’m pretty sure it’s pronounced “piss ant”. Like, “What a little piss-ant!” Also I thought some bunk mushrooms were kicking in during a Smashing Pumpkins set at a festival but no. It was just Smashing Pumpkins.
This album has a special hold on me. It's like he took our reflections from the mirror and turned them into music. Fans of smashing pumkins, we have all of us found the beauty in life's existential suffering.
Holy wow do you ever make good videos. I clicked this thinking it was about the ‘twins” grown up. Instead I got a rock-solid charming, talented, and erudite exposé on Siamese Dream… AND some follow-up info on the “twins”. I haven’t subscribed yet because my fear of commitment knows no bounds… but I’m getting there.
When this came out, my high school drafting class had a stereo and our teacher would let us play cassettes. I would bring mine in and it was a popular staple.
Siamese Dream is clearly a milestone album, dare I say the greatest album of the '90s. It's easily my favorite Pumpkins album too and the one I return to the most, possibly the only Pumpkins album I need. "Mayonaise" is one of the greatest songs ever written and my personal favorite. I was fortunate to catch them on the Siamese Dream tour, but for some reason the studio album resonates with me moreso than live versions of the tracks. My first favorite album was U2's Unforgettable Fire, but I pretty much stopped following the band after Achtung Baby. Favorite bands of all time are the Velvet Underground, Fugazi and Husker Du, so if you could squeeze in some Vinyl Mondays for their formidable catalogues, I would greatly appreciate it. I also love Taylor Swift and her diary albums! 😂
Disarm blew me away when it first came out. I needed to know this band. It was so fresh. You didn't hear things like that at the time. I still love SP.
Billy might of almost died,And had to make a personal “Rite of passage “ to make his ultimate passion project,But it has never been topped,It’s possibly perfect.❤
Your 30 years later review really resonates with me on a deep level. It's almost uncanny how much I relate to everything you discussed in the video. What's even more intriguing is that you bear a striking resemblance to my wife! While my interest in the Smashing Pumpkins waned after the 2000s, "Siamese Dream" remains an eternal favorite for me. That album holds a special place in my heart and I doubt anything will ever surpass it.
Going through my grandfather's records the other day. He passed away in 2000. Found their album "gish" the other day. I always have a tough time on discogs narrowing down what release i have, but almost positive its an original 1st press.
I can't believe it's been 30 years! I have Siamese Dream on orange creamsicle vinyl and cherish it very much. I'm embarrassed to say that in the late '90s, the vinyl was on sale as clearance. Now it goes for a couple of hundred dollars.
I just discovered this channel and I am one hundred percent hooked. You do an amazing job of breaking down and analyzing these albums and articulating things about them in words I could never muster. The fact that you look like a human version of all the best things about 1971 doesn't hurt, either.
Siamese Dream is still as emotional to me as it was thirty years ago. I was fortunate enough to snag the vinyl copy with the original mix many years ago. Perfect work of art❤
WOW you have a holy grail on your hands! you're so lucky you have an original siamese dream. be careful not to leave your window open at night or you might catch me trying to crawl in...
If they never dropped "The" from their name we'd never have the infamous quote "Hi, I'm Billy Corgan...Smashing Pumpkins...Hello, I'm Homer Simpson, smiling politely". Seriously they are the Led Zepplin of our generation. I'll never forget the chills I felt hearing those two opening drum rolls 30 years ago!
What I remember from getting this was that I couldn't quite get it. The music just sounded "alien" to me, mostly the compositions. It was so "un-pop" and "un-grunge" and "un-metal" and "un-everything" that I couldn't get into. Yet it was constantly in the CD player, intriguing me, calling me, enticing me. Until one day the magnificence, the depth, the energy, the darkness, the emotion... THE MUSIC just hit me and has been hitting me ever since. Definitely my most-listened to album of all time.
Accidentally stumbled on this, thinking of only listen to a few minutes but was fascinated the entire video with you vast knowledge and facts on the album! Wow. Thank you. Time well spent. Incredible album to, for decades more to come.
First album that makes me feel high just listening to it. No drugs necessary; just put on this album and every cell in my body responds to being lifted to a higher plain and taken into the depths of sadness and despair like no album ever has and I put it away and on special occasions I bring it out like some secret smoke session I do alone and remember how nothing before it or after it will ever be the same ever again.
SAAAAAAME! This was one of the first cd’s I bought myself and Mayonnaise felt like he read my journal. I cried so hard the first time I heard it…and maybe several other times I heard it.
Best review of Siamese Dream ever! So much fun and so on the money regarding the various japeries (not an actual word!) of the band members. Love to see you do MCIS.
I've been a fan of the band since 97 and I just got the hidden meaning of Rocket. A few months ago I was watching West Side Story for the first time and one of the characters says that he's got a rocket in his pocket, referring to a gun. Follow the logic that a rocket is a gun and you take a song about finally escaping the life that has held you back with said rocket and it suddenly takes some seriously dark undertones. I always understood that Today was about not giving into suicide, but I had no idea that the bright tones and anthemic chorus of Rocket bellied the fact that Billy believed his only escape was suicide. Devastating.
I feel the song is actually about transcending the cptsd of childhood trauma and finding enough of a balance to know you are going ro make it. Getting to that point of healing but then facing how much life was lost to just trying to survive it. I miss everything I'll never be. Knowing you will never reach your full potential because of carrying the anchor of childhood abuse. Its why I love his song writing, he totally gets it.
