being from chicago, i had a bit of a headstart. my older cousins had gish, which i would sneak into their bedrooms to listen to at age 10ish. i liked the song tristessa mainly for the name, hehe. mine was theresa and i thought tristessa sounded so much prettier. i also loved the heavy psychedelic sounds of that album.

as i became a teenager, i was able to relate to the lyrics and listen to the poetry in them. i've always loved their longer, epic songs which take you on a journey. i loved how hard the pumpkins could rock, how beautifully gentle they could sound, how they did just what they wanted, whether or not it was trendy, and it always sounded awesome. i defended billy corgan's singing to my friends. i've never been a fan of the crooners; i'm a fan of emotion in singing. i am frequently blown away by the level of musicianship/songwriting.

what other band would have a philosophy forum on their official website [not that they do now.. hint, hint] where people could discuss the deeper issues in life? and from this forum, my husband and i met, discussing god, religion, our philosophical viewpoints. and we found the one person we were meant to be with. i travelled to england to meet him, he travelled to chicago to visit me, etc., which continued for one painful, sad, beatiful year and a half before i moved here with him. i have a lot of memories wrapped around the smashing pumpkins, both good and bad.

i'm a fan because they make some great tunes, and manage to change people's lives/perspectives at the same time.

Song Title: wound
Artist: the smashing pumpkins [not that i actually have a favorite.. but this one is beautiful]