This is a Random Album Generator.
One album a day.
From the book 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die.

Siamese Dream

The Smashing Pumpkins

1993

Buy At Rough Trade
Siamese Dream
Album Summary

Siamese Dream is the second studio album by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 27, 1993, on Virgin Records. The album has received widespread acclaim by audiences and critics alike, with the album's musical influences and lyrical material standing out compared to other alternative records released during its time. The album has since been considered "one of the finest alt-rock albums of all time".Despite recording sessions fraught with difficulties and tensions, Siamese Dream debuted at number ten on the Billboard charts, and eventually was certified 4× Platinum, with the album selling over six million copies worldwide, cementing the Smashing Pumpkins as an important group in alternative rock music. Four singles were released in support of Siamese Dream: "Cherub Rock", "Today", "Disarm", and "Rocket". In addition to receiving widespread critical acclaim upon its release, Siamese Dream has widely been regarded as one of the greatest albums of the 1990s, and one of the greatest albums of all time. Rolling Stone magazine has ranked it between numbers 341 - 362 on various versions of their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time list.

Wikipedia

Rating

3.81

Votes

12435
Genres
Grunge

Reviews

Like a review? Give it a thumb up to help us display relevant reviews!
Sort by: Top Date
View Author
Sat Mar 13 2021
5

Epic album from the Pumpkins. Not only one of their best pieces of work, but I feel it's one of the greatest rock records in existence. Packed full of killer writing and musicianship, emotional Siamese Dreams blows my mind on so many levels from beginning to end. I am so grateful to have gotten to see them perform many of these songs live on 3 occasions. Zowie!

👍
View Author
Tue Aug 17 2021
5

"Siamese Dream" is pretty tortured. I'm not tortured now, and don't think I was in the 90s (although most teens feel tortured to some extent?), certainly not like Corgan (with abuse during his childhood and recent relationship issues framing much of early Pumpkins), but damned if this album doesn't just do it for me anyway. I really like this album, maybe even more than I did in the 90s. It is intense and filled with agonized passion - it's raw and exposed and vulnerable and electric - both in subject matter and musical vibe. Like a lot of 90s alt-rock and grunge, the lyrics are poetic and often indecipherable, but it doesn't matter (to me). Breathy when it needs to be breathy, screaming earnestly at just the right peaks. James Iha's guitar (though apparently Corgan was super controlling in the studio and recorded everyone's parts himself) is alternatingly crunchy, soaring, soft - for some tracks they apparently layered and overdubbed the guitar parts dozens of times. Whatever that means, they get an amazing rich sound out of it. Pretty sure back in the day I put on my headphones and zoned out to this album like Mitch at the end of "Dazed and Confused." (This is not the album on this list that I would have expected to be the first to make me think of that top 5 of all-time movie, but I am sure it won't be the last.) The first half of the album is filled with gems, hitting a crescendo with "Disarm," brilliant and haunting with its orchestral build hinting at the softer direction for parts of "Mellon Collie." But they interweave hard-edged rage with soft emotional rawness seamlessly in numerous places, even better on "Siamese Dream" than on "Mellon Collie." Smashing Pumpkins stands out sonically from other early 90s alt-rock - it doesn't really fit with the Northwest grunge sound, doesn't fit with punk rock, doesn't fit with lo-fi shoegaze, Smashing Pumpkins really carved their own unique space.

👍
View Author
Tue Jul 06 2021
5

"Billy Corgan, Smashing Pumpkins." "Homer Simpson, nodding politely." This is the best album that Smashing Pumpkins made and one of the most iconic albums in alternative rock history and a relic of the 90s.

👍
View Author
Tue Jun 22 2021
5

This one held up really well. Just a great album. The composition, instrumentation, and lyrics are all on point. I know a lot of folks hate on Corgan's voice but it's never bothered me and it matches the lyrics and feel of these songs so well. Just really great.

👍
View Author
Tue Jan 03 2023
2

I just can't enjoy the monotonous sludge of distorted guitars and Corgan's petulant whine.

👍
View Author
Fri Oct 02 2020
5

"Today" is one of the greatest songs ever written and the rest of the album holds up around it

👍
View Author
Mon Jan 18 2021
5

Loved the guitar work - it seemed multi-layered and symphonic to some degree. Laidback and interesting music .

