my top 10 fave smashing pumpkins songs

A friend of mine from Chitown (yo, John, Happy New Year!) keeps asking me when I'm gonna blog about his favorite band, Smashing Pumpkins. Every time he does, I am also reminded of the fact that the Pumpkins opened for me back in '89 and that John was one of the guys working sound at that particular club that night.

After the show, I bump into a girl I'd gone to school with back in Michigan. She, of course, is there because she's friends with Smashing Pumpkins and proceeds to introduce me to Billy and Jimmy. Billy shakes me hand about as limply as James Iha strums a guitar and I find myself conversing at length with Jimmy, who tells me that the Pumpkins will be opening for The Cure in a few days.

Considering that we're playing a total dive bar that night to about 150 people or so, I immediately think this guy's bull-shitting me and add him to my mental list of people to avoid from this point on.

A couple days later, I hear a radio commercial advertising the Cure concert. Near the end of the spot, I her the announcer say "with special guests Smashing Pumpkins" and almost drive my car into the path of oncoming traffic.

What I didn't know is that the band had just aligned themselves with Joe Shanahan, who booked the Cabaret Metro and had considerable clout - enough to ensure the Pumpkins opened for The Cure and a number of heavyweights performing at the Metro.

In a matter of months, the band would transform from a gothy Mission UK/Sisters Of Mercy hybrid into a tight, alterna-rock act garnering the attention of several major labels.

By 1991, they would be all over MTV and I would be...watching MTV.

Coincidentally enough (for this blog anyway), earlier today, I was killing time with a dude I work with by compiling lists of the ten best songs by our favorite bands. There are the obligatory Beatles, Rolling Stones, and U2 lists and resulting arguments. About an hour into this exercise, my co-worker throws out the name "Smasphing Pumpkins" and begins scribbling fiercely on a nearby scratch pad. He's obviously a bit of a fan.

I, on the other hand, attack my list with a little less intensity, but do eventually finish it.

Here it is:

Today
Today
Today
Cherub Rock
1979
1979
1979
Today
Cherub Rock
1979
and, as a bonus track, yet another version of Today

Now, before you send me a grumpy comment, allow me to explain.

I will admit to not exactly digging the Pumpkins. The entirety of "Gish" is a complete sonic snoozefest to my ears and, thus, I initially wrote the band off. However, by the time Pumpkin-mania swept across the US (and around the world), even I had to admit that "Today" was a mother of a song.

"Cherub Rock" also didn't sound half-bad blasting out of a nearby radio.

When "1979" was released, I again begrudgingly found myself digging another Pumpkins song; this one for showing an amazing amount of restraint.

Do I only like three Pumpkins songs? No, but these three songs stand head-and-shoulder above the rest of their output, in my most humble opinion.

Of the ten, er, eleven songs gathered here, I really must say that the live cuts from '93 are my favorite. They are of a band going from "up-and-coming" to "superstars" in a matter of weeks, but a couple years shy of becoming a caricature of themselves.

Even today, as Billy Corgan wrestles with his own relevance - unable to garner any sizable interest as a solo artist and begrudgingly resurrecting Smashing Pumpkins out of a very real necessity to put more asses in the seats - it's impossible to deny that he has written at least a few songs that will no doubt stand the test of time.

get in touch with your inner rockstar

Some of you might already be familiar with the online concert ticket generator at Says-It.com, but maybe you haven't seen the new ticket layout they've recently unveiled here.

Always a fun way to kill time at work. :P

happy christmas?

I remember being a kid and hearing a news report about how the suicide rate always spikes during the holidays and having it stop me in my tracks. For me, Christmas was always the happiest time of the year. Gifts sat beneath the tree just waiting to be freed from their boxes and gift-paper confines, the entire family gathered together, and there being constant laughter.

The idea that somebody somewhere would choose to miss out on this seemed absurd.

It was only after I moved away ten years or so ago that it dawned on me. The first Christmas I spent away from my family, all I could think about was that news report.