Siamese Dream will always have a special place in my heart. in 1993 I finally got a cd player and Siamese Dream was one of the first few cds I bought along with Pearl Jam's VS, Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti and The Beatles Sgt Pepper. Its my favorite album of theirs and when I got back into vinyl one I immediately purchased. I still listen to it often. It really holds up.
Man, what an amazing video. Somebody should show this to Billy. I bet he’d enjoy and find it as interesting and entertaining as I did. I’m so glad I found your channel. Thank you and I look forward to seeing more! 😊
I grew up listening to my parents vinyl but Siamese Dream was my very 1 favorite current music. That was actually when l started listening to current music. I cant beleive kts been 30 years.
OMG this is the first time I'm watching your channel and it's fantastic! Thank you. Siamese Dream is absolutely one of my favorite albums -- top five, no doubt. My first favorite album was Disintegration by the Cure. Keep up the great work.
Great show “Siamese Dream” is the equivalent to “Sergeant Peppers”. Another album that came out in that 88 early 90s era I consider as good as “Siamese Dreams” is "Jane's Addiction" “Nothing Shocking”.
i don't know if it was mentioned since you released this, but by adding "the" to smashing pumpkins, you can apply the british expression for wonderful , "smashing" to pumpkins, giving it a double meaning. fun stuff!
Abby, I'm very glad and grateful that people like you, from your generation, are keeping the enthusiasm and passion alive of music that came out when I was a teenager. Siamese Dream was always and still is my favorite album of the 1990's. Your knowledge and understanding of the band, the album, and the times amazes me, it's as if you lived yourself through the early and mid 1990's how well you understand the relevance, context, and zeitgeist of the time. Great video from beginning to end.
NOT a Smashing Pumpkins fan but even I have this on orange marble vinyl. Cherub Rock has one of the greatest intros ever recorded! I had to have this for Cherub Rock alone.
I used to be in a Punpkins tribute band. We could play most of their songs from the original band's run (accept for a few from Adore and a couple others). It was a lot of fun. Siamese Dream is an excellent album but Mellon Collie is the better album, overall. It was better written, better played by all members, better produced and simply on another level musically. (Not meaning to say anything bad about Siamese Dream, because it's incredible.) I appreciate your passion for your first favorite album, though. It's definitely their second best effort and not far off from Mellon Collie. Both albums being what I'd consider masterpieces. Oh, and my first favorite album was Nirvana's Nevermind. I got it when I was 9 and it was the album I listened to the most, at that point. The only other albums I had at that age were Billy Joel's River of Dreams, Aerosmith's Big Ones and the soundtrack from Wayne's World 2. I "borrowed" those from family members, though. Nevermind was the first album I legitimately owned myself. I asked my mom to buy it for me.
I agree that Mellon Collie is overall better, with a super-great range of feelings, styles, emotions, even the visuals (cover, booklet etc) are really extraordinary etc but better produced?? Come on man, it's a mudfest!! You can more easily put scrambled eggs back in their shells than experience an aural clarity from the heavier songs of Mellon Collie. Vig did a much better job with S.D. IMHO always.
that was the first cd i ever bought, it blew my mind away... played the cd so much it was scratched to hell. it was like listening to poetry, i would go to sleep listening to it.... it shaped my teenage years.
I didn’t realize it was a double album until I started recording. Like wow this thing is an hour and change, I bought it on cd, and I’m arguing w people about 43 minutes!
The end of a Pumpkins concert was special. Billy would just go of shredding on the guitar as one by one everyone else leaves. He continues with these guitar soundscapes for awhile eventually setting his guitar flat on the ground still playing it until he stands up and walks off stage as his guitar continues to feedback. Friggin amazing show!
Fantastic video---really enjoyed your views and analysis, entertaining video. I remember summer of '93 well, SP were everywhere at a time when there was an explosion of new bands and of course the seismic repercussions of Nevermind were still being felt. Totally agree that after Billy's genus and vision the force behind this record (and why it will always sound timelessly great) is Jimmy Chamberlin whose drumming was at an absurdly high level regardless of whatever peccadillos he was experiencing at the time---in the live videos his playing from that era is off the charts great.
This album is so part of my teenage years and Billy Corgan and smashing pumpkins was so innovative and took MTV or in my native Canada muchmusic by storm their iconic videos were everywhere at this time and they were well on their way on to becoming one of the most influential bands of the 90s
Something about that cricket anecdote is so striking to me. It’s like the music was there around you the whole time and all you had to do was listen & find it. Great video!
Some of the best lyric and music analysis you've done on Vinyl Monday. I would put Chamberlin's work on here close to Michael Giles on Crimson King. Their playing is an irreplaceable contribution to the music. The first time I heard Hummer I was out walking and I did a slow stop. There are gentle sounds visceral sounds throughout. And you can get meaning from the album without knowing precise lyrics because I think the notes carry meaning. And you flapped your wings. I truly enjoyed myself today.
in my early 20's with my first credit card i got siamese dream on orange vinyl...also tori amos into the pink on pink vinyl lol...sold them at some point when i was broke which makes me sad now. i didn't even have a record player at the time.