👍
View Author
Tue Jan 19 2021
4

I dig it. Heavily distorted, but not at the expense of good riffs and melodies. It's a bit long, but not overlong, and I think its length reflects the hazy/grunge musical style. Of course, I'm all-too-familiar with the tracks "Cherub Rock" and "Today," thanks to Guitar Hero. They hold up, and there are a number of other great songs here, too. I'm not sure if I'd heard a Smashing Pumpkins album before today, but this one makes the appeal perfectly clear. Favorite tracks: Cherub Rock, Today, Sweet Sweet Album art: I like it. Looks like the original was just the photo of these two girls, and a reissue added the purple filter and orange background. Both look good to me, but I think I prefer the purple and orange. Filtering and reissuing an album cover like that seems to be a recognition of classic status. 4/5

👍
View Author
Tue Jan 19 2021
2

This album makes me sad, there's some great, no amazing, melodies here and some really interesting ideas....but the execution is god-awful. I hate the lead singer's voice, I hate it with a passion. The man sounds like if Spongebob was doing a Kurt Cobain impersonation. It honestly hurts to listen to, it haunts my dreams, it's my waking nightmare. I don't know if I will ever find the words to properly describe my hatred of this man's singing. There's some beautiful songs here, but the fact that they're ruined so much makes this album even sadder to listen to. When I heard the opening lines of the first song my immediate freudean thought was "butt-rock" the singer sounds like he belongs in a shitty 3 doors down cover band. Overall I'm giving it 2 stars because the melodies are actually really good and the song progression and composition is interesting.

👍
View Author
Fri Dec 02 2022
5

I find it weird that so many people classify this as grunge or even part of the grunge movement. I think what the Pumpkins were doing here was so much more interesting and varied than a lot of their contemporaries in that space. Sonically, it's so good. You have deep, fat, layered guitars that smack you around the face (notably on tracks like Hummer and Mayonaise). The ridiculous amount of tracks mixed in give it such a robust, unique sound, with layers and layers and layers of guitars and noise. Jimmy Chamberlain is pummelling his drums like he hates them, and Billy is laying down some mad, squealing guitar solos on top. When this rocks, it really rocks hard, with a real depth and force to it. But then you have some beautiful and tender ballads thrown in, utilising violins, bells and all sorts, and some truly iconic songs sitting in there like Disarm. Lyrically there's so much to love here too. There's a lot of raw feeling, vulnerability and honesty. Billy really chucked himself out there, and the songs benefit from it. I get that a lot of people don't get on with his voice, but personally I love weird, interesting singers and it really works for me. There's so many different levels and riffs and interesting details running through this whole album. I just don't think other bands of the era had anywhere near this level of range. This is an absolutely superb, iconic album.

👍
View Author
Tue Feb 16 2021
5

Alternative classic, I enjoy the shit out of this one, peak 90s rock

👍
View Author
Mon Mar 15 2021
5

For me this album is their absolute high point - barely a step wrong in the entire album - brilliant stuff

👍
View Author
Tue May 11 2021
5

Glad i finally got around to listening to the whole thing. Great stuff

👍
View Author
Thu Oct 21 2021
5

OMG, this album used to mean so much to me. I've already played it to death, but here we go.

👍
View Author
Tue Feb 01 2022
5

The first album I've already heard!!! And I already know it's a 5/5 for me!!! Excited to relisten though!!! I adore the changes in pace and energy, the floaty instrumentals in the quieter bits are so dreamy and gorgeous, and the guitars in the louder bits are SO BLOODY GOOD!! Heck I forgot Silverfuck is almost 9min long, it just flies by (for me anyway) because it is so COOL I may be biased because this is an album I've been coming back to regularly since I was...15? There's a reason for that though

👍
View Author
Wed Feb 02 2022
5

Тудей из тзе грейтест

👍
View Author
Sat Mar 19 2022
5

If it weren’t for Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness, I’d say this is the best Smashing Pumpkins album. Still, it’s one of the best guitar and drum albums of all time.

