Zwan
          Mary Star of the Sea
          Martha's Music/Reprise, 2003

Musical Quality:
Fun Factor:

Review:

Zwan's debut album is, in short, a work of pop art. From the moment "Lyric" starts rolling out of my speakers until Billy Corgan's pleas to "Come With Me" close the disc, I am entranced. "Mary Star of the Sea" is certainly a canvas that has few equals in modern pop/rock. The album is dominated by 3- to 4-minute rockers; my favorites include "Lyric," "Endless Summer," "Baby Let's Rock," and the epic "Jesus, I." These songs are complimented by lighter, more acoustic pop tunes like "Heartsong" (one of my favorites), "Yeah!," and "Of a Broken Heart," and the aforementioned "Come With Me."

If the 4 1/2 Musical Quality stars are any indication, I am truly impressed with both the lyrical depth and musical integrity of this first release from Zwan. The Fun Factor, too, is higher than usual for an album of this quality, with a 4-star rating. This is due to the fact that most of the songs on the album sound like they would be "radio-friendly," unlike Pearl Jam's "Riot Act."

Those of you that are aware of my Smashing Pumpkins background know that the only album I actually own is "Adore," which is admittedly their most unconventinal album. I do have a vast collection of Pumpkins MP3s supplied by Cliff, but I don't usually make a habit of listening to them, mostly because I have yet to understand their oraganization. I am admitting to all of this to prove that my Pumpkins background is rather limited, so I was not part of the crowd of Pumpkins fans that ran out to buy this album hoping to relive the old days. I'm not sure if they got what they were expecting - I wasn't expecting anything but good music. And Billy Corgan & Crew have delivered.

I am a bit disappointed in the lack of airplay for "Honestly." It seemed to hit pretty big here in OKC but then got overplayed and consequently disliked, and now I don't seem to hear it at all. Hopefully Zwan as another single in the wings to take the place of "Honestly," a good tune in its own right.

My prediction is that Zwan will enjoy great success in the future as long as they decide to stick together. I am anxiously awaiting a tour announcement for the US - I will certainly be in line waiting for tickets.