The first CD I ever personally bought was The Smashing Pumpkin's 'Melloncoly and the Infinite Sadness'. (Actually it was Barenaked Ladies 'Gordon' but we'll pretend i was a cool kid for now) Well, it wasn't the first CD I bought, it was the first CD i loved. Billy Corgan's voice could go from melodic to angry in less then 10 seconds and 2 chords. Well, I personally was crushed when they broke up in 2000 and I realized a part of my childhood went with them.

I heard about Zwan in spring of 2001, and heard that Billy was interested in starting a new band called 'Zwan'. At first sight, I was alittle anxious of what it would sound like, seeing that the previous albums 'Adore' and 'Machine' were both respectable albums, but alittle too dark, too progressive, and too hidden in their meanings. My personal favorite time of the Smashing Pumpkins had been their earlier work with 'Gish', 'Siamese Dream' and 'Melloncoly...'.

Well, after listening to 'Mary...' I was more then happy to hear the 'return to form' of sorts that has happened to Billy Corgan. With his maturing age, the singer has seemed to find a more spiritual sense to his music, with the majority of the songs being slower tempo and lyrics that are more universal, and some of the more beautiful love songs he's written throughout his career.

'Mary Star of the Sea' may not be a classic album, but it is a really good album. One of the best Corgan has put out, along with ex-Pumpkin Jimmy Chamberlain. 'Honestly' is a great song that reminds listeners of the psychedelia and dream pop the pumpkins mastered in the early 90's. Much like the Red Hot Chili Peppers last year, Billy Corgan has redefined his sound, and taken the more mature more melodic approach. The only diference, is Corgan had this same approach, except in 1993.