👍
View Author
Mon Apr 25 2022
5

5.0 + My musical ground zero - the band and the record that ushered me full-force into rock music as a teen. I listened to this album more than any other, and can sing it all the way through. So many amazing moments here - from the guitar solo in "Cherub Rock", to the contemplative end of "Hummer", to the drumming on "Geek USA", to the trippy middle of "Silverfuck", to the gorgeous homage to shoegazer rock with "Mayonaise"...Confronting past demons head-on, believing in a better tomorrow and swirling with psychedelic color.

👍
View Author
Fri Jul 01 2022
5

This album is excellent. There is not a dull moment on it. It is meticulously crafted, every song sets up the next one perfectly. Every sound is perfectly realised. Billy Corgan pretty much claims the fuzz pedal for himself with this album. The sound he creates with it is thick, gritty but smooth, dense, and immersive but it is never overwhelming and is frequently punctured by beautiful, glassy clean strat-through-valve-amp tones. I first listened to this Album by renting it out from a library and ripping it onto my PC. I played it a lot in my youth. I bought a fuzz pedal pretty much because of this album. One of my favorite guitar pleasures is to play "Cherub Rock" through a cranked fuzz pedal, the feeling of power is immense and uplifting.

👍
View Author
Tue Oct 18 2022
5

I oscillate back and forth between which SP album I prefer - this or 'Mellon Collie'. For all of the latter's grandiosity, I consistently find myself concluding that 'Siamese Dream' is the more accomplished record. From the bone crunching opening chords of 'Cherub Rock', this album delivers again and again on every. single. track. The band moves seamlessly between the melodically tempered and the face-melting heavy, often on the same track (Soma and Silverfuck, I'm looking at you two). While Corgan is obviously the driving force on this album musically and lyrically (not to mention that quintessential whine of his that gave the SP such a unique sound), I'm never not blown away by Jimmy Chamberlin's work on the drums. In the spirit of the greats like Bonham or Moon, his percussion flows beautifully with the music itself. On an album that is so profoundly guitar-focused, it's a testament to Chamberlin's musicianship that his drumming stands out so. One of the great albums of the 90's. While the Smashing Pumpkins would go on to release many more albums, they could never quite top the artistic zenith they achieved on 'Siamese Dream' and its successor.

👍
View Author
Thu Dec 15 2022
5

To define the 90s, some were grasping at hard rock's ballads only to achieve a tacky fad, other tried replicating the original punk feel, almost border-lining on being parodic. The Smashing Pumpkins had a different approach. With fuzz guitars and soft spoken lyrics, they deliberately created an angst simulation machine. Rather than romanticizing the past in wailing verses or screaming at the top of your lungs to berate it, accept it since it's part of you after all. It's rare to find an album that rocks so hard without making you feel cathartic. Guess that's what they call alternative.

👍
View Author
Tue Jun 22 2021
4

Un album très sympa de la part de Radiohead

👍
View Author
Thu Mar 16 2023
4

The third early to mid nineties album I’ve gotten in a row is probably my favourite of the lot. Yes, this might be because all the cool music sounded like this when I was 12. Kinda sounds like if Phil Spector did a grunge album. But it seems like if Spector and Corgan made an album, not everyone would make it out alive.

👍
View Author
Wed Nov 08 2023
3

Some nice melodic ideas and good songs. I enjoyed it but thank God we progressed past phasing vocals to the nth degree. Little know fact about this album is that it was played in its entirety at the christening of Brian Blessed's second child.

👍
View Author
Tue Oct 05 2021
2

Oh my god, I hate Fuzz and this album is full of it. Very bad production as well. Vocals are pretty boring, but recognisible.

👍
View Author
Thu Jan 13 2022
2

It was ok, I found it a bit bland with nothing much to recommend it apart from the ones that I remember from back in the day, that were bangers when they came out (Today and Disarm).

👍
View Author
Sat Mar 19 2022
2

The odd nice song is not enough to lift the rest of this album enough for me.

👍
View Author
Sun Apr 03 2022
2

Best Song: Cherub Rock. This is the band at their most Smashing. A grungy, gritty groove that does a great job of kicking off the album. Worst Song: This is the band at their most Pumpkins. Corgan just absolutely squeezing out how he "used to be a little boy," sounding like he's trying to sing while someone fits him for a corset that's two sizes too small. Add that to the layered vocals when he sings against/with himself and it's all just too much. Overall: This album, like the other Smashing Pumpkins albums I've listened to, is bloated, self-indulgent, and rooted around a central sound whose appeal I just don't understand. There are better, realer, rawer grunge records out there. Your time is much better spent listening to any of them.

