Albums to watch

Monuments To An Elegy

The Smashing Pumpkins

Monuments To An Elegy

Ninth studio album from the Chicago alt.rock band and features Mötley Crüe's Tommy Lee on drums

ADM rating[?]

6.6

Label
BMG
UK Release date
08/12/2014
US Release date
09/12/2014
  1. 8.0 |   DIY

    It’s an accomplished rock record that’s a very welcome addition to the band’s enduring history
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  2. 8.0 |   Evening Standard

    Perhaps his new collaborator, Mötley Crüe drummer Tommy Lee, has toughened him — but the Pumpkins’ 10th album finds the dome-headed savant on his best form for an aeon
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  3. 8.0 |   All Music

    For an artist who has fervently believed more is indeed more, this restraint is thoroughly appealing and helps showcase his craft in surprising - and, yes, sometimes dazzling - ways
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  4. 8.0 |   FasterLouder

    A lack of excess and musical procrastination are it’s selling points, coupled with effortless song craft and a spirit akin to a reawakening and realisation of where his artistic strengths lie
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  5. 8.0 |   Uncut

    Back to psychedelic hard-rock form, with Tommy Lee on drums. Print edition only

  6. 7.9 |   Paste Magazine

    For as much as Oceania felt like a heavy return to form, Monuments is familiar in the sense that Corgan’s taking a thoughtful swing in a new direction
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  7. 7.0 |   The Quietus

    Everything is here to serve the songs, and those songs are not bad at all
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  8. 7.0 |   Beardfood

    It's a welcome return rather than a grab for past glory
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  9. 7.0 |   NME

    Essentially a Corgan solo record which shows flashes of his old power, while also straying into some seriously dodgy attempts to update the Pumpkins sound for 2014
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  10. 6.7 |   A.V. Club

    While Monuments To An Elegy is certainly a solid release, in the end, it’s most enjoyable when approached with managed expectations
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  11. 6.7 |   Consequence Of Sound

    While not as sweeping as its predecessor, the album is just as emphatic and far more emotional
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  12. 6.5 |   Under The Radar

    For The Smashing Pumpkins' third act, Corgan has finally unveiled the album he should have made 15 years ago
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  13. 6.0 |   Drowned In Sound

    The Smashing Pumpkins is a cool, modest indie-rock project from Nineties musician Billy Corgan and actually – and in spite of what’s been lost – that’s kind of nice
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  14. 6.0 |   Spin

    Mostly, Monuments is '90s-indebted for its surprisingly humble notion that a collection of new wave-influenced, relatively unambitious alt-rock songs can be a commercially viable thing for a name-brand rock group
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  15. 6.0 |   Q

    Rock's ultimate malcontent finally seems satisfied with his place in the world. Print edition only

  16. 6.0 |   Mojo

    Finds Corgan retreating to the safety of the classic Pumpkins sound. Print edition only

  17. 6.0 |   The Guardian

    Lashings of alt-rock guitars and subtle classic rock references abound, although there are lovely tinkly keyboards on Tiberius and Being Beige chugs along on a drum machine
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  18. 6.0 |   The Observer

    This 10th studio effort is easily Corgan’s greatest hit for some time
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  19. 6.0 |   Pitchfork

    Ultimately nowhere near as rewarding as his best work because it took no risks
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  20. 6.0 |   Rolling Stone

    Corgan's characteristically acidic vocals make sure that songs like the New Wave-y "Dorian," the Killers-ish "Run2Me" and the cloying "Anti-Hero" are as much Pumpkins as they are pop
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  21. 6.0 |   God Is In The TV

    A missed opportunity and an unspectacular placeholder at best.
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  22. 5.0 |   The Music

    Even if Monument... is part of the ongoing piece of music that is his best material in over a decade, it doesn’t save it from being ultimately meandering, generic and a shadow of former wonder
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  23. 5.0 |   Clash

    It’s the ninth studio album to bear the Pumpkins brand, and probably the seventh that wouldn’t find a single track making most fans’ side-of-a-C90 best-of
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The Smashing Pumpkins: Monuments To An Elegy

  • Download full album for just £8.49
  • 1. Tiberius £0.99
  • 2. Being Beige £0.99
  • 3. Anaise! £0.99
  • 4. One and All £0.99
  • 5. Run2me £0.99
  • 6. Drum + Fife £0.99
  • 7. Monuments £0.99
  • 8. Dorian £0.99
  • 9. Anti-Hero £0.99
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