As close to a perfect Album as ever existed! Recall clearly when I first heard it. I felt so alive! Been listening to it a lot again recently. I always comeback to it ever couple of years. Wonderful fun video. Thanks :)
I relate so deeply to your experience with the lyrics/vocals on this album. I'm in my mid 20s now, I discovered Smashing Pumpkins around the same age as you, instantly fell in love with them, all of that. The first time I really heard Billy say the lyrics, and have it actually make sense, I was 18 or 19, the song was Disarm, and I sobbed uncontrollably for an embarrassing amount of time after. It's an insane coincidence to me that you mentioned that Billy wrote this is conjunction with therapy. I've never been able to afford it, there were times in my life I desperately needed it, so I turned to music just having no where else to turn. Mellon Collie moreso than this album, but both were therapeutic to me and are a significant reason that I am who I am today. It's really cool seeing someone else that had a similar experience on so many levels with the Pumpkins. This was the first video of yours I've ever seen, definitely going to be checking out more. I love the long format, and you do a damn good job of justifying the length.
Pumpkins are still my favorite band to this day, despite maybe not being all that great since Zeitgeist. You're spot-on that Soma is the best song on Siamese Dream. I contend it's their best song, period. In the years since, Geek U.S.A. has become a big favorite where at first listen it didn't hit with me. But now I hear the genius of its transitions and how it combines elements from nearly every influence Billy has ever referenced. Blistering as hell solo, too and Jimmy practically destroys his kit on it. Start to finish, it's a perfect alt rock album. Not a miss in the bunch.
Been going through a pretty rough breakup. Just wanted to say thank you for these videos and the work and passion you put into them. Watching your reviews and vids on my favorite bands has been such a nice release, please keep doing what you do. The only way to go is forward, and you bring lots of light and hope to my day. Thank you. Much love
HEY GIRL, I LOVE THAT YOU MENTIONED JIMMY CHAMBERLIN AND THAT YOU MENTIONED HIS JAZZ DRUMMING. ONLY THING YOU MISSED WAS HIS JOLIET UPBRINGING BUT CLEARLY YOU PICKED THE BEST PART ABOUT THE SMASHING PUMPKINS PUSH AND PULL FORMULA.
Growing up in Chicago I would constantly hear them on Q101 all the time on the radio.. Siamese Dream is probably my most listened to album since I was 10 since 1995.. I'd listen to Hummer a lot with the bass boost on my old RCA cd player with my headphones blasting. It was my first cd I've ever burnt, the first mp3s I've ever exported on my devices on that very same cd..the that's how old I am haha
It's a strange coincidence that you also covered Souvlaki in this video because Siamese Dream was played literally DAILY by me until I just randomly came across Souvlaki in a boardwalk record shop. Souvlaki quickly took the place of Siamese Dream as my daily go to.
when i discovered the parallels between siamese dream and souvlaki i was floored, it’s no wonder i like them both too! i have a whole souvlaki episode, it was a lot of fun to do
@@abigaildevoe I watched it, and enjoyed it. Another album that was important to me around the time was A Storm in Heaven by Verve. I feel like anything that came out after that from Verve as well as anything after Siamese Dream from Smashing Pumpkins just didn't speak to me and felt a bit forced. 🤷 Seems the sample at the end of Spaceboy came from an episode of HBO's Real Sex series, but I'm not going to be the one to endure each episode hunting for it.
One of the most foundational albums for me. Especially because I was starting to learn guitar when it came out. It always gives me those feels when I listened to it. So I actually try not to listen to it too often. Many years after it came out and afterI had studied music theory I listen to it again and it didn’t give me the same feels. Which was scary. So I put it back on the shelf and I’m happy to say after a rest, when I listen now it still takes me right back to the spring and summer of 1994 when I played it every day. Hard to believe how music is such a time machine
This album got me through high school, spoke to my soul and absolutely rocked my world. This is arguably right up there with Nevermind, every song is a banger. Keep it up, digging your channel!
Hi Abigail, You look so beautiful with your wings ! This is one of the best albums during the 90's ! I love the guitar work the best. My favorite first album is "Meet the Beatles".
This video was my first time checking out your channel - I love your enthusiasm and in-depth detail while talking about the album. Can't wait to check out the rest of your content!
great vid !!!! i started watching 2 days before i saw them live in salt lake and finished this vid today . hummer was incredible live . so happy to see other people share such a emotional connection with this album
This was a great one! Billy was a well-known dickhead on the Chicago music scene even before Gish, but the rest of the gang were super-cool. Jimmy is indeed the greatest. He didn't use a click track, because he's a human drum machine! Mayonnaise will always be my favorite Pumpkins tune.
Fantastic video this is my dads favorite album and I recently listened to it for the first time and was surprised how much I recognized everything just from him playing it in the background while I was growing up. So thank you dad this is one of my new favorites
This has been the most influential album to me as an artist. Smashing Pumpkins was my favorite band growing up and still is today, and I believe this is there best studio work. Although I like there live stuff better.
Found them in the late 90s my mind was blown and my world was never the same again. Absolutely love this band all albums. Your writing is dope, much respect.
what was your first favorite album? comment below!
