Advanced Search >
Help Me Search

Music

All-Time High (And Low) Scores
Best of 2009
Best of 2008
Best of 2007
Best of 2006
Best of 2005
Best of 2004
Best of 2003
Best of 2002
Best of 2001
Best of 2000
Best of the Decade

Upcoming &
Recent Releases

sort by namesort by score

75 2562
54 30 Seconds to Mars
62 50 Cent
71 AC/DC
70 The Album Leaf
52 Kris Allen
68 Tori Amos
66 Animal Collective
84 Animal Collective
77 Annie
57 Apse
63 Asobi Seksu
59 Bad Lieutenant
83 Julianna Barwick
82 Beach House
72 Beak>
72 Bibio
65 Justin Bieber
76 Biffy Clyro
74 Blakroc
75 Mary J. Blige
78 Blockhead
52 Bon Jovi
54 Susan Boyle
57 The Bravery
39 Chris Brown
64 V.V. Brown
70 Basia Bulat
79 Chew Lips
74 Citay
65 Clipse
66 Cold War Kids
75 The Cribs
58 Dashboard Confessional
81 Dave Rawlings Machine
70 Delphic
78 The Doors
58 Echo & The Bunnymen
73 Edan
59 Editors
69 Eels
80 Felt
74 First Aid Kit
69 Flyleaf
83 Four Tet
82 Ben Frost
82 Fucked Up
83 Charlotte Gainsbourg
63 The Gilded Palace Of Sin
68 Githead
65 Joe Goddard
58 Good Shoes
72 Gucci Mane
75 Holopaw
82 Jesca Hoop
79 Hot Chip
72 The Hot Rats
88 Ray Wylie Hubbard
54 Hurricane Chris
66 Allison Iraheta
59 Jay Sean
82 Freedy Johnston
57 Nick Jonas And The Administration
73 Norah Jones
49 Juvenile
58 Ke$ha
62 R. Kelly
66 Alicia Keys
68 Kid Sister
81 King Midas Sound
63 Lady Antebellum
76 Lady GaGa
71 Adam Lambert
78 Lawrence Arabia
61 Leona Lewis
74 Lightspeed Champion
36 Lil Wayne
82 Lindstrom & Christabelle
77 Lissie
78 Los Campesinos!
70 Lostprophets
73 Magnetic Fields
72 Massive Attack
64 John Mayer
71 Paul McCartney
58 Katherine McPhee
86 Memory Tapes
72 Midlake
88 Motion City Soundtrack
63 Mr. Hudson
53 Mudvayne
75 Oh No Ono
70 OK Go
72 Ola Podrida
61 OneRepublic
80 Owen Pallett
80 Pantha du Prince
90 Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
80 Phantogram
60 Pit Er Pat
63 Priestess
70 Radian
79 Corinne Bailey Rae
54 Rakim
79 Real Estate
77 Retribution Gospel Choir
76 Rihanna
64 Rjd2
65 Omar Rodriguez-Lopez
77 Sade
77 Gil Scott-Heron
72 Shakira
82 Shining
61 Snoop Dogg
62 Snow Patrol
71 The Soft Pack
80 Spoon
64 Ringo Starr
59 Stereophonics
76 Angie Stone
79 Surfer Blood
74 Switchfoot
75 Them Crooked Vultures
74 Robin Thicke
50 Timbaland
79 tUnE-YaRDs
80 Vampire Weekend
79 Laura Veirs
79 Tom Waits
78 Wale
65 The Watson Twins
66 Kanye West
76 The Whitefield Brothers
64 Robbie Williams
80 Yeasayer
62 Young Money
75 Neil Young
61 Rob Zombie

Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

MACHINA/the machines of God

EMAILPRINTby The Smashing Pumpkins

The Smashing Pumpkins reviews
66
9.0 User Score:

Generally favorable reviews

Based on 15 critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

Based on 25 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album >

Album Info

Label: Virgin

Release Date: 29 February 2000

Discs: 1 disc

Genre(s): Alternative, Rock

Summary

What The Critics Said

All critic scores are converted to a 100-point scale. If a critic does not indicate a score, we assign a score based on the general impression given by the text of the review. Learn more...

87

Wall of Sound

At nearly an hour and a quarter, the album does feel a little long, especially when it falls prey to the ponderousness that made Adore drag...

Read Full Review >
80

Q Magazine

MACHINA/the machines of God is, mostly, a wonderful rock album.

Read Full Review >
80

Checkout.com

The album is not without its flaws (some of the songs are less than memorable, and as always, the proceedings are dampened somewhat by Corgan's nasal drone of a voice), but it's a welcome return to form for one of music's original alt-rock heroes.

80

Sonicnet

From its thunderous beginning to its quiet, echoing end, MACHINA/the machines of God is perfect dancing-in-the-dark-with-yourself-'cause-you-have-angst-in-your-pants music.

Read Full Review >
70

CDNow

The record does go on a bit long, flagging at the end. But there are enough wonderful songs on this disc to knock at least a couple of boy bands off the radio.