I finally understood the sadness and disconnection from the entire world that many people feel this time of year. I remember calling my family that night, of course, and the phone was passed around from relative to relative, all saying "hi" and sending their love. I also remember hanging up in tears.

Time, coupled with the fact that there's absolutely nothing in L.A. that says "Christmas!", has lessened the blow considerably, making December 25th just another day for me.

The five-year-old kid in me must be pissed.

Sigh.

I had this whole blog rant planned out, but, damn if I can finish it now. Something's gotten to me. Maybe five-year-old me is tired of the current me mucking things up.

So, I can either continue this little piece of prose to nobody in particular or I can turn off the fucking computer and make Christmas 2007 mean something to someone.

For some reason, this song's the one that speaks to me so I'll leave on that note and see you guys in '08:

"Carousel"

saturday mixed bag

{Blade Runner-The Final Cut comes out Tuesday, December 18! Just sayin'.]

Here's a grab-bag of ten cool toons I felt like sharing.

I remember being recommended Big Black's "Atomizer" by a clerk at Wax Trax! Records in Chicago. Once I got home and slapped the vinyl on my turntable, I remember my brother and I looking at each other as the first notes came rumbling out of the speakers like nothing we'd ever heard. The crushing bass rattled my brother's alarm clock off a nearby shelf and no more than ten minutes later, my dad came in from mowing the lawn to tell us to turn the damn music down because he could barely hear the lawnmower. Okay, I made that last part up, but you get my point. Big Black was Bad Ass and we became huge fans.

Bad Penny and Kerosene (live)



I've always dug John Waite. There, I said it.

There were moments on those early Babys records where the band approached greatness, but I personally favored the band's two final albums, "Union Jacks" and "On The Edge". Tunes like "Midnight Rendezvous", "Too Far Gone", "Jesus Are You There" (cheesy opening synth riff aside, that tune rocked), "Sweet 17", and "Turn & Walk Away" are timeless rock favorites in my universe.

Having said that, I also dug the crap out of Waite's overlookd first solo album, "Ignition". There was an intensity, a desperation that crackled like a New York City summer night (which is funny because Waite was broke and living in NYC when the album was recorded). His next one included the mega-hit ballad "Missing You", which changed the direction of his career forever (for better and worse), but the one tune I dig most of all from the "No Brakes" album was the punk-fueled "Saturday Night". It was truly the last time Waite would show that musical side of himself.

Saturday Night (live)



That first Lords Of The New Church record was an amazing thing. Featuring ex-members of the Dead Boys, the Damned, the Barracudas - bands I only kind of liked - I remember thinking there was no way the music could live up to the hype that had been circulating about this so-called "punk supergroup".

Thankfully, the record wasn't just another loud 'n' snotty punk record. Instead, the band set a sublimely pummeling juggernaut in motion and confidently built the tension with angular guitars and chanted backing vocals that complimented Stiv Bators' snarly whail. Songs like "Holy War" and "Russian Roulette" were in HEAVY rotation in my bedroom for months on end.

Sadly, the Lords' story was one of quick descent, as drugs and alcohol took priority over everything else. Stories of the band's debaucherous ways were legendary, making thetaudry antics of any Sunset Strip metal band seem pedestrian by comparison. By the time I saw them live in '86, the wheels had started to come off. Bators was incoherent (even moreso than usual) and guitarist Brian James was an angry mess.

In '88, the band was Bators, James, Dave Tregunna, and a couple of ringers who had the look, but not the intensity. The band had parted ways with longtime manager Miles Copeland, lost their I.R.S. deal, and were playing total dives.

It didn't look...or sound good...and soon Stiv was gone.

Happy Birthday and Becoming A Nuisance (live '88)



Anyone who's bothered to read this blog knows my love for Material Issue. Here's a live acoustic version of "Next Big Thing" that I taped off local Chicago TV show JAMTV.



