Jimmy Chamberlin Complex - Life Begins Again
by
Sarah
June 2005
I was wearing a metallic purple blouse and walking out the door to my
sweet-ass job at the local library when the call came. Jimmy
Chamberlin, drummer of the Smashing Pumpkins, had been booted from the
band. My best friend Chris broke the news to me on a Saturday afternoon
in July of 1996. I was 17.
Days before, I had seen The Pumpkins live at the Palace of Auburn Hills
in Michigan. It was the most kick-ass concert I had seen so far. It was
one of Jimmy's last before all that heroin bullshit came to a head,
culminating in the death of keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin.
Heading to work and scouring the then-new "Internet," I read press
releases and quotes from the band. I wondered if I would remember that
day forever.
Apparently, I would.
But Jimmy was the drummer - he was replacable...right?
Ha. What did I know at 17? I was so wrong.
In April of 2000, I saw The Pumpkins again, on the Machina tour. Jimmy
was back. I couldn't help but smile as he and Billy Corgan eyed each
other - winking, laughing, pointing. Chamberlin, clean and sober and
drumming more passionately than ever, was irreplacable. Older and
wiser, I realized how intricately each piece of a band fits together.
Few drummers make a noticeable statement in their music like Chamberlin
does. With the help of several talented musician friends (including
Corgan), Chamberlin is the one drummer who can successfully pull off
naming a band after himself, and actually make a decent CD.
With rolling drums and echoing guitar, the disc is dreamlike, almost
like a polished jam session. There is little singing (Corgan's help on
"Loki Cat" is definitely the disc's vocal highlight), but the music
itself is a relaxing and pleasurable stroll through alt-rock's current
state.
This disc isn't really about being "good" or "bad" - it's about music. I
have to admit, at points while listening, I was transported back to my
ex-boyfriend's basement, listening to his band practice as he winked at
me from within a dome of sound. But thinking about that just reminded
me of the winks between Billy and Jimmy in that spring of 2000, and
listening to Chamberlin's notable skills made the disc worth the listen.
Greatest CD ever? No. But it didn't make me cringe or scowl or want
to vomit. The work is respectable. Chamberlin is a drummer who made a
band. If you expect more than the obvious from that, don't spin the
disc.
www.jimmychamberlincomplex.com
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