“I used to be a little boy…”

Lee Crossley Melbourne Victoria, AU

13 years old. Country town in outback Australia, population 900. Older brother returns for uni break with double CD, one disc blue, the other pink. Insert blue. Piano intro. Hooked. Segue to ‘Tonight,Tonight’. Banger after banger. My first taste of SP leads to Siamese Dream, still my fave album to this day. I’ve been down many YouTube rabbit holes but always end up at the same place: Full Concert 4/27/94, Fillmore Auditorium. Play it loud, close my eyes and let the memories flood back: “I used to be a little boy…” 

Tonight, tonight

Javier ES

I bought MCIS album an autumn afternoon. That very night I kissed the girl I was in love with (kind of deep infatuation. So lyrics of tonight,tonight were always linked to that moment. The sound and atmosphere of mcis always bring me memories of that stage of my life.

The album of my life

Victoria ES

I was at high school struggling to fit, daydreaming like every other teenager in the 90s when your music found me. I discovered who I was, but more importantly, who I wanted to be. It also influenced my career choice (I’m an English Philologist) I learned so much English with your outstanding lyrics. I’m happy to say your music it’s part of who I am and SP will accompany me till the end of my days. MCIS for me is “ THE DOUBLE ALBUM” of the 90s. It’s just perfection. Such an accomplishment as musicians. Been present in many important and pivotal moments of my life. On a lighter note, I bought a very expensive acoustic guitar just to play your tunes and sing along at home. I tried to learn how to play Tonite Reprise during lockdown. It helped with anxiety. It still does. By the way, I recently got a tattoo of Méliès moon, which in part was also an homage to that sacred album. I will never thank you enough ♥️

Love

Luis Lisboa, PT

Well I had a crush on a beautiful girl from my Arts class. One day she asked me to hear something on her Discman and it started like this: “The world is a vampire”

Long story short, I didn’t get the girl but from that day on I found my favourite band, you guys.

With you I laughed and I cried, I loved and I hated, I resignated and I rebelled. With you and your songs I live and I inspire myself. 

And that’s why, without any doubt, for me MCIS is the best album of all times.

Thank you Billy, James, Jimmy and D’Arcy for your art!

25 years later the world is still a vampire…but Tonight, Tonight…we are not Zero’s…we live In the Arms of Sleep…and Thru the Eyes of Ruby…and By Starlight…hearing the gentle flight of the Cupid de Locke…we Love…until the moon says Farewell and Goodnight.

It’s Still The Greatest Album Ever

Brian Lexington, MA, US

In college, whilst travelling to Track & Field meets, would have “ritual” of listening to the entire album on the ride to get “pumped up”.

Infinite sadness

Carl Stockholm, SE

The first time I properly listened to MCIS was on the night of my grandfathers funeral. I had bought the record on vinyl just a few days earlier, but never really properly listened to SP before so i didn’t really know what to expect. I sat that entire night just listening to MCIS, over and over again, and it really helped in soothing me in that moment of grief. Your music managed to turn a horrible moment of my life into something that I will cherish and remember for the rest of my life, and I cannot thank you enough for that. 

Shakedown 2009

Marco Beirut, LB

I think it was 2009 or 2010. We used to have Guitar Hero & Singstar on our consoles and my brothers and I played them to death at the time. Strangely, two songs stuck with me over the years: Today and 1979.  These songs were different but they pulled me in anytime I play them. Several years later, Mellon Collie is now one of my favorites and influential albums in my life. The variety, structures, and emotions in these 28 songs amazed me, giving me a sense of nostalgia for innocent youth and a big catharsis. I’ll cherish these songs and this album as long as I can. I’m patiently for my Vinyl copy soon.

The Summer if Kott’s

Nathaniel Hornblower Jr. US

Summer of 96, between 8th grade and Freshman, year I went on a double date to Knott’s Berry Farm. For a short time there was a two story cafeteria called Air Headz? They had big screens always playing current music videos and this album’s videos were constantly played. Tonight, Tonight especially brings fond memories of that moment time. Best summer of my life. I’m such a nerd.

