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Evaluating the Teargarden Part 1: A Song For A Son

Well, its finally here. After months of speculation and some not insignificant delays on the band's end, the opening salvo from Billy Corgan's massive 44-song project has been launched. You can grab it at the band's (suddenly barebones and ugly) official site or scroll down to the bottom of this post to download it for yourself. As I mentioned before, the price tag of "FREE" was just about right after the disappointing Zeitgeist and the embarrassing "20th Anniversary Tour" fiasco (more about that here), so I was willing to give this another shot. So, as Teargarden by Kaleidyscope (ugh that name) gets unveiled over the next 44 months (or however long it actually takes for these to be released), I figured it might be interesting for me to rate the songs and discuss them as they roll out. I plan to rate each song using the 10.0 Pitchfork scale. Away we go...

EP #1, Track #1: "A Song For A Son"
Right off the bat I have to say I love the epic feel of this, seems like a great way to set the stage for this kind of massive project. The piano intro worked well for Mellon Collie and certainly leads into things well this time around. Billy vocals start off front and center, but thankfully they don't completely overwhelm the proceedings once the guitars kick in and we move towards the meat of the song. I've given this a good fifteen spins so far and I keep coming back to the killer guitar solo as my favorite bit, particularly the way the solo actually seems to contain a solo of its own (or is that just a guitar solo introducing another guitar solo?). I've always loved it when Billy goes off on the guitar (he's frequently underrated in that department) and this song is no exception. The song's other strong point is the production, which gives "A Song for A Son" exactly the kind of 1970s classic rock treatment it was screaming out for. I hear Cream, I hear "Stairway to Heaven", and I think in this case neither is a bad thing. Lyrically its a little bit more of a mixed bag. Corgan hits on some of his previous themes (daddy issues, being lost) with typically angst-ridden lyrics, "for the tailor who stitched up my heart", but these certainly aren't among his most engaging. Still, a fitting air of sadness permeates. The most disappointing part of the song is the drumming. Obviously newcomer Mike Byrne had some intimidating shoes to fill left by Jimmy Chamberlain and I wasn't expecting fireworks, but this is a disappointingly standard performance. He keeps the song moving forward, but lacks the punch and sparkle that made Jimmy such a perfect foil for Corgan. There's still time to improve, but this isn't a strong indicator of greatness. Beyond that, few complaints. It is already a huge step up from the majority of Zeitgeist and sets the tone for what has the potential to be a thrilling album. Will this level of quality hold up? Is this truly "one of many more to come"? Time will tell.

Rating: 7.9/10.0