Abbey Road
Never Mind The Bullocks .. Here's The .. Sex Pistols 🔫
RAM by paul and linda McCartney
The first vinyl I ever spent my own money to buy was a Steve Miller 45 “Rock n Me”…
Alice Cooper - Welcome to My Nightmare
Siamese Dream is pure perfection.
its my friend Stella's Favorite Album & Band
30 years old today
My all time favorite album
For sure
From a production standpoint I agree 100%. I think it’s the most meticulously executed album of my lifetime. Attention was given to every single note. It’s almost too polished. For this reason I find Mellon Collie more interesting and fun to listen to, and from a pure songwriting standpoint, Adore is my favorite.
it is,a total monster of alt and metal combined.
It actually seems weird to hear someone talk about this album, sometimes I think it only exists deep inside my soul and belongs to me alone.
My favorite was Mellon collie. I listened to it over and over and over, but siamese dream is definitely better
Bro i think the same thing sometimes. The pumpkins are my absolute favorite band. Love them
This and Pisces Iscariot are my jams when I drive
I know exactly what you mean
I mean they only sold millions
But ok
Lol
Mayonnaise is quite possibly the best song ever done by the Pumpkins, and the best song written in the 90s
I agree. Easily.
I wish they’d released mayonnaise as a single and shot a video for it
Yes!! Such a great song. Better than Disarm or Today IMO.
Better, but sadly it would be a bit hard to sell since it doesn't have a puch chorus that anyone can sing along like the other two songs@@christopherhendricks4369
That’s a bold statement by both measures.
I actually applauded at the end of this episode. This lady needs to have at least 100k subs.
I'll clap at the idea that Roomers is gonna get it
VERY TRUE.. long since pawned my CD and cassette of this brilliant masterpiece... Actually pulled the Spotify version to give this whole album a re-listen after Abigail's excellent 30 year review..
I don’t even like vinyl…like, at all (but I didn’t come here to criticize or start fights; you guys do you), and I absolutely agree. This was a phenomenal video and I’m gonna have to watch a whole mess of her stuff.
Definitely one of the defining albums of the 90s. I love Cherub Rock.
I think you're right that the pumpkins were at heart a psych band. At that time, Gen X was just coming into it's own as adults, and we were mining the 60's vibe in music and other artforms in the late 80's and early 90's. Even Britpop bands like Blur and Charlatans were doing this.
I’ve felt like the 90s, at least in terms of rock music, echoed a lot of the fundamentals of 60s and 70s music because, like you said, Gen X were becoming adults and were obviously impacted by the music of that time in their youth. I’m hopeful that we’ll see a similar rejuvenation of older sounds in the current landscape before too long. We’ve already seen it with many popular references to 80s, 90s, and even some 2000s trends which a lot of young millennials and older zoomers would be more familiar with
To me, they're Jimi Hendrix mixed with My Bloody Valentine.
Finally glad to hear someone acknowledge what I have always said about Jimmy C. Love his drumming. "It's what goes in between the notes that matter".
Jimmy Chamberlain is my favorite drummer of all time and I’m glad you gave him his due praise.
Same!
My favorite album of all time. I was in high school when it was released, which was the perfect time to connect to an album like this.
I was handed this cassette tape in 1993 when I was 11yrs old. I was also handed a box some time after that with:
Weezer - Blue and Pinkerton
Soundgarden - Superunknown
Stone Temple Pilots - Core and Purple
Pearl Jam - Ten
Alice in Chains albums
Green Day's first three albums
And tons of others. Siamese Dream is probably the most important piece of music in my whole life. SP have been my favorite band ever since that moment. The 90's were great for everything. Music, movies, video games, etc. You had to be there. Anyway, I enjoyed your video and subscribed. You are a lovely person inside and out it seems, and I am glad this means so much to you as well.
Who gave it to you?
@@ruddyguzzman My friend's older brother was being deployed to the Middle East during that time and left it to his younger brother who then gave it to me. Then another few more boxes since I enjoyed them.
"Siamese Dream" is my absolute favorite album of the 1990's. I had actually went back to listening to it about 6-months ago after probably a 20-year lapse, and I love it just as much as I did then. It's like a time capsule of the 1990's, which was a really fertile time period for alternative music. There are so many vivid memories of the time that I can feel & actually relive when I listen to it, almost as if it's something tangible. It was a special time and we where so caught up in it that we didn't realize we where witnessing music's last hurrah. It just kind of died afterwards.
well, in mainstream terms, yes, early-mid 90's was the end of music, all went underground after that.
Couldn't have said it better myself!
You put into words what I felt about Billy's writing so beautifully, I was 9 when SD was released although understanding the gravity of the lyrics damn near impossible at that age I some how still just got it and as I got older it was like I was able to unlock the code and it made more sense ! Ty for this you fucking rock !
The drummer on Marquee Moon is also superb. He never shows off, he serves the song.
Billy Ficca
@@edvonblue - yes, thank you, Billy Ficca.
The stumble into the song marquee moon like someone just awoke from a drunken slumber and got right down to staggering about his business.
@@oscartaylor3850and he thought it was a rehearsal and not an actual take.
That outfit is legit. I had so many friends that thought their stereos were messed up at the beginning of “Hummer.” After 30 years, “Silverfuc*” is now my favorite.
I love the more personal Vinyl Mondays. It’s so interesting to hear how these albums have affected your life.
I attribute most of my hearing loss to this album. ❤ thanks for this one
Step 1: Start Siamese Dream
Step 2: Raise volume until it’s pretty dang loud.
At this point, Cherub Rock will continue to build and get louder until you fear for your equipment and safety.
Step 3: Keep the volume right where it is for the entirety of the album.
