Imagine an alternate reality where, back in the early 1990s, it was the Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan and not Nirvana's Kurt Cobain who spearheaded the alternative-rock revolution and became the voice of his generation. Surely, this fantasy has crossed Corgan's mind more than once over the years.
Rivals Corgan and Cobain both led underground rock bands that were initially marginalized at that time. This era was a time of dissatisfaction in the rock universe when the music was largely eclipsed by the rise of hip-hop's golden age and overrun with peppy boy-band sensations and unsavory hair metal. Those few preserving artists and devoted fans seeking guitar-streaked salvation fragmented into a myriad of subgenres, operating like guerrillas hunkered down in a hostile, pop-music jungle. They were just waiting for an opportunity to upend the system. As Corgan himself has modestly said, Nirvana ultimately beat the Pumpkins to the punch.
Nearly 20 years later, indie-rockers Silversun Pickups are trying to usher in a sonic world where Corgan had been quicker on the draw. The band's music is symbolic of what might have been, their anachronistic songs relive those days of slick, fuzzed-out guitar tones stapled to lush pop melodies. Regardless, the group, a four-piece hailing from Los Angeles' bohemian Silverlake District, has picked up the legacy of the Pumpkins and like-minded contemporaries, aiming to craft a reality where Corgan's influence reigns supreme. The Silversun Pickups' new record, "Swoon," seeks to capitalize on their retro sound as well as the blogosphere stirrings in the band's favor and vault the group to the next level.
The Pickups might share Corgan's taste, but they don't have his career ambition. Their musical mindset is as history conscious as a folk singer's. And while comparisons between the Pickups' velvet-y guitar music and those of the '90s shoegazer bands have likely become a thorny issue for the young group, there's no mistaking the imprint that the early Pumpkins, My Bloody Valentine and Ride record have left on these musicians.
"I know you've heard it before/But then it wasn't enough," vocalist-guitarist Brian Aubert coolly sings on new song "Substitution," and his band's brief discography embodies this guiding philosophy. The passage of time has surely worked in the group's favor. Listeners are far enough removed from "Loveless" and "Siamese Dream" to hear the Pickups' as refreshing. Call it the White Stripes Effect.
To continue the comparisons, "Swoon" isn't the landmark record or the dreamt-of breakthrough the band or its support network might have hoped for. However, it should keep fans and newbies interested in this group for now. Like Snow Patrol or Keane, the Pickup's manner of attack is always changing and some tracks have particularly surprising hooks. Drenched as these songs are in '90s sounds, it's how these cherry-picked influences coalesce together which helps make some of these songs particularly entrancing -- from the Stereolab-esque vocal treatments to the song titles that recall Paul Westerberg's grouchy lyrical puns to the U2-ish, echo-filled guitar breaks. These songs sound good, but there's not much to chew on.
The Pickups' tunes are dominated by frontman Aubert and vocalist-bassist Nikki Monninger. While Aubert's guitar defines much of their sound song by song, the pair's nearly Siamese vocal personalities have the ability to give each track an identity. Both share vocal chores, as well as a similar gender-neutral timbre and glazed production treatment, so that it's often tough to distinguish him from her. Their deep, soothing voices have only two real emotions they attempt to convey: seduction and rage. The pair hisses along with each crushing guitar riff, blunting the edge slightly so as to draw listeners deeper into these plush, highly controlled soundscapes. When they seek to express more aggressive feelings, they momentarily call out, but quickly fade back into each track's rumble of warm buzzing. In the underlying battle between emotional truth and songwriting savvy, honing killer hooks appears to win out on "Swoon."
The album's heaviest songs are typically their strongest efforts out of the box. Opening track "There's No Secrets This Year" signals the beginning point for the band. The rich guitar grumbling and overly furious drumming demonstrate this group is a bunch of Pumpkins acolytes, but a melodic bass harmony part harkens back to Sonic Youth and a little chorus flourish pinched from Beck's symphonic-folk period prove these guys have multiple influences and really want to be more than just copycats.
As previously mentioned, the lyrical content of "Substitution" might easily play into the growing perception of the group's modus operandi, but the cut's stripped-back sound belies this. A sharp drumbeat and strikingly-plain guitar chords signal early on that this song was likely initially conceived as a single at first. It amps up the guitar volume when chorus time rolls around. While uncharacteristic of the album as a whole, "Substitution" does help expand the Pickups' range. The same holds true for the headstrong "The Royal We," which draws on the angular, locomotive guitar rhythms of Snow Patrol more than the '90s antecedents and shares a similar gift for hooks.
But, not all the Pickups' songs set out to just rock out. "Growing Old Is Getting Old" is more meditative and almost ballad-like. It's anchored by a Rick James bassline and very soft, galloping guitar riffs that whisper around the synthetic funk rhythm. Aubert (or is that Monninger?) sings each line with syrup-drenched frustration. What begins as a mood piece ultimately turns darker during the song's later third. His/her world-weariness slowly become subsumed with thunderous rock, as those riffs balloon into distorted, Edge-like guitar salvos.
Despite the hints at variety and their deep knowledge of their favorite artists' songbook, "Swoon" is a record that comes up lacking because it merely reminds listeners of the seminal records of a particular time, but doesn't do enough to displace them. As pleasing as many of these songs are, none of them are capable of sparking a revised return to yesterday.
The Silversun Pickups worship dutifully at a Billy Corgan altar, but they share an unfortunate trait with their god. As history has proven, reheating the Pumpkins formula isn't likely to resurrect what might have been.
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