👍
View Author
Fri May 13 2022
2

I hate Smashing Pumpkins. I can't stand Billy's voice. It ruins otherwise pretty decent music. Good melodies, good driving rock guitar/drums/bass. I'm def a fan of Iha's tone. But damn if that voice doesn't sound like a 6 year old that needs his juice box NOW!

👍
View Author
Wed Sep 07 2022
2

It was very… ok? It honestly felt pretty dull, like a sepia-tone version of emo-punk like Taking Back Sunday. There were a couple stand-outs like Cherub Rock and Disarm, but I found the droning guitar and drowned-out vocals to be offputting.

👍
View Author
Mon Oct 03 2022
2

Smashing Pumpkins are hard for me to rate properly. They are a great rock group and they have some fantastic songs…but I just can’t stand Billy Corgan’s voice. If they had someone else sing it, it would be a 4 star album for me, maybe even a 5. But I just can’t stand it because his voice is so grating to me.

👍
View Author
Mon Nov 21 2022
2

I understand this is a classic band and “technically” a classic album but man it’s just not for me I guess. They do the “wall of sound” vibe really well and the guitar tones are great but just kinda the same throughout the whole record. I feel like this is the kind’ve music that’s more fun to play than to listen to. I was not enjoying the album until track six which I believe was disarm (I already knew that song) and that one was good and admittedly I did like the second half of the album more than the first. Geek USA was a standout. My ears just got so tired of it and I found myself tuning out a lot.

👍
View Author
Sun Jan 07 2024
2

a few catchy grooves. probably would sound better as a recording of a single electric guitar or two actually human beings playing instead of 100 Billy Corgans smushed together sounds absolutely like a cynical cash in. there's a My Bloody Valentine shimmer thing briefly that seems like a wink & nudge, but a completely uncharming one it's funny that one of the most overwrought groups sounds amateurish, not in execution but in style choices. it sounds like a bedroom album by somebody that hasn't learned to cut out tacky impulses yet. the shred solos are silly and don't always work. I like pieces of the music but won't make any excuses for this band music: hated. (⌐■_■)

👍
View Author
Sun Feb 18 2024
2

Sometimes, an album is ruined not by poor craftsmanship, but just the sheer overwhelming presence of ego. This is one of those albums. It's got some great songs, but they're completely overshadowed by Corrigan's ego and conceit.

👍
View Author
Mon Mar 11 2024
2

Probably the better album from the Pumpkins... but I still think they're very overrated, despite the rave reviews others seem to wax lyrical about them.

👍
View Author
Tue Dec 29 2020
5

12/28 Phenomenal album. This is the hard rock I'm looking for, smashing instrumentals across heavy lyrics, the artwork ties the knot. Standout Tracks: Cherub Rock, Hummer, Soma, Geek U.S.A., Silverfuck

👍
View Author
Sat Apr 03 2021
5

I loved this band back in the day, and for some reason fell out with them until I went back a few years ago. I know a lot of people don't like Corgan, and there's good reason for that, but this album rocks. Best track: Today

👍
View Author
Mon Oct 19 2020
5

Already listened loads. Classic

👍
View Author
Sun Nov 15 2020
5

Amazing album with so much great songs. Every song is about something that goes on in his mind , about struggles with his past and how because of these struggles he is still affected until today. this and some amazing work on the guitar makes this a classic 9.3/10

👍
View Author
Mon Feb 01 2021
5

Reminds me of being 16(ish) - really great album

👍
View Author
Mon Jan 25 2021
5

I already knew this album. Its great. Cherub rock, Today are classics. Some new ones I never listened to: Rocket, Disarm, Soma, Geek U.S.A.

👍
View Author
Wed Jun 09 2021
5

A beautiful masterpiece of alt-rock for the ages.