Read Full Review >
70

Spin

Confused and lapsed Pumpkins fans have reasons to rejoice... this is a necessary, welcome return. Unfortunately, MACHINA does linger a bit too long on the softer side of things. But every time the tempo veers towards screeching to a halt, there's a well-timed boost of adrenal sound.

Read Full Review >
70

Rolling Stone

The songs go back to the basics of would-be hit singles: riffs, hooks, bridges, choruses, often with voice and guitar tossing the same short phrase back and forth. Corgan hasn't radically changed his songwriting; he still goes for anthems, riff rockers and dirges. But there are no more fantasy epics or muses named Daphne, and there's hardly a keyboard to be heard. Guitars rule: distorted electrics and hard-strummed acoustics, sitarlike drones and orchestral reverberations, tolling Pink Floyd tones, and jabbing, wriggling leads, with plenty of echoes of the Cure and U2.

Read Full Review >
60

New Musical Express

Producing an album that distorts time so each second is the temporal equivalent of War And Peace is almost a perverse triumph.

Read Full Review >
60

All Music Guide

Overall, MACHINA meanders due to a combination of amorphous songs and precisely detailed production.

Read Full Review >
60

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Everything about MACHINA is capital-I Important, with virtually every element delivered in gaudy excess?

Read Full Review >
58

Entertainment Weekly

The heavy-handedness is as bald as Corgan's dome, and often just as unappetizing.

Read Full Review >
50

Mojo

Though never dragging its feet, it rarely stretches its creative muscles.

Read Full Review >
42

Pitchfork

Billy Corgan needs someone on his shoulder to whisper "no."

Read Full Review >
40

MTV.com

Rather than highbrow art-rock, we just get a really pretentious heavy metal album.... the Pumpkins' worst album to date.

Read Full Review >
30

Billboard

On "Machina," the Pumpkins don't sound creatively bankrupt as much as they sound burned out, uninspired, and not living up to their potential.

Read Full Review >

What Our Users Said

The average user rating for this album is 9.0 (out of 10) based on 25 User Votes

Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

Nick gave it a7:
A solid album with excessive production and a bloated concept. Overall though most of the songs hold up, highlights are "Stand Inside Your Love", "I Of the Mourning", and "Age of Innocense"

Peter B gave it a9:
This must be the definition of an album that grows on you! At first I thought it was alright, than I thought it sucked and now I think it's one of the best albums I own. There are so many great songs on this album. It starts off wtih a bang (The Everlasting Gaze) and than it delves into both electronica (Raindrops + Sunshowers), gorgeous pop-ballads (Stand Inside Your Love, Blue Skies Bring Tears), amazing pop-gems (I of the Mourning, Try, Try, Try, This Time), catchy pop-rock (Sacred and Profane, Wound) and also weider experiments like the jazzy "With Every Light" and the industrial "The Imploding Voice". Only a few songs fall flat like the horrible "Heavy Metal Machine" and the too-strange "Crying Tree of Mercury". All in all it's still The Pumpkins' weekest effort, but it's still a great album!

[Anonymous] gave it a7:
A decent album, but spotty. Siamese Dream and Mellon Collie are superior, but this one has some moments of its own to offer, like "The Imploding Voice", "I of the Mourning", and "Stand inside your love". If it wasn't padded with lame stuff like "Heavy Metal Machine", it'd be great rahter than decent of good.

Chris W gave it a10:
This album is awesome. Had it for years and, if you listen to it really loud, it really shakes. I had it on in the car and I thought I was going to flip. Owning this album is a must!

Joris gave it a10:
This album really grows on you! The first year i thought it was their worst cd, now 5 years later (:p) I can honestly say this is their best after Siamese D and Mellon Collie. Another SP-album with a new sound uncomparabl to their previous work! Full of classics and so varied! Dream-pop like Wound or This Time Rockers as Heavy Metal Machina, Everlasting Gaze Epic SP tearjerker: Glass+The Ghost Children, one of their best songs ever, along with I Of The Mourning and then there's that awesome Stand Inside Your Love-bridge/drumsolo/outro starting at about 2:30 I believe

Randy B gave it a7:
The last album to come of The Smashing Pumpkins begins with a bang: the hard-hitting ‘The Everlasting Gaze’. The quality of the record jumps around, but every time you think it’s going to become something to toss in the used bin, it comes back with something awesome. Not that any of the tracks are really that bad, but there is a difference between the forgettable ‘Try, Try, Try’ and ‘The Imploding Voice’, ‘Stand Inside your Love’, or ‘Heavy Metal Machine’. Not as good as Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, but definitely a welcome return back from the pain that was Adore. Not the best close to a career, but not the worst either.

Pierre B gave it a9:
Don't listen to the critics. This is a great album!

Read more user comments >

Popular on CBS sites: College Signing Day | Olympics | Lost | iPhone | Cell Phones | Video Game Reviews | Free Music

About CBS Interactive | Jobs | Advertise

© 2010 CBS Interactive Inc. All rights reserved. | Privacy Policy (UPDATED) | Terms of Use