The first time you gaze upon the cover of Zwan’s debut album, Mary Star of the Sea, you can’t help but think that Billy Corgan has finally lost his mind.
After all, we’re used to seeing Corgan dressed in floor-length black robes and singing angsty, hitmaking lyrics like, ‘Despite all my rage/ I am still just a rat in a cage.’ But then you check out the Zwan cover, Corgan’s first post-Smashing Pumpkins effort, and you’re greeted by a collage of psychedelic rainbows along with song titles like ‘Baby Let’s Rock!’ and the even more direct ‘Yeah!’
Has Corgan abandoned his semi-goth icon status for something filled with more sunshine? Well, yes, he hasand the results are far grander than the bad acid trip that the Mary cover suggests lies within.
The Zwan album is more ‘1979’ than ‘Bullet with Butterfly Wings.’ It is upbeat, dreamy, catchy and mostly devoid of the indiscernible grunge guitar mush that signified the Pumpkins’ sound. There are even hints ofdare I sayshiny, happy, jangling guitars! This could be the result of Corgan maturing into a post-rock sound, but it could also be the influence of Zwan’s other guitaristsindie rock icon David Pajo (Slint, Tortoise) and Chicago axe hero Matt Sweeney (Chavez).
The album’s opener, ‘Lyric,’ lets you know what’s in store. The melody is playful and fun, and the uplifting chorus is enhanced by the backing vocals of Paz Lenchantin (of A Perfect Circle), who fills the manly-looking bassist void left by the Pumpkins’ D’Arcy.
Next comes the shocking ‘Settle Down’shocking because no one has ever heard Corgan try so hard to sing. He belts out, ‘Cuz seven years/ Seven days/ And seven hours/ I took my chances, Yeah!’ with so much soul that you’ll think the ghost of Marvin Gaye has possessed Corgan’s shiny-top head.
Mary Star of the Sea rolls on from there, with the modern-rock radio anthem sound of ‘Declarations of Faith’ and the lovey-doveyness of ‘Honestly,’ the album’s current single.
The album is true rock ‘n’ roll, a mix of ballads and power chords that gives subtle nods to psych and prog rockconsider the droney 14-minute epic, ‘Jesus, I/ Mary Star of the Sea.’ If Zwan were around in the mid ’70’s, their guitar solos would be billowing out of Madison Square Garden as they opened for ELO and Yes. Billy Corgan has never had trouble combining critical and commercial success, and Zwan follows that yellow brick road perfectly.