Critic's Corner
Aghori Mhori Mei — Smashing Pumpkins There seems to be a crazy divide occurring within The Smashing Pumpkins fan base. The band is probably one of the most important alt-rock bands of all time. Their 1993 masterpiece Siamese Dream is probably one of the best albums of all time, and has majorly helped to shape music of all genres since. What was so special about that album is that it was completely new and different and weird. Almost as much of a novelty for its time as The Beatles. The new idea on that album, as my father notably pointed out to me when I heard it for the first time on a long car drive, is the opposing yin-yang forces of James Iha’s heavy, sludge-metal guitar and Billy Corgan’s weirdly high-pitched alien voice. It feels authentically grungy, and uniquely them. It doesn’t sound like Nirvana or Alice In Chains or any other ’90s grunge outfit. It feels dynamic and original, like something that you would hear in a random basement and be struck by — unlike their first …