Zeitgeist

The sort of vocal layering Freddy Mercury would be proud of, chord progressions that convey triumph as often as they do disenchantment, and the use of marimbas and orchestras (and is that a gong in “Pomp and Circumstance”?) all indicate a willingness to go beyond the formula even as they spend most of their time sticking to it like glue.

Thanks in part to the presence of Pantera producer Terry Date, this is the Pumpkins' hardest-rocking record ever.

Zeitgeist comes on with a vicious energy, a jugular-grabbing intensity.

The best thing about Zeitgeist is that Corgan is back to what he does best: hard-rock architecture.

If you're nostalgic for the '90s, Zeitgeist is like curling up with a warm Marshall stack.

While not enough to stand among the best the Pumpkins have to offer, Zeigeist nonetheless stands fairly well on it's own

The album is surprisingly effective in musical terms: drone-laden and distortion-jacked, it sounds about as tough as anything this band has produced.

In the end, this is a loud, almost triumphant statement .

Zeitgeist’s orgy of avalanche rhythms, cascading riffs and sky-licking guitar is as grandiose as ever (the solo on "Tarantula" sounds like a nuke hitting a Guitar Center), but the bombast is softened as Corgan reaches out for shame-sharing community.

Zeitgeist may not boast any platinum-plated singles of the kind that typified their peak, but it's mercifully far less flatulent than latter-day Pumpkins.

Zeitgeist ends up sounding like a Corgan career retrospective in B-side form.

Zeitgeist isn't a good record, but it is good work.

It's best treated as a curio in the Smashing Pumpkins' legacy; and for those who grew up on 'Today', '1979' and 'Ava Adore', you're better left with your memories.

Zeitgeist sounds like a watered-down version of the best bits from Mellon Collie…, meaning it just ends up being too similar to Machina… for its own good.

It's still a mess, though an ambitious and grandiose one.

The best you can offer is that it’s not a disaster – now do you want to tell Billy or should I?

Zeitgeist fails to capture not just the spirit of the cultural times, but of the true Smashing Pumpkins. [Summer 2007, p.84]

A record which stares back at you with the appeal of an ex you'd rather not have bumped into.

Far more aggressive than any other record in their catalog - perhaps a preemptive response to charges of getting old and mellow. Unfortunately, that leaves the record rather homogenous.

Zeitgeist is mostly a grinding, straightforward affair that demonstrates none of the innovation and vision of the band’s previous efforts.

If you remember the unconsciously naff hilarity of late-period Suede, you will recognise that there's some fun to be had from Zeitgeist, albeit in small quantities.

Corgan repeatedly buries his threadbare melodies beneath squeals of guitar that are too processed to either soar or sear. More than anything, it's this digitally dulled sound that saps Zeitgeist from any impact it may have.

Zeitgeist is the Pumpkins' most aggressively metal album to date. But heaps of guitars, vocal overdubs, and ridiculous effects don't mask a lack of inventiveness or even plain ol' quality songwriting.

This is no-frills rawk that's been dumbed down for mass consumption.

It’s all just too "over-" - overcooked, overheated, whatever you want to call it.

And the mixing problems extend far beyond Corgan’s voice. The Band of a Hundred Murderous Guitars has turned into a modern-radio-rock band.

The title of the Smashing Pumpkins' new album seems like wishful thinking. So does the music, for that matter