👍
View Author
Fri Jul 02 2021
5

Dearie me, mass regret on not listening to this whole album before now. What a cracker- perfect mix of all instruments and vocal

👍
View Author
Fri Jan 29 2021
5

Great album, love Smashing pumpkins

👍
View Author
Tue Feb 16 2021
5

mega top el album spaceboy y luna alv que rolones

👍
View Author
Tue Feb 02 2021
5

I'm excited for this one! I like what I know from Smashing Pumpkins and looking forward to hearing more. Cherub Rock is a great way to start an album. Loved this from start to finish.

👍
View Author
Thu Feb 25 2021
5

Prachtig! Van A tot Z goed. Hier en daar een tikje pathetisch, maar ach, dat was ik in de tijd ook.

👍
View Author
Thu Feb 25 2021
5

Ja, dit is een van mijn all time favorites en nu al een classic voor mij. Kan deze plaat moeiteloos van top tot teen luisteren. Geweldige rauwe sound en catchy nummers. En probs voor Billy die alles zelf inspeelde terwijl die andere bandleden hun neus aan het poederen waren

👍
View Author
Thu Feb 25 2021
5

Lang geleden, maar even briljant als toen ie net uitkwam.

👍
View Author
Thu Jul 22 2021
5

Classic album. The Pumpkins arrive as grunge/alt-rock lords. Sludgy guitars, huge riffs, feline vocals and gigantic drums. Great stuff. Best Tracks: Cherub Rock, Geek U.S.A., Mayonaise

👍
View Author
Thu Apr 08 2021
5

For me this album is their absolute high point - barely a step wrong in the entire album - brilliant stuff

👍
View Author
Sat Mar 20 2021
5

ES BUENÍSIMO se volvió uno de mis álbumes favoritos es un placer de escuchar

👍
View Author
Fri Apr 16 2021
5

JFC, I just listened to Smashing Pumpkins yesterday! This album is about 100 times better than that one. Somehow Corgan's voice works way better with these songs. They are harder hitting and are genuinely inspired. Especially, Cherub Rock which I love. But seriously, what kind of idiot thinks TWO smashing pumpkins alums need to be on a list of 1001 albums. They should have only included this one.

👍
View Author
Mon May 17 2021
5

Siamese Dream is a quintessential 90s album that stands the test of time.

👍
View Author
Wed May 26 2021
5

Today - First riff I ever played on guitar. The fuzzy harmonies of Cherub Rock's guitar.

👍
View Author
Mon Aug 16 2021
5

Such a great album. Cherub rock is an incredible opener that sets the rest up perfectly

👍
View Author
Tue Aug 17 2021
5

While, as others have pointed out, this album is less polished than melancholy, I find that to be a point in its favor. I like that’s it’s a little more raw, a little more rough around the edges. I love this album. I find Disarm to be hauntingly beautiful. All in all, this album is so quintessentially 90s and yet has so many levels it keeps me coming back.

👍
View Author
Tue Aug 17 2021
5

Gish was about to takeoff and was eclipsed by Nevermind and then Siamese Dream was released. The Pumpkins really took off with Infinite Sadness which was their most polished and seemed to give everything to everyone. The relevance of the Pumpkins lies in Gish and Siamese Dream, even Pisces Iscariot to an extent (Landslide cover rivals the original). Soft and suspenseful song opens turn to raucous distortion and loose chaos. Similar to Infinite Sadness, there is range and it's not all gnarled mayhem and anarchy on SD. While Billy Corgan seems like a monster, Sweet Sweet is beautiful; the intro to Mayonaise; beautiful, Soma; lovely even Rocket's song open calms with a wonderful distorted repeater riff. Musically, every song is evocative despite the lyrics. From the first track... the slow peppy build to furious excitement is incredible. However, if there's one thing that I dislike about this album it's the song Disarm. What a blugh downer song. It sounds like Eeyore wrote it. And then there's the lyric... I always thought the lyric was "cut that little child, SODOMY is such a part of you" uhhhh BUZZKILL - you can't put that word and 'child' in a song!! WTF? (... though today the lyrics read "...cut that little child, INSIDE OF ME and such a part of you"). I dunno, Billy Corgan has always seemed to be a tortured artist with a bullhorn that's never big enough. Regardless, I've got a lot of great memories tied to this album. It was on repeat for months when I moved out and was living downtown Richmond. I may have evolved some (not much) but to me, this album will always be relevant.

