Smashing Pumpkins ‘Monuments To An Elegy’ Review: Corgan + Tommy Lee makes for an ultimately winning sonic combo.

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It’s been a rocky road for Billy Corgan in the 21st century: his band imploded, then his solo career stalled out, and more recently he’s faced internet backlash for re-branding the Smashing Pumpkins lineup (he’s the sole original member), and for his ever bracing hubris of course. Lately he was even bashed by Anderson Cooper. Which seems a bit low…he was helping out a cat charity?

But in the end it’s all about the music, and now Corgan is back with Monuments for an Elegy, featuring guitarist Jeff Schroeder and Motley Crue drummer Tommy Lee. Reaction to Lee  joining the fray was initially met with bewilderment. The Pumpkins best work has featured the drumming of Jimmy Chamberlain, a multi-faceted performer schooled in jazz and able to dish out left-of-center fills and flourishes. Lee is a much more basic drummer, known more for his novelty drum kits and backstage antics then his skill set.

Corgan, always prone to grand statements told Alternative Nation that: All of the response that I’ve gotten behind the scenes is off the charts…things like people saying, ‘This is the record I’ve been waiting for you to make for 15 years.’ That kind of stuff, very grandiose things, but it tells me that we’re on point, in terms of hitting the right note. Because if you made like, ‘Hahaha, Siamese Dream 2,’ people wouldn’t have that response. They wouldn’t see it as current, and I know that from my own list, so it feels current to people that are hearing it. 

Well it seems the stars have aligned, because Monuments is easily his best work since (most of) the initial line-up called it quits in 2000, being more dynamic than the flatline of 2007’s Zeitgeist and the unevenness of  2012’s Oceania.

Tiberius has a satisfying glam crunch, where angular guitars clash with swirling synth patterns, all atop a rollicking beat. Lee proves that he can keep up with Corgan, even if he’s not as ornate or deft as Chamberlain.

One and All (We Are) is a nice 90’s throwback, where churning guitar textures create a mean yet melodic groove ala Zero.

Being Beige, the albums lead single didn’t impress much on the first listen, and its title kind of summed up my original opinion. But upon repeat listens, the simple piano driven melody and chiming guitars comprise a pretty piece of pop rock. It also shows just how well Corgan and Schroeder mesh on the 6 strings. The guitar interplay on the album is solid, even if lacks the flash of past works. Lyrically however, its lightweight, and there is certainly a ho-hum quality to his syntax on Monuments that frustrates overall.

This is part and parcel of what makes Monuments To An Elegy different from Corgan’s past work. He’s stripped down the layers here, making his shortest and least grandiose effort to date. This will dishearten some, as he’s clearly aiming at the cleaner sonic landscapes that mark modern alternative music. This is definitely a low-calorie catalogue of songs; economical in sound and length. But at least he’s willing to change up the routine.

Click here to see where Monuments ranks on my list of Smashing Pumpkins albums from worst to best

Run2Me is an awesome new wave charmer, channeling his New Order obsession with a percolating keyboard rests atop thunder-clap beats. And like most of the album tracks, he’s indulging his romantic side in the lyrics: Run to me, run to me/As the desert rose/Desert dreams/Run to me, my tempest age, run to me.

Drum And Fife has been rumored to be a kiss-off to Mike Byrne, the drummer Corgan plucked when he was just 19 to play on Oceania and unceremoniously let go before recording Monuments , but it could just as well be a statement for the frontman’s ever defiant nature I will bang this drum to my dying day. Regardless, it’s one of the album’s lesser tracks.

Dorian is a stronger piece, recalling Depeche Mode with its glacial keyboards and a major ear worm hook.

And I think that is the ultimate takeaway for Monuments to an Elegy: it’s an album full of catchy tunes, and some of his more accomplished vocals. It doesn’t match his 90’s heyday, as it lacks his mad scientist experimentation and his bratty wail. But it feels like a step forward, and makes a place for the band (Corgan) in the 21st century. It’s an exciting place to be, and makes one curious where his 2015 album Day for Night will pick up from here. Let’s hope his momentum continues, and perhaps a return to grandiosity that his fan base craves.

Monuments To An Elegy will be released on December 9th. You can preorder it on iTunes or Amazon below, and you can preview it before its release by clicking here.

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