Cousin Bobby and the Life Changing Advice.

Kyle Turlock, US

My older cousin Bobby who was the coolest dude I knew told me that this should be my first cd. I was 8 in 97 and I went to my local record store and bought the last copy available. Listened to it over 100 times just so I could tell Bobby how much I loved it: I’ve since lost and bought it three more times.

I was 15 and it was my first Big Rock Show!

Craig Smith Cobblebank, AU

I was 15 and it was my first Big Rock Show!
March 8, 1996, 1 had general admin tickets, with a couple of highschool friends, i couldn’t tell you who the support acts were, what i can tell you about is the showmanship, the way Billy played with the crowd, the excitement hearing the Melon Collie track start, the explosiveness of Jimmy’s drums kicking into Tonight, Tonight.

The crowd was like one, together, in unison. The 3 encore’s played with Billy trying to sneak back onto stage and getting caught out, well he was wearing silver pants!

It was also the moment i fell in love with ‘Mayonaise’, a love that still stands today…

Thank you guys and girls, for bringing this show to Melbourne, Australia all those years ago, you definitely changed this guy forever

Captured Adolescence

Shawn US

MCIS was released mere weeks after my 13th birthday. It epitomized absolutely everything it was to be a sensitive teenager growing up in rural USA during the 90s. The sweet octave twinklings of the title track launched into the most uplifting, orchestral ballad I’d ever heard. “God, I have my whole life ahead of me” I remember thinking.

Lyrical Notes

Michael Brooklyn Park, AU

In 1996 my friends and I would pass notes during chapel in high school with semi-completed lyrics from MCIS so others could complete them. It was a great distraction! So much love for that album.. 

Porcelina of the Vast Ceiling

Walter Fowler Orem, UT, US

At my junior high, the ninth grade studio art students had the opportunity to paint a ceiling tile with whatever they wanted. After being introduced to SP the summer before, I decided to immortalize the MCIS cover, because in my eyes it felt genuine, unique, and reflected an interest of mine. It’s nowhere near perfect, but the passion I felt was the only thing that mattered in the moment. I’ve since moved away, but I know that a part of me and SP will always be there in the ceiling to be seen and hopefully listened to by other junior high students in need of a phenomenal album. 

MCIS alternative album cover

Abdul Wahid Lahore, PK

So im a young Pumpkins fan that got into them recently (this year so as to speak) and fell in love with them almost immediately. After listening to the mainstream SP music i decided to dig deeper and found Mellon Collie and The Infinite Sadness, and got hooked to it. Listen to it everyday since then. 

I decided to make this fanart one day while listening to 1979, after reading a Youtube comment that said the artstyle for MCIS looked familiar to Victorian style art. I hope you all love it 

Like smoke

Bryan Kannapolis NC, US

This album help me come to grips with the loss of my grandmother, whom I was very close to, the death of my own band, and the new journey I found myself in to find God

Escape from reality

Vanessa Oshawa, Ontario, CA

When I was around 8-9 my family was going through a lot of crazy shit and I used to hang out with my neighbour 24/7 to get away from it. We listened to this album front to back so many times and played Mario kart. Today I’m 33 (👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻) still listen to SP albums when I just need to chill out or scream/sing!

Beautiful, you’re beautiful forever!

Leila Salvador Curitiba-Parana, BR

I have a truly MCIS history. It was about 23 years ago when I was listening Beautiful over and over again, when I heard a car brake and unfortunately it was
my dog named Pretinha 🐶! she was run over… she died in my arms 😭 and since then I’ve never been able to listened this song again… I can sing the entire song in my head but I don’t have the courage to play it again!
I love ❤ this amazing album and I have lots of good memories too, thanks for everything! Love you Billy! 

First album to leave a permanent mark

Thomas BOIVIN Bathernay, FR

At the age of 14, I wasn’t that much interested in music yet before listening to MCIS. My brother bought the tape. The three first tracks were the most surprising sequence of songs I ever came across until then. The rest is history.