Whenever I feel the need to really crank the volume for a bit, "Geek USA" is typically first in line. So many great moments on this album. I'll forever love how the Pumpkins made feedback so artful. Oh yes, first favorite album... the first money I was allowed to spend went in part to a Ghost In the Machine cassette at Bradlees.
As a deep music fan, I'm constantly listening. But this is the album I've listened to more than any other.
I was a freshman in college and didn't fit in anywhere. I was in the jazz program (tenor sax) but outside of that didn't really have any friends. I was musically ignorant outside of classical and jazz at the time and the odd show tune here and there. My brother sent me to school with this cassette tape. I started out with side one and became a bit obsessed. I must have spent a whole month just listening to side 1. I was actually kind of afraid to listen to side 2 because I didn't know if it would hold up to side 1 in my mind. I ended up listening to the whole thing. I was so alienated from my course work and classes that I just started roaming the campus listening to this album and skipping classes. I ended up dropping out shortly after. Happy ending though, I am a successful IT manager now...I just wasn't ready for college course work at the time. But this album definitely helped me get through.
your story is fascinating. usually college kids are oblivious to classical and jazz, not the other way around! i didn't have a clue about jazz until college. i understand being afraid of the end not being as good as the beginning, truly phenomenal openers always worry me
@@abigaildevoe Thank you for the kind words. I've always been a bit strange when it comes to music. I spent most of my early years (elementary school) listening to Dixie land and ragtime. Basically whatever my dad was listening to.
It's a bit embarrassing but in middle school I was obsessed with Christmas music. I would like listen to it while mowing the lawn lol. Later in life I was diagnosed with a pretty bad case of OCD and it all started making sense.
After listening to Pumpkins and a bit of Nirvana I actually started playing my own musing and listening heavily to Pumpkins, Flaming Lips, Radiohead, Ween and The Beatles.
Almost forgot, my favorite songs on the album are Soma and Sweet Sweet.
Hope you don't mind me posting my new band; czcams.com/video/dEjqHSVjr4w/video.html
A couple few things here about Siamese Dream.
1. I was turned on to SP by a good friend when Gish was picking up steam. I think we were in 11th grade. I was anxiously awaiting the follow up and summer before 12th grade, I bought a double colored vinyl pressing of Siamese Dream at a place called Theory Shop in Jax beach. It was attached to an underage club where bands like Nirvana, Soundgarden, 10,000 Maniacs, Screaming Trees, RHCP (you’re getting the drift here, right?) et all played in the late 80s and early 90s. It was amazing. So was this record.
2. I always assumed James Iha played the leads because Billy sang and played guitar… those dudes usually play rhythm. Not the solo for “Cherub Rock” (HOLY SHIT). But when I saw them on SNL the first time, my head exploded.
3. Billy Dr. Midnighted the bass because they were already forty eight billion dollars over budget.
4. I don’t remember what else. You’re great. Don’t stop. 🤘🏽
Oh. Also. I’m pretty sure it’s pronounced “piss ant”. Like, “What a little piss-ant!”
Also I thought some bunk mushrooms were kicking in during a Smashing Pumpkins set at a festival but no. It was just Smashing Pumpkins.
Top 5 favorite albums of all time for sure. It was a game changer.
Defo
@@cwocky*Definitely
I'm old enough to remember that the album cover wasn't a silvery purple in stores. This album is all about guitars. It's great
This album has a special hold on me. It's like he took our reflections from the mirror and turned them into music. Fans of smashing pumkins, we have all of us found the beauty in life's existential suffering.
Holy wow do you ever make good videos.
I clicked this thinking it was about the ‘twins” grown up. Instead I got a rock-solid charming, talented, and erudite exposé on Siamese Dream… AND some follow-up info on the “twins”.
I haven’t subscribed yet because my fear of commitment knows no bounds… but I’m getting there.
When this came out, my high school drafting class had a stereo and our teacher would let us play cassettes. I would bring mine in and it was a popular staple.
Siamese Dream is clearly a milestone album, dare I say the greatest album of the '90s. It's easily my favorite Pumpkins album too and the one I return to the most, possibly the only Pumpkins album I need. "Mayonaise" is one of the greatest songs ever written and my personal favorite.
I was fortunate to catch them on the Siamese Dream tour, but for some reason the studio album resonates with me moreso than live versions of the tracks.
My first favorite album was U2's Unforgettable Fire, but I pretty much stopped following the band after Achtung Baby. Favorite bands of all time are the Velvet Underground, Fugazi and Husker Du, so if you could squeeze in some Vinyl Mondays for their formidable catalogues, I would greatly appreciate it. I also love Taylor Swift and her diary albums! 😂
Disarm blew me away when it first came out. I needed to know this band. It was so fresh. You didn't hear things like that at the time. I still love SP.
Billy might of almost died,And had to make a personal “Rite of passage “ to make his ultimate passion project,But it has never been topped,It’s possibly perfect.❤
To my ears, Siamese Dream is the best album of the '90s 💜
I remember telling my roommate in 1994 this is the best album of the year. I now believe this album to be the best of the decade. Incredible.
Your 30 years later review really resonates with me on a deep level. It's almost uncanny how much I relate to everything you discussed in the video. What's even more intriguing is that you bear a striking resemblance to my wife!