Killing Joke have always been a menacing musical presence and I've always thought a key to that sound was the growling bass lines that propelled many of their best songs. The best example, in my most humble opinion, is "Love Like Blood", which also packs a catchy chorus and proved once and for all that these guys were more than just an "Eighties" band.

the year 1989

I’m writing this before diving into the research for this post. My initial remembrance of the year in rock 1989 was one of hair metal and rock-based pop schlock dominating the charts. I seem to remember radio being a barren wasteland of power ballads (curse you Diane Warren) and New Jack Swing R&B (curse you Bobby Brown). I also seem to remember Milli Vanilli coming out of nowhere. So, without further adieu, let us dive into the year that was 1989.


Cher jumped on the hair metal/power ballad bandwagon with her latest album, “Heart Of Stone”, which was a platinum return-to-form for the singer. The album featured four Top 20 singles, among them the Diane Warren-penned “If I Could Turn Back Time” (most notable for the video showing Cher romping around on an aircraft carrier) and “Just Like Jesse James”.


After the frat-boy success that was “Licensed To Ill” three years prior, the Beastie Boys return with the innovative “Paul’s Boutique” after jumping ship from Columbia to join Capitol Records. While innovative for its use of sampling techniques courtesy of producers The Dust Brothers, the album was initially viewed as a complete commercial failure. The album’s sole single, “Hey Ladies” peaked at #36 on the Pop singles chart. (check out this mash-up of “Shake Your Rump/Back In Black”.]


The B-52’s attain their greatest commercial success with the inspired “Cosmic Thing”, which featured career-defining chart hits “Love Shack” and “Roam” (each of which peaked at #3 on the singles charts). Much of the success is attributable to heavy rotation of the group’s videos on MTV.


In July, Warrant’s debut album, “Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich” is released and becomes a platinum Top 10 hit. “Heaven” rockets into the Top 10, while the rocker “Down Boys” stumbles to #27. To regain their footing on the charts, another power ballad, “Sometimes She Cries”, is released and jettisons into the Top 20. [Check out this "lyrically-challenged" cover of Cheap Trick's "Baby Loves To Rock".]


Red Hot Chili Peppers’ fourth album, “Mothers Milk”, is the first to catapult the funk-rock band into the national spotlight. Their caffeinated cover of Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground” put them on MTV and, while neither the album nor single dented the Top 40, the band were no longer a fledgling underground act.

After two lackluster solo efforts following the success of “Let’s Dance”, David Bowie surfaces in May as singer in the band Tin Machine, featuring unknown guitarist Reeves Gabrels and Soupy Sales’ sons, Tony and Hunt. That a solo performer of Bowie’s status would choose to working within a band dynamic was seen as a conscious attempt to re-ignite his creativity and perhaps to remain relevant. The album peaked at #28 despite no obvious singles (although “Under The God” and “Heaven’s In Here” did garner sizeable Modern Rock airplay).


Phil Collins releases his fourth solo outing, entitled “…But Seriously”. The album hits #1 in the UK and US, as does the single “Another Day In Paradise”. Subsequent singles “Do You Remember” and “I Wish It Would Rain Down” also go Top 5.

2 Live Crew used controversy as a marketing tool with the release of the cheeky (literally) “As Nasty As They Wanna Be”. With songs such as “Me So Horny” and “The Fuck Shop”, the rap group soon found the album banned in Florida and the subject of a federal obscenity trial. Such events only fueled interest in the album, which ultimately sold over two million copies.


June brings the release of the Batman soundtrack by Prince. The film is one of the most-anticipated films of the year and an all-out box-office smash. Thus, Prince’s soundtrack is a gigantic commercial success as well, returning the Purple One to the #1 position after a three-album slide.


Tesla’s second album, The Great Radio Controversy, builds on the momentum of their debut and scales the charts, ultimately landing in the Top 20. Again, thanks to MTV’s constant airing of the video, “Love Song” rockets into the Top 10.


