By T. J. It’s time to rejoice. The GRAMMY® Award winning The Smashing Pumpkins are back and will be returning with a new album this November. That’s right, founding members Billy Corgan, James Iha, and Jimmy Chamberlin along with guitarist Jeff Schroeder have just revealed plans on the release of their new album, CYR. CYR will be a double album and it will be released on November 27th via Sumerian Records. CYR is the follow up to the band’s 2018 release, Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol.1 / LP: No Past, No Future, No Sun, which was produced by Rick Rubin. The album is set to contain 20 tracks of new Pumpkin material that is reputed to be some of the best work they’ve done yet. Already the title track, “Cyr”, which is also their newest single as of this writing is burning up the YouTube screens with over 1,300,000 views since its release. It was the number one added song on Alternative Radio during its first week of release. This release follows the release of another song from the album, “The Colour Of Love.” This will be the band’s eleventh studio album. The new album was recorded and produced in Chicago by Billy Corgan and it’s great to see also that the band’s current lineup is still intact. Founding members Billy Corgan, James Iha, and Jimmy Chamberlin are all back. Second guitarist Jeff Schroeder is also back. Jeff has been with the band since 2007. There were a couple of shakeups in their career, but the band has been solidified with this lineup as of 2007. With the release of “Cyr” and “The Colour Of Love,” the band is being showered with accolades and praise. Variety applauded the songs for remaining “rooted in the now,” and for “effortlessly taking their place alongside a catalog of cherished Smashing Pumpkins classics.” Billboard exclaimed “The Smashing Pumpkins are getting ready to smash it up once more.” The video for the synth-loaded song “Cyr” was co-directed by Billy Corgan and Linda Strawberry. It really is quite a departure from the band’s traditional sound, but it is definitely quite interesting. Who knows what the rest of the album might sound like… The avant-garde video was filmed in Chicago and Los Angeles while the band was in quarantine. Linda Strawberry stated that, “This is a Goth fever dream of pent up emotion — an artistic visual release attempting to create a momentary escape from the emotional black cloud hanging over all of us this year.” Billy Corgan adds “Cyr is a 58
The Smashing Pumpkins Return With Their New Double Album, Titled ‘CYR’ dystopic folly, one soul against the world sort of stuff, set against a backdrop of shifting loyalties and sped up time. To me it stands as both hopeful and dismissive of what is and isn’t possible with fate. With the release of their prior album, the 2018 release, Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol.1 / LP: No Past, No Future, No Sun, The Smashing Pumpkins toured the United States selling out arenas including The Forum, United Center, Madison Square Garden among others. So far touring on this album is rumored to be starting late next year. The band has announced that they will be performing at a couple of upcoming festivals next year. These include Riot Fest in Chicago, which takes place on September 17 – 19, 2021 and the Sea.Hear.Now Festival in Asbury Park, NJ, which takes place September 18 – 19, 2021. For more information and tickets, go to: www.smashingpumpkins.com. No doubt this album will be going multi-platinum upon release. So far the band has amassed sales of over 30 million albums. Since the band’s release of their first album, Gish, in 1991, the band has become an incredible success. Their 1993 album, Siamese Dream has
Rock and Blues International • October 2020
gone 4x multi-platinum, and was followed by the 10x-platinum release, Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Every one of their albums has been met with incredible success. To date, the band has racked up an impressive amount of awards. 1996 brought them the award for Best Rock at the MTV Europe Music Awards. The same year they also won the MTV Music Video Award for their video, “Tonight, Tonight.” This encompassed a clean sweep for Video of The Year, Breakthrough Video, Best Direction, Best Visual Effects, Best Art Direction, and Best Cinematography. Not Bad!!! The following year was equally as good for them as they won the American Music Awards for Best Alternative Artist. The band is certainly no stranger to the GRAMMY® Awards either, as they racked up an award in 1997 for Best Hard Rock Performance for “Bullet with Butterfly Wings,” followed by 1998’s GRAMMY® for Best Hard Rock Performance again for their song, “The End is the Beginning is the End.” Be sure to look for CYR this November 27th. In the meantime, check out the video for “Cyr” on YouTube. I think you’ll find it very interesting and entertaining.