While my interest in the Smashing Pumpkins waned after the 2000s, "Siamese Dream" remains an eternal favorite for me. That album holds a special place in my heart and I doubt anything will ever surpass it.
Going through my grandfather's records the other day. He passed away in 2000. Found their album "gish" the other day. I always have a tough time on discogs narrowing down what release i have, but almost positive its an original 1st press.
I remember this cd living in my Sony discman my senior year in high school. Whenever I hear a song from Siamese Dream I’m immediately taken back.
😢My Discman was one of my most beloved possessions. Before that it was my cassette Walkman
I can't believe it's been 30 years! I have Siamese Dream on orange creamsicle vinyl and cherish it very much. I'm embarrassed to say that in the late '90s, the vinyl was on sale as clearance. Now it goes for a couple of hundred dollars.
I just discovered this channel and I am one hundred percent hooked. You do an amazing job of breaking down and analyzing these albums and articulating things about them in words I could never muster.
The fact that you look like a human version of all the best things about 1971 doesn't hurt, either.
The whole album tracks are classics. Every song. Thirty years, stills sound it came out this week!
Jimmy's hand work is sick on Gish and Dream
Siamese Dream is still as emotional to me as it was thirty years ago. I was fortunate enough to snag the vinyl copy with the original mix many years ago. Perfect work of art❤
WOW you have a holy grail on your hands! you're so lucky you have an original siamese dream. be careful not to leave your window open at night or you might catch me trying to crawl in...
I introduced my 11-year old daughter to this album recently. She can now play Cherub Rock on guitar.
If they never dropped "The" from their name we'd never have the infamous quote "Hi, I'm Billy Corgan...Smashing Pumpkins...Hello, I'm Homer Simpson, smiling politely". Seriously they are the Led Zepplin of our generation. I'll never forget the chills I felt hearing those two opening drum rolls 30 years ago!
What I remember from getting this was that I couldn't quite get it. The music just sounded "alien" to me, mostly the compositions. It was so "un-pop" and "un-grunge" and "un-metal" and "un-everything" that I couldn't get into. Yet it was constantly in the CD player, intriguing me, calling me, enticing me. Until one day the magnificence, the depth, the energy, the darkness, the emotion... THE MUSIC just hit me and has been hitting me ever since. Definitely my most-listened to album of all time.
Accidentally stumbled on this, thinking of only listen to a few minutes but was fascinated the entire video with you vast knowledge and facts on the album! Wow. Thank you. Time well spent. Incredible album to, for decades more to come.
I was in middle school when this came out… and oh boy all those “ZERO” t-shirts that showed up in class.
First album that makes me feel high just listening to it. No drugs necessary; just put on this album and every cell in my body responds to being lifted to a higher plain and taken into the depths of sadness and despair like no album ever has and I put it away and on special occasions I bring it out like some secret smoke session I do alone and remember how nothing before it or after it will ever be the same ever again.
SAAAAAAME! This was one of the first cd’s I bought myself and Mayonnaise felt like he read my journal. I cried so hard the first time I heard it…and maybe several other times I heard it.
Best review of Siamese Dream ever! So much fun and so on the money regarding the various japeries (not an actual word!) of the band members. Love to see you do MCIS.
I've been a fan of the band since 97 and I just got the hidden meaning of Rocket. A few months ago I was watching West Side Story for the first time and one of the characters says that he's got a rocket in his pocket, referring to a gun. Follow the logic that a rocket is a gun and you take a song about finally escaping the life that has held you back with said rocket and it suddenly takes some seriously dark undertones. I always understood that Today was about not giving into suicide, but I had no idea that the bright tones and anthemic chorus of Rocket bellied the fact that Billy believed his only escape was suicide. Devastating.
I feel the song is actually about transcending the cptsd of childhood trauma and finding enough of a balance to know you are going ro make it. Getting to that point of healing but then facing how much life was lost to just trying to survive it. I miss everything I'll never be. Knowing you will never reach your full potential because of carrying the anchor of childhood abuse. Its why I love his song writing, he totally gets it.
Siamese Dream will always have a special place in my heart. in 1993 I finally got a cd player and Siamese Dream was one of the first few cds I bought along with Pearl Jam's VS, Led Zeppelin's Physical Graffiti and The Beatles Sgt Pepper. Its my favorite album of theirs and when I got back into vinyl one I immediately purchased. I still listen to it often. It really holds up.
pearl jam - VS was also in that batch of CDs i stole from dad. have to say i responded to vitalogy and ten more
Man, what an amazing video. Somebody should show this to Billy. I bet he’d enjoy and find it as interesting and entertaining as I did. I’m so glad I found your channel. Thank you and I look forward to seeing more! 😊
I grew up listening to my parents vinyl but Siamese Dream was my very 1 favorite current music. That was actually when l started listening to current music. I cant beleive kts been 30 years.
❤Same. I think Siamese Dream was the first vinyl album I bought at its release.
OMG this is the first time I'm watching your channel and it's fantastic! Thank you.
Siamese Dream is absolutely one of my favorite albums -- top five, no doubt. My first favorite album was Disintegration by the Cure.
Keep up the great work.
Great show “Siamese Dream” is the equivalent to “Sergeant Peppers”. Another album that came out in that 88 early 90s era I consider as good as “Siamese Dreams” is "Jane's Addiction" “Nothing Shocking”.
