Teenage Noise Lab Game
Chapter 1

The daring double-disc gamble

Chapter 2

The sonic laboratory

Chapter 3

The visual universe of Mellon Collie

Chapter 4

Breaking records and defining a generation

Ch 2 · The sonic laboratory
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streetspirit Billy Corgan's first experience playing the piano.

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streetspirit The Sonic Laboratory

Two rooms running, tape is spinning, Pro Tools humming.

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Inexperience can yield a simplicity that mastery overlooks.

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streetspirit The recording of the Smashing Pumpkins hit song 1979

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Learning to play piano

streetspirit The gentle piano track Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness set a nostalgic tone before the album's heavy guitars and drums began

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Classic meets alternative

streetspirit The Smashing Pumpkins used orchestral strings to redefine alternative rock.

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Teenage Noise Lab
BETA

streetspirit Mix tracks to discover how Billy Corgan turned teenage angst into a hit double album.

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Fun Fact

Mellotron magic: The band used a vintage Mellotron, an early tape-based keyboard, to create the haunting flute and string sounds on several tracks.

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Glossary
studio (noun)
A room equipped for the recording and production of audio. In 1995, the band recorded most of their double album at their private Chicago facility, Pumpkinland.

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Gossip

Which of these tracks is the ultimate masterpiece?

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Quiz

Which instrument is featured as the sole lead instrument on the album's opening title track?

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streetspirit The Wall of Guitars

Seventy guitars stacked up on the tape, To give our heavy hearts a beautiful shape.

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streetspirit Billy Corgan combined a classical string orchestra with alternative rock

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Quiz

How old was Billy Corgan when he wrote the piano instrumental title track for Mellon Collie?

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Quiz

Which Smashing Pumpkins song featured a live 30-piece classical string orchestra?

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Quiz

Which modern rock band has cited the orchestral rock style of Mellon Collie as a direct inspiration?

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Quiz

Which producer challenged Billy Corgan to rewrite '1979' after stating it wasn't good enough for the album?

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Quiz

What electronic element did '1979' incorporate that was unusual for the band's traditional rock sound?

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Quiz

How many rhythm guitar tracks did Billy Corgan layer on top of each other to record the song 'Zero'?

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Quiz

Which heavy track earned the Smashing Pumpkins a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance in 1997?

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