The Replacements issue “Don’t Tell A Soul” and make a somewhat intentional attempt to turn years of critical acclaim into commercial success. The slicker production, courtesy of Matt Wallace, does little to impede upon the solid songwriting throughout, but fans of their previous efforts accuse the band of selling out. MTV plays the crap out of the video for “I’ll Be You”, but the song peaks at #51 on the Pop singles chart. [Bonus track: a 1989 live version of "Achin' To Be" and "Talent Show".]

The Smithereens’ fourth album, “11”, marks their creative and commercial peak and featuring their first Top 40 single, “A Girl Like You”.

Bad English (a supergroup featuring ex-Babys John Waite and Ricky Phillips, Journey’s Neal Schon and Jonathan Cain, and drummer Deen Castronova) release their self-titled debut album, scoring a #1 hit with the Diane Warren composition “When I See You Smile”. The Waite/Cain-penned “Price Of Love” is also a Top 5 charting single.

In September, Motley Crue release the chart-topping “Dr. Feelgood” album. Considered their strongest album, it includes the top 10 singles “Without You” and the title track, as well as fan favorite “Kickstart My Heart”.


March brings the release of Madonna’s “Like A Prayer”, an album that strived to continue her chart reign (which it did, hitting #1 its first week) and bring her artistic credibility. The title track would be shown as a world exclusive on MTV and repeated every ten minutes, it would seem. The video would gain further attention for its religious overtones, angering the Catholic Church. Hit singles include “Like a Prayer” (#1), “Cherish” (#2), “Express Yourself” (#2), “Keep It Together” (#8), and “Oh Father” (#20). The album also includes a duet with Prince, “Love Song”.

In April, The Cult release “Sonic Temple. Produced by Bob Rock, the album is a crystal clear bid for all-out chart success and further builds upon the hard-rock/metal leanings first employed on 1987’s “Electric”. The album was a Top 10 hit. {Check out this live version of "Sun King"

Queen’s thirteenth album, “The Miracle” continues the band’s declining chart success in the US (while the band remains a top-selling act throughout most of Europe). “I Want It All”, while a Top 5 hit across Europe, peaked at a lowly #50 in the States.

Capitalizing on the popularity of hair metal but, at the same time, brandishing a harder, grittier edge, Skid Row attain platinum success with their self-titled debut album. Videos for “18 And Life” (#4) and “I Remember You” (#6) showcase photogenic singer, Sebastian Bach, and remain in constant rotation on MTV.

Tears For Fears enjoyed a return to the Top 10 with the psychedelia-tinged album “The Seeds Of Love”, which featured the MTV-friendly single “Sowing The Seeds Of Love”, which reached #2 on the US Pop singles chart.


In April, Tom Petty releases his first solo album, “Full Moon Fever”. Initially told by his label that the album lacked any obvious singles, Petty resubmitted the album months later having made no changes. This time, MCA saw fit to release the album and enjoy tremendous chart success with the hit singles “Free Fallin’” (#7), “I Won’t Back Down” (#12), and “Runnin’ Down A Dream” (#23).


Released in October, Nine Inch Nails’ “Pretty Hate Machine” adds a commercial sheen to the template created by acts like Ministry and Front 242. The result is an album that becomes arguably the first industrial album to attain mainstream success, spawning such well-known tracks as “Head Like a Hole” and “Down In It”, both of which would garner sizeable MTV rotation.

Neil Young releases “Freedom” and makes a return to the Top 40. Highlighted by the acceptance of “Rockin’ In The Free World” as a modern bar-band classic, Young is embraced by a new audience; one that includes Eddie Vedder and Pearl Jam. [Check out this acoustic version of "Rockin' In The Free World" by Pearl Jam.]