The fills rolls geek USA are nuts. Jimmy, Danny Carey, and Stephen Perkins
It'd be really cool if you covered Surfer Rosa on your series, as it was a major influence to every alt band at the time (including smashing pumpkins)
Literally everything you said here is exactly how I feel!
yay, this is one of my favz
Amazing that you sijngled out Soma. Spot on.
i don't know if it was mentioned since you released this, but by adding "the" to smashing pumpkins, you can apply the british expression for wonderful , "smashing" to pumpkins, giving it a double meaning. fun stuff!
Abby, I'm very glad and grateful that people like you, from your generation, are keeping the enthusiasm and passion alive of music that came out when I was a teenager. Siamese Dream was always and still is my favorite album of the 1990's. Your knowledge and understanding of the band, the album, and the times amazes me, it's as if you lived yourself through the early and mid 1990's how well you understand the relevance, context, and zeitgeist of the time. Great video from beginning to end.
NOT a Smashing Pumpkins fan but even I have this on orange marble vinyl. Cherub Rock has one of the greatest intros ever recorded! I had to have this for Cherub Rock alone.
I used to be in a Punpkins tribute band. We could play most of their songs from the original band's run (accept for a few from Adore and a couple others). It was a lot of fun.
Siamese Dream is an excellent album but Mellon Collie is the better album, overall. It was better written, better played by all members, better produced and simply on another level musically. (Not meaning to say anything bad about Siamese Dream, because it's incredible.)
I appreciate your passion for your first favorite album, though. It's definitely their second best effort and not far off from Mellon Collie. Both albums being what I'd consider masterpieces.
Oh, and my first favorite album was Nirvana's Nevermind. I got it when I was 9 and it was the album I listened to the most, at that point. The only other albums I had at that age were Billy Joel's River of Dreams, Aerosmith's Big Ones and the soundtrack from Wayne's World 2. I "borrowed" those from family members, though. Nevermind was the first album I legitimately owned myself. I asked my mom to buy it for me.
I agree that Mellon Collie is overall better, with a super-great range of feelings, styles, emotions, even the visuals (cover, booklet etc) are really extraordinary etc but better produced?? Come on man, it's a mudfest!! You can more easily put scrambled eggs back in their shells than experience an aural clarity from the heavier songs of Mellon Collie. Vig did a much better job with S.D. IMHO always.
that was the first cd i ever bought, it blew my mind away... played the cd so much it was scratched to hell. it was like listening to poetry, i would go to sleep listening to it.... it shaped my teenage years.
I didn’t realize it was a double album until I started recording. Like wow this thing is an hour and change, I bought it on cd, and I’m arguing w people about 43 minutes!
Didn't know Billy Corgan was listening to Band of Gypsys a lot during that era. Might be the best live album ever.
Still listen to this album everyday!
i don't know how i stumbled onto this but it was so much fun ty
The end of a Pumpkins concert was special. Billy would just go of shredding on the guitar as one by one everyone else leaves. He continues with these guitar soundscapes for awhile eventually setting his guitar flat on the ground still playing it until he stands up and walks off stage as his guitar continues to feedback. Friggin amazing show!
OMFG I want that vinyl, I worship SD, got in when I was 13.
This was an amazing video. So well done. Excellent job. Earned a sub and a like.... I was 18 when this album came out..... I'm still in love with it.
Fantastic video---really enjoyed your views and analysis, entertaining video. I remember summer of '93 well, SP were everywhere at a time when there was an explosion of new bands and of course the seismic repercussions of Nevermind were still being felt. Totally agree that after Billy's genus and vision the force behind this record (and why it will always sound timelessly great) is Jimmy Chamberlin whose drumming was at an absurdly high level regardless of whatever peccadillos he was experiencing at the time---in the live videos his playing from that era is off the charts great.
This album is so part of my teenage years and Billy Corgan and smashing pumpkins was so innovative and took MTV or in my native Canada muchmusic by storm their iconic videos were everywhere at this time and they were well on their way on to becoming one of the most influential bands of the 90s
Thank you so much for doing this album . You brought back so many feelings I had listening to this over and over and over. You nailed it.
Something about that cricket anecdote is so striking to me. It’s like the music was there around you the whole time and all you had to do was listen & find it. Great video!
Some of the best lyric and music analysis you've done on Vinyl Monday.
I would put Chamberlin's work on here close to Michael Giles on Crimson King. Their playing is an irreplaceable contribution to the music. The first time I heard Hummer I was out walking and I did a slow stop. There are gentle sounds visceral sounds throughout. And you can get meaning from the album without knowing precise lyrics because I think the notes carry meaning.
And you flapped your wings. I truly enjoyed myself today.
in my early 20's with my first credit card i got siamese dream on orange vinyl...also tori amos into the pink on pink vinyl lol...sold them at some point when i was broke which makes me sad now. i didn't even have a record player at the time.
You would be hard pressed to find a more perfectly written and produced album.
As close to a perfect Album as ever existed! Recall clearly when I first heard it. I felt so alive! Been listening to it a lot again recently. I always comeback to it ever couple of years. Wonderful fun video. Thanks :)
I relate so deeply to your experience with the lyrics/vocals on this album. I'm in my mid 20s now, I discovered Smashing Pumpkins around the same age as you, instantly fell in love with them, all of that. The first time I really heard Billy say the lyrics, and have it actually make sense, I was 18 or 19, the song was Disarm, and I sobbed uncontrollably for an embarrassing amount of time after.
