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''Zeitgeist'' is the seventh studio album by American rock band the Smashing Pumpkins, released on July 10, 2007 on Martha's Music and Reprise Records. Recorded solely by returning band members Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin, the album was the band's first since reuniting in 2006, and was produced by Roy Thomas Baker and Terry Date, alongside Corgan and Chamberlin themselves.

Preceded by the single, "Tarantula", the album debuted at number two on the US Billboard 200, but sales soon decreased, and critical reception was mixed. It was certified Gold in the United States on February 1, 2008. To tour in support of the release, Corgan and Chamberlin recruited touring members, Jeff Schroeder (guitar), Ginger Reyes (bass) and Lisa Harriton (keyboards), with Schroeder eventually becoming a core member of the band. The album was the last to feature Chamberlin until 2018's '' Shiny and Oh So Bright, Vol. 1 / LP: No Past. No Future. No Sun.''

Background

After the Smashing Pumpkins disbanded in 2000, Corgan and Chamberlin reunited for the short-lived supergroup Zwan, also featuring members of Slint, Chavez, and A Perfect Circle. The group released one album, '' Mary Star of the Sea'' in early 2003, before dissolving six months after the released. Chamberlin then formed Jimmy Chamberlin Complex, while Corgan would focus on a solo album. On June 21, 2005, the day of the release of his album '' TheFutureEmbrace'', Corgan took out full-page advertisements in the ''Chicago Tribune'' and ''Chicago Sun-Times'' to announce that he had "made plans to renew and revive the Smashing Pumpkins."Corgan, Billy. "A Message to Chicago from Billy Corgan", ''Chicago Tribune'', June 21, 2005. Chamberlin soon announced that he would be rejoining the band, and the two began living together in north Scottsdale, Arizona in November 2005, writing and rehearsing new songs. Within three weeks of practicing, the pair decided they had recaptured the sound of the band and prepared to record a new album.Jimmy Chamberlin and Billy Corgan. Audience Q&A, Gotischer Saal, Zitadelle Spandau; Berlin, DE ''Interview''. 2007/06/05

On April 20, 2006, the band's website confirmed that the band had reunited and started work on a new album. The website later announced that the new album would be produced by Roy Thomas Baker. Chamberlin and Corgan were verified as participants in the reunion, but there was question as to whether other former members of the band would participate. In April 2007, James Iha and Melissa Auf der Maur separately confirmed that they were not taking part in the reunion.

Recording

With the other band members absent, Chamberlin and Corgan decided to record the album alone, which Corgan claims is not a serious departure from how previous Pumpkins albums were made. After the songs were finalized, Chamberlin laid down all of the drum tracks. Notably, the drums for the ten-minute track "United States" were recorded in one live take. After the drums were completed, Chamberlin began the process of interviewing prospective touring band members, while Corgan went about recording the guitar, bass, keyboard, and vocal parts. Chamberlin described the recording sessions as a "long laborious process to greatness". For the first time on a Smashing Pumpkins record, Chamberlin served as one of the producers, and was present and influential through much more of the recording process than he typically has been.Micallef, Ken. "The Evolution of Jimmy Chamberlin: Still Smashing!" '' Modern Drummer'', November 2007.

The band's insistence on recording live to tape, without click tracks or editing, was met with distaste by most producers they spoke to. One executive at Reprise suggested using '' American Idiot'' producer Rob Cavallo, in the name of commercial success. The band held out until they met someone willing to record analog, and with the right energy and philosophy, eventually choosing producer Roy Thomas Baker, whom they considered "a real soul mate." Terry Date also contributed, and, according to Corgan, Date's production style helped the songs "resonate on a physical level".Thomas, Richard. "Signal to Noise: The Sonic Diary of the Smashing Pumpkins". EQ Magazine. October 2008. The album was largely recorded in the home studio of former Catherine drummer (and D'arcy Wretzky's ex-husband) Kerry Brown, on the same 24-track tape recorder that 1995's ''Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness'' was recorded on—in fact, no computers were used for the recording of the album. As with the other Smashing Pumpkins albums, ''Zeitgeist'' was recorded in twelve-hour days, six or seven days a week, until it was finished. The mixing process also differed from previous albums'. According to Baker, "everything had sort of an on/off switch. So instead of having various degrees of volumes, we'd have the approach of, 'It's either on or it's not'".

Style

Chamberlin explained the Pumpkins' goals for the album:

Corgan said the album's goals were threefold—to make an accessible, mainstream rock record, to comment on the "emerging fascist" political climate of the United States, and to explore the nature of his band and his friendship with Chamberlin. Although Corgan has, in the past, said a political slant from Smashing Pumpkins would be "not right",Marks, Craig.
Zero Worship
." Spin Magazine