In the UK, the “Madchester” scene begins to gain momentum, led by the Stone Roses, whose debut album is the toast of the UK. While only a moderate success in the US, the band rode the crest of a huge wave in the UK, joined by Happy Mondays, Charlatans, and Inspiral Carpets. [Check out this live version of "I Wanna Be Adored" by ex-Stone Roses singer Ian Brown.]

Roy Orbison’s “Mystery Girl” album is posthumously released in February. Featuring the collaborative efforts of Petty & the Heartbreakers, Bono, The Edge, and one Diane Warren co-write (“Careless Heart”) thrown in for good measure, the album peaked at #5 and the single “You Got It” was also a Top 10 success.


Lenny Kravitz releases his debut album, “Let Love Rule” for Virgin Records. Having been rejected by every record label for one reason or another, Kravitz recorded the album on his own, then secured a deal with the relatively new US imprint of Virgin. The album’s lo-fi production meshed well with Kravitz’s retro leanings and was well received by critics, but only a moderate commercial success. [Check out this live version of "Mr. Cab Driver" and Hanson covering "Let Love Rule".]


Fine Young Cannibals release their second album, “The Raw And The Cooked” and enjoy unimaginable chart success in the UK and US. Singles such as “She Drives Me Crazy” (#1) and “Good Thing” (#1), and “Don’t Look Back (#11) go on to dominate MTV and radio playlists and the album would land at #1.

anna fermin & trigger gospel

I had gone to see a different band that night, having braved the harsh winter winds that did their best to make me reconsider from the moment I left my apartment and continued to make their presence, blowing my car from side to side as I hauled ass across the snow-blown streets of Chi-town.

I walked into the club, half-cursing the fact that I hadn’t hit nearly as many red lights as I’d anticipated and had completely failed in my attempt to miss the opening act, or, gasp, opening acts (that’s right, plural). See, it’s not that I’m against opening acts, per se, it’s just that hard winters make me a bit ornery and, even in the best of moods, I find most opening acts to be a very staunch reminder that there are just way too many bands these days. Seriously, people, leave it to the professionals. I’m begging.

As I saw shadows beginning to lurk upon the darkened stage with the clear intent of performing, I felt a magnetic pull towards the bar and and soon found myself negotiating terms and taking ownership of an icy cold bottle of Leinenkugel.

The band had started by the time I washed down the first sip, but when the woman began to sing, my jaw dropped. It wasn’t just my jaw that dropped either. The whole room was standing in slack-jawed ecstacy and for the first time in a long time, the forty-five minutes allotted to the opening act didn’t seem like an eternity.

It was all the time needed for Anna Fermin & Trigger Gospel to take a roomful of strangers and turn them into fans.

You may have noticed that I’ve thus far resisted describing their music and it is at this point that any normal writer would no doubt dive into a witty and urbane recitation of the same buzzwords you’ve seen used to describe a thousand different bands, such rendering such words devoid of any possible meaning.

Instead, I figured I’d simply interview the band’s guiding songstress, Anna Fermin, and allow her to provide the necessary information. Maybe as you read, you’ll feel compelled to listen to the two songs I’ve provided from their latest CD, GO.



Anna Fermin & Trigger Gospel - I Know Why
Anna Fermin & Trigger Gospel - She

Q: What was your inspiration for becoming a singer/songwriter and what keeps you inspired these days?

AF: Initially, LOVE (and eventually heartbreak. Surprising, I know). I was 22 years old and falling in love with a man who was a big Steve Earle fan. He serenaded me with Earle's "Down the Road" and at that very moment I fell in love, both with this young man and the idea that a simple song sung and strummed on guitar could shake the core of my very being and change the entire course of my life.

It's been 14 years since I wrote my first song and now, I am confident when I say I know I will always be a songwriter. For me, songwriting is as intimately and naturally tied to my being as my eye color. It’s a necessary accessory to my identity. And I know it may sound like a cliché, but inspiration as a songwriter/singer comes from all my life’s experiences. It can be as momentous and moving as the birth of my son and all that comes along with parenthood or as random as the title of a book. Mood and timing have a lot to do with it too.