👍
View Author
Fri Aug 27 2021
5

A lot of TSP's songs sound very similar, so I typically don't realize just how many of them I really enjoy.

👍
View Author
Fri Sep 10 2021
5

Disarm is the song that made me discover Smashing Pumpkins. Love the fuzzy guitars

👍
View Author
Wed Sep 15 2021
5

Guitars are so sexy. But Billy is a little annoying.

👍
View Author
Sun Sep 26 2021
5

The alt rock album of the 90s. The musicianship on this album is incredible. I’m particularly a big fan of the lead guitar lines and Jimmy Chamberlin’s drumming. Furthermore, Billy Corgan has a gift for melody that cuts through the albums heaviest moments

👍
View Author
Mon Sep 27 2021
5

Big fan! Especially love Cherub Rock

👍
View Author
Tue Sep 28 2021
5

Great album - I knew the big hits, the ones with music videos, but the stuff deeper into the album is great as well. Geek USA got my 10 year old headbanging.

👍
View Author
Sat Nov 06 2021
5

That feeling of nineties nostalgia. Brilliant album from start to finish.

👍
View Author
Sat Nov 06 2021
5

I always choose for Gish and had not listened to this album fo many years. Never expected at the time that the Pumpkins would become so big. I thought they would reach a status like The Pixies or Sonic Youth but they went stadium-style starting with this album, without making any concessions to their music. OK, the production is more radio-friendly than Gish. But that's a big plus: this is one of the best-produced albums ever, the guitars on this album sounded great and they still do! And the songs are great too - unlike the OK Computer album from a few days ago, there is no single weak song on it. The lyrics are mwah but at least they are not annoying like on The Downward Spiral, so fine.

👍
View Author
Sat Nov 06 2021
5

5+, great sound, great memories, great album. Still play it from time to time

👍
View Author
Mon Nov 22 2021
5

Awesome album I have listened to it before but would listen to it over and over. This is my kind of music so it was a good start to this journey!

👍
View Author
Tue Nov 23 2021
5

Absolute classic 90s alt album. Lyrically deep and musically dense. I love how layered it is. You can really hear the MBV influence.

👍
View Author
Mon Nov 29 2021
5

This is an absolute monster of an album. “Today” is such a beautiful, tragic song. Peak Corgan sad boi brilliance. The whole thing is a solid listen all the way through, love it!

👍
View Author
Wed Dec 01 2021
5

Yup. It’s a great rock album.

👍
View Author
Sun Dec 05 2021
5

Great album, flows really well, numerous great songs, "Today" probably my favourite. I would definitely add to my physical music collection.

👍
View Author
Fri Dec 10 2021
5

Just the kind of 90's I like to run into

👍
View Author
Sat Dec 11 2021
5

This album is a solid grunge album I want to listen to it again

👍
View Author
Fri Dec 24 2021
5

I had not heard the whole thing before, but I recognize a lot of the songs. I enjoyed it

👍
View Author
Fri Dec 31 2021
5

This is just a great album through and through. The big hits (Today, Disarm) are great and the non-singles are just as good if not better. Mayonnaise is just amazing, but even better if you're in a brooding state of mind. Some of the songs might not quite be 5 star level, but the ones that are more than make up for it.

👍
View Author
Thu Jan 06 2022
5

A classic, great melodies, 4.5 /5

👍
View Author
Sun Jan 09 2022
5

веш машина звуцци врррррр

👍
View Author
Mon Jan 10 2022
5

The first album I ever bought myself was not this one, but it was Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. This is a great flashback.

👍
View Author
Tue Jan 18 2022
5

A masterpiece. Beautiful, heartfelt music.

👍
View Author
Wed Jan 19 2022
5

5 This album brings me a tone of dream to memories that became raw by the way sometimes our actions decay in something less ideal and more true, but it still invites me to try and rediscover the dream, the emotions, the simple actions, what lasts and that's always a glimpse of what it is. The album reminds me people I like, and how "Soma" felt lovely and surprised me when I first listened to the song on the radio long years ago, driving home in a silent tired sleepy peaceful night.

👍
View Author
Tue Jan 25 2022
5

The best album of the 1990s.

👍
Load more reviews