Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun. is the 10th studio album by The Smashing Pumpkins. Released about two months ago, it’s received mixed reviews from almost all of the major publishers. It’s also the first Pumpkins record in 18 years to feature both Chamberlain and Iha, making it a reunion of sorts!
Despite the fact that this record doesn’t come close anything like the music The Smashing Pumpkins once created, it does have its moments. In its two lead singles “Solara” and “Silvery Sometimes (Ghosts)” Corgan sounds as present as ever. I can see why both of these tracks were released as singles; they’ll resonate with Pumpkins fans. That can’t be said for the entire record and that’s probably what said major publishers took issue with. At times it’s a little cringe, too predictable and lacking that cutting edge. They don’t dare to imagine what could be on this record as they have done in the past and that leads to 32 minutes of fairly standard music. It’s great to have them back an all but Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun. as whole leaves you wondering if you’re definitely listening to a Smashing Pumpkins record.
It’s just a bit bland. Bland in the sense that you could say to yourself “yeah okay, I could listen to it and go about my day, but it’s not going to stop me in my tracks.” And that’s what the Pumpkins albums of the past would have done. They would have made you stop and think. The albums were raw, they were unpredictable. Perhaps Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun. is just a bump in what could become the perfect reunion, or, perhaps the Pumpkins are finally smashed.
G.M
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