Q: Trigger Gospel has not only taken Chicago by storm with some of the most consistently amazing live shows of any locally-based act, but you’ve also enjoyed a great reception in Austin and parts of Europe. What is it that you personally get out of a live performance that makes it worthwhile for you?

AF: Mostly the joy I get from performing with the musicians I have the honor of sharing the stage and my music with. My current line up is, for lack of a better word, killer. With Paul Bivans on drums, Michael Krayniak on bass, Grant Tye (Robbie Fulks) on guitar, and Scott Ligon (Kelly Hogan, Nora O’Connor) on keyboards and guitar, I am consistently blown away at the musicianship and chemistry we’ve cultivated. It’s really rewarding. And of course, when I’m able to connect with the audience on an emotional as well as a musical level, that’s the icing on the cake.

Q: If I were introducing someone to their first Anna Fermin/Trigger Gospel song, which one would you want it to be and why?

AF: That’s a tough one. Mostly because I write in various styles of music it’s hard to hear one song representing my “sound”. But I guess if I had to pick one it would be “Northern Lights”. This was the first track on our first full length CD, produced by pedal steel extraordinaire Lloyd Maines (Dixie Chicks, Uncle Tupelo, Richard Buckner), and has become sort of a signature song for the band. We always get a big cheer when we start this song at a local show.

Q: What are your top 5 Desert Island Discs at the moment?

AF:
Son Volt, Trace
Over the Rhine, Trumpet Child
Sufjan Stevens, Illinoise
Coldplay, X&Y
Teddy Thompson, Up Front and Low Down

Q: Apparently, you favor working with producers named Jay. What was it like working with Jay Bennett on “Oh What Stories” and Jay O’Rourke on “Go”?

AF: Two very different experiences. Jay Bennett in 2003: genius bordering on madman, manic and I have to say, it was almost scary to be in the same room with him. You also have to know he was just coming off the big WILCO "divorce" as well as a marital divorce AND his mother was very sick at the time. So all these things had everything to do with his state of mind and physical body. Not to say he wasn't being productive during all of this. Shortly after we worked with him, he released like six albums of music nearly simultaneously. Ultimately, in my eyes, he is an artist in the truest sense.

Jay O’Rourke on the other hand is also a genius in his own right. A true master of engineering in the recording studio, he also has a way of making you feel taken care of while under his guidance. He’s a real professional, and when he gets on a project he believes in he works his ass off to get you to your vision. Probably the most dedicated and honest musician/producer I have ever worked with. Paired with Scott Ligon, Jay helped to produce some of my most favorite TG tracks to date on our latest CD, “GO”. I’m also working/collaborating closely with him on another yet to be named project, which I believe easily to be some of my best recordings yet.

Q: Trigger Gospel has such a unique sound that its hard to classify where TG fits on the musical landscape. What other artists/bands do you see as like-minded musical compadres.

AF: The one band that stands out is “Over the Rhine” as they too are an Americana band that delves into the influences of jazz, blues, rock & cabaret.

Q: To my ears “Go” is a very different record from previous Trigger Gospel efforts. Was there a specific goal to mix things up a bit when you set out to make this record?

AF: Not really. They were all just songs I had written and/or were performing currently with my band and had never gotten around to recording properly in a studio. We actually attempted to record a couple of the songs on “GO” with Jay Bennett for the “OH, the Stories We Hold” CD, but for some reason or another we didn’t get around to finishing them with Jay. So they were hold overs.

Q: So, what’s next for Anna Fermin and Trigger Gospel?

AF: I’m not exactly sure at the moment. But I will keep you posted…

Q: Bonus question: Why Chicago?

AF: I spent my childhood in Wisconsin, but grew up in Chicago. This is really home for me, the center, the constant, the setting of all things wonderful and heartbreaking in my life so far. It’s hard for me to see myself rooted anywhere else. Although Paris has been a serious contender.