Sadness

Zachary Seabrook, tx, US

So when I was younger, about 13, I struggled hard with depression but didn’t know what I was dealing with at the time. I felt so unbelievably sad and alone. To fit in I listened to Slipknot, Korn, Limp Bizkit, even though the music never really spoke to me. One day my mom took me to the mall, probably trying to get me out of my funk and I spent my allowance money on a double CD of a band I didn’t know much about. It changed my life. I fell in love with the haunting, beautiful and sometimes angry melodies and lyrics. Every night I fell asleep to it, sometimes still crying but it was better. The Pumpkins taught me that sadness is ok and beautiful. I knew then that I was not alone. Others felt the same and our pain is echoed by the moon and stars. That album helped me to break the shackles that bound me. I still feel sad sometimes but I deal with it in a healthy, optimistic and wise way. Thank you for always being there for me. For reminding me I’m not alone and that life wouldn’t be as magical without this sadness I have within me. You helped be tame that beast and I am forever grateful. I love you pumpkins.

First Purchase

Jaclyn Pinehurst, NC, US

Mellon Collie was the first CD I bought with my very own paycheck. That two-CD set and I felt a lot of feels at 15. 

My First CD

Andrew Gammage Blacktown , AU

This wonderful double album was the very first CD I ever purchased with a gift voucher from my Godmother. It was a hot day and I played it on the lounge room Hi-Fi my parents had in the house I grew up in… I was 15 and hadn’t even been to a concert yet! Thank you Billy, James, D’arcy and Jimmy.

UNLUCKY 3/17/2000

Joseph harbaugh Rogers, AR, US

Well if was already an UNLUCKY St Patrick’s Day (corgan’s birthday )

and I was late driving this gals car that I borrowed to drive to Pittsburg to see SP my favorite band. My friends were inside with my ticket and I wasn’t. I offered the $100 bill that my brothers western unioned me to go see them- just to prove to him that I wasn’t lying. He said no- sold out show. So I went 2 doors down from the Metropol and got smashed. I got Darcy’s signature after the show and that was all. Then the car I borrowed got towed. Could nt get any worse. 

20 years later SP came to Rogers Ar and I got to see them nearly 7 rows from front. Justice.

The only stereo in the house

Chris P US

My dad watched soccer like he always has in the living room. There was a stereo that played cassettes in that living room. Matter of fact it was under the TV stand. I was so excited because this was the first cassette I ever bought. I had gone to the store earlier with my dad to get the cassette. I had picked Load by Metallica but he didn’t like the fact that it had fire on the cover. Told me that was devil Music. Anyway I grabbed MCIS and decided to go with that instead. After dinner with the family it was finally time to listen to the tape. My dad had a game he had to watch that same night. I couldn’t resist so I played the album on the stereo under the TV which was full blast audio with his soccer game. I had to put my ear as close as I could to the speaker because he didn’t want the noise from the music to interrupt his game. That has always been a very fond memory of a day with my dad, soccer and SP.

Tonight Tonight

Nicole Shawnee , US

When I was about 5 or 6 I remember watching the tonight tonight music video every morning because my mom watched mtv all the time. Bought the album when I was 19. Awesome amazing album.

#SorryNotSorry Hootie

Greta Gustafson East Providence, US

MCIS was the first album I ever bought. I was 14 when it came out and I saved up babysitting money for a walkman and the cassette. I actually wore the cassettes out. The store clerk had insisted I purchase Hootie & the Blowfish instead. I couldn’t comprehend such a suggestion.

MCIS bonding

Robert Norfolk, US

MCIS was released when I was about 6 years old and I was staying over at my cousin Steve’s house, he was about 17 at the time and a huge pumpkins fan. I had never heard anything by them at this point so Steve and I listened to the radio show ahead of the release and I was hooked. The next day Steve took me with him to get the album .On the ride back we listened to the album about 3 times and then sat in the driveway and listened to it again . When I left his house he had recorded me a copy (piracy is wrong but I was like 6 so cut me some slack I couldn’t get a job), I listened to that thing until no sound would come out of that maxwell tape and it would be the first album I ever bought with my own money a few years later. Anytime I hear that album it brings me back to my cousin’s house and sitting in the driveway hanging out with Steve.