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Stars indicate the most critically-acclaimed albums.

Mary Star of the Sea
by Zwan


8.3

based on 21 reviews
Read critic reviews
How did we calculate this?

based on 39 votes
Read user comments
Rate this album

The new group led by Billy Corgan of The Smashing Pumpkins features a lineup including fellow Pumpkin Jimmy Chamberlin on drums and guitarists Matt Sweeney (Chavez, Skunk) and David Pajo (Slint, Tortoise).

LABEL:	Warner Brothers / Reprise
RELEASE DATE:	28 January 2003
DISCS:	1 disc
GENRE(S):	Alternative, Rock

NOTES: Some versions include a bonus DVD.

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...

100

E! Online

Even the geeky ballads will put a smile on your face and a Bic lighter in your hand.

Entertainment Weekly

Mary Star of the Sea may be the least ambitious album Corgan's ever made -- and yet his most satisfying since the Pumpkins' heyday.

Launch.com

Zwan is Billy Corgan's triumph, an unrepentant glam-rock/prog-pop bacchanalia, an album of stadium happy singles and up-with-people wonder anthems.

Playlouder

Stripped of the Pumpkins' pomp angst and invested with a new pop-rock sensibility by fellow cohorts David Pajo and Matt Sweeney, in Zwan Corgan has simply formed the perfect band.

Stylus Magazine

It's an album that is filled with plenty of big hooks, ample rock crunch and a loving attention to detail.

Uncut

The results sound as if Corgan plundered a few moves from Dave Grohl, since the songs keep one boot in heavy metal but mostly get straight to the point while piling on the hooks and harmonies. [Mar 2003, p.95]

New Musical Express

'Mary Star Of The Sea' has that kind of miracle-working effect: a euphoric and consistent hour of genetically-tweaked stadium rock that re-establishes Billy Corgan as a great, rather than ridiculous, frontman.

Blender

As Zwan create a louder and less obviously pop eclat than the Pumpkins, they also turn more minimal. Their first record has one theme: the electric guitar. [#14, p.140]

Alternative Press

A welcome return to form in which [Corgan] plays rock music not out of obligation, but out of celebration. [March 2003, p.83]

Q Magazine

This genuinely feels like a fresh start rather than time-killing. [Mar 2003, p.100]

All Music Guide

[Corgan's] joyful spirit surges throughout Mary Star of the Sea, even during its many intricate instrumental sections, and it's hard not to get swept up in the momentum, especially since it's married to his best set of songs since Siamese Dream.

Rolling Stone

Zwan are more straightforward (and much less histrionic) than the Smashing Pumpkins, so a few of the songs in the middle are pretty but not very dramatic.

Spin

[Corgan's] the closest thing our generation has to John Fogerty--a control freak who actually knows what the fuck he's doing. [March 2003, p.118]

The Onion (A.V. Club)

Zwan's biggest and most pleasant surprise is how unassuming it is.

Delusions of Adequacy

Mary Star of the Sea doesn't come close to SP's best work, but it absolutely obliterates everything Corgan has done since Mellon Collie.

Amazon.com

While Corgan's tendency toward self-indulgence results in the tedious 14-minute "Jesus, I/Mary Star of the Sea," it is just a minor lapse considering the rest of the big, glamorous rock on display here.

Splendid

Equal parts prog-rock pretension, spiritual rejuvenation and glam rock harangue.

Mojo

Neither miraculous nor wholly divine, but it does mark Corgan's return to form. [Mar 2003, p.102]

Billboard

While Zwan sometimes displays the anguished heart of the Pumpkins, the band also has a leaner, upbeat sound that is, at times, downright sweet and playful.

Pitchfork

The problem lies with the songs themselves, which simply lack outstanding or memorable hooks: Most are content to meander behind a curtain of big rock guitars and bigger rock cliches, infinitely repeating themselves or, in some cases, never saying much of anything at all.

PopMatters

The candied pop that characterized much of the Pumpkins later work is still out in full force.

The average user rating for this album is 8.3 (out of 10) based on 39 User Votes
Note: User votes are NOT included in the Metascore calculation.

stephen s gave it a9:
Amazing. Took off 1 for some (crap)songs.Brilliant album sad that they disbanded so soon.

Joe gave it a5:
Hmm.. not as good as I would have thought. Many of the songs are boring and sound lazy, but some tracks are really great.

Nick T gave it a9:
I prefer this to anything to Pumpkins did. A shame they came and went so quickly.

Adrian A gave it a9:
This album never gets old!!! buy it if you can...trust me!

Chris R gave it a4:
Mmm, Pumpkins lite. Though I'd rather eat it with all the pulp and seeds of the original group(s).

Nick S gave it an8:
This is a very underappreciated album, especially amongst Smashing Pumpkins fans. In my opinion this album is superior to Zeitgeist and both Machina's. It's Billy Corgan's only truly happy-sounding album. It makes me sad that this band is gone since they had so much unreleased material that is actually even better than what's on the album. Still, Mary Star is solid.

HeCtiC B gave it a10:
Splendid album, the variety from HeartSong to Honestly display a Pumpkinesque ability to shower us with unbridled melodies layered with lyrics that have that feel-good quality we need.

Mary Star of the Sea by Zwan

Mary Star of the Sea
by Zwan