#1 The Smashing Pumpkins - Siamese Dream

''They won't be your favourite band when you're older'' I was told in 2000 by a friend. "Your tastes will mature and you will start liking different music" 

For a quarter of a century Siamese Dream by The Smashing Pumpkins has been my favourite album.

I had early exposure to this album upon its 1993 release thanks to my older sister. My favourite earliest musical memories are solely down to her too. 

This was my gateway into Grunge, Indie and Rock as I heard my sisters hi-fi drowning out LongWave Radio Atlantic 252 that was playing somewhere in the house.

Her room was full of posters of Nirvana, The Lemonheads, Carter USM all ripped from NME or Melody Maker but the most enduring image was the of the two conjoined twins on the album of Siamese Dream.

I love the whole catalogue of what I consider the 'first half' of The Smashing Pumpkins (before their disbandment in 2001) but nothing hits like Siamese Dream. Where Gish although revolutionary in the layered sound it created seems very seminal compared to what was to come.

The sprawling odyssey of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness can be overwhelming in one listen. Adore is very gloomy and a state of mind album. Machina felt like a goodbye.

I believe Siamese Dream hits the sweet spot. From the opening drum roll of cherub rock its unrelenting.

The upbeat nature of single 'Today' which was born out of lead singer Billy Cogan's depression was the 1st to catch my attention. 

Seeing the bright sunshine, splattered paint and an ice cream truck heading down a winding road on MTV2 was enough to hold my attention before the music started to take over. This was enough for me to borrow my sisters copy just while I was heading into year 11.

I locked myself in my room as most teens did then and played this album over and over. Words that comforted me greatly as I tried to find a way to apply them to my own life or my own headspace.

There are four singles out of the 13 tracks on this album but I don't regard them as such. This is one 60 minute album that has to be listened to front and back.