It's an insane coincidence to me that you mentioned that Billy wrote this is conjunction with therapy. I've never been able to afford it, there were times in my life I desperately needed it, so I turned to music just having no where else to turn. Mellon Collie moreso than this album, but both were therapeutic to me and are a significant reason that I am who I am today. It's really cool seeing someone else that had a similar experience on so many levels with the Pumpkins.
This was the first video of yours I've ever seen, definitely going to be checking out more. I love the long format, and you do a damn good job of justifying the length.
The sound of my youth. That album is in my DNA
The emptiness of youth🤘
Pumpkins are still my favorite band to this day, despite maybe not being all that great since Zeitgeist. You're spot-on that Soma is the best song on Siamese Dream. I contend it's their best song, period. In the years since, Geek U.S.A. has become a big favorite where at first listen it didn't hit with me. But now I hear the genius of its transitions and how it combines elements from nearly every influence Billy has ever referenced. Blistering as hell solo, too and Jimmy practically destroys his kit on it. Start to finish, it's a perfect alt rock album. Not a miss in the bunch.
Been going through a pretty rough breakup. Just wanted to say thank you for these videos and the work and passion you put into them. Watching your reviews and vids on my favorite bands has been such a nice release, please keep doing what you do. The only way to go is forward, and you bring lots of light and hope to my day. Thank you. Much love
HEY GIRL, I LOVE THAT YOU MENTIONED JIMMY CHAMBERLIN AND THAT YOU MENTIONED HIS JAZZ DRUMMING. ONLY THING YOU MISSED WAS HIS JOLIET UPBRINGING BUT CLEARLY YOU PICKED THE BEST PART ABOUT THE SMASHING PUMPKINS PUSH AND PULL FORMULA.
Growing up in Chicago I would constantly hear them on Q101 all the time on the radio.. Siamese Dream is probably my most listened to album since I was 10 since 1995.. I'd listen to Hummer a lot with the bass boost on my old RCA cd player with my headphones blasting. It was my first cd I've ever burnt, the first mp3s I've ever exported on my devices on that very same cd..the that's how old I am haha
It's a strange coincidence that you also covered Souvlaki in this video because Siamese Dream was played literally DAILY by me until I just randomly came across Souvlaki in a boardwalk record shop. Souvlaki quickly took the place of Siamese Dream as my daily go to.
when i discovered the parallels between siamese dream and souvlaki i was floored, it’s no wonder i like them both too!
i have a whole souvlaki episode, it was a lot of fun to do
@@abigaildevoe I watched it, and enjoyed it. Another album that was important to me around the time was A Storm in Heaven by Verve. I feel like anything that came out after that from Verve as well as anything after Siamese Dream from Smashing Pumpkins just didn't speak to me and felt a bit forced. 🤷
Seems the sample at the end of Spaceboy came from an episode of HBO's Real Sex series, but I'm not going to be the one to endure each episode hunting for it.
One of the most foundational albums for me. Especially because I was starting to learn guitar when it came out. It always gives me those feels when I listened to it. So I actually try not to listen to it too often. Many years after it came out and afterI had studied music theory I listen to it again and it didn’t give me the same feels. Which was scary. So I put it back on the shelf and I’m happy to say after a rest, when I listen now it still takes me right back to the spring and summer of 1994 when I played it every day. Hard to believe how music is such a time machine
I feel the same, cept I actually had the lyrics. I printed them all out on a dot matrix printer on fan fold paper, so it went on for ages!
That fuckin Slowdive joke sent me straight to the floor laughing and my cursor to the subscription button. Great video!
This album got me through high school, spoke to my soul and absolutely rocked my world. This is arguably right up there with Nevermind, every song is a banger.
Keep it up, digging your channel!
Now Abigail revealed her secret! I always knew she was a fairy in disguise! 😃
Hi Abigail, You look so beautiful with your wings ! This is one of the best albums during the 90's ! I love the guitar work the best. My favorite first album is "Meet the Beatles".
This video was my first time checking out your channel - I love your enthusiasm and in-depth detail while talking about the album. Can't wait to check out the rest of your content!
great vid !!!! i started watching 2 days before i saw them live in salt lake and finished this vid today . hummer was incredible live . so happy to see other people share such a emotional connection with this album
As always, another hittin' out of the stadium. Thank you for your work and time making these videos. 5 stars.
This was a great one! Billy was a well-known dickhead on the Chicago music scene even before Gish, but the rest of the gang were super-cool. Jimmy is indeed the greatest. He didn't use a click track, because he's a human drum machine! Mayonnaise will always be my favorite Pumpkins tune.
So many great tracks on this one, as well on Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Smashing Pumpkins at their best.
This is a just about perfect discussion of this record. Agreed on every point. Well said and well done.
Fantastic video this is my dads favorite album and I recently listened to it for the first time and was surprised how much I recognized everything just from him playing it in the background while I was growing up. So thank you dad this is one of my new favorites
Your full exploration of these albums is just excellent. Thoroughly enjoyed! Thanks!
This has been the most influential album to me as an artist. Smashing Pumpkins was my favorite band growing up and still is today, and I believe this is there best studio work. Although I like there live stuff better.
Found them in the late 90s my mind was blown and my world was never the same again. Absolutely love this band all albums. Your writing is dope, much respect.