The New Generation
Why are the Smashing Pumpkins representatives of Generation X?
There are so many answers to this question. The simple fact that each member is so different from the other, yet they are unified by music is a certain parallel. While Generation X has been labeled the most disunified generation yet - we all hold one thing in common - our diversity and our appreciation of it. We all dress differently, like different bands , and will only watch certain cartoons, but we are tolerable of that (at least we should be). The Smashing Pumpkins are as individually different as the ranges of their music. Every song is a portrayal of a different emotion, reaction, or different combinations of the two. Lucky for us, because of the musical diversity we are all bound to find our vice through Billy's songwriting in one way or another. Billy was quoted as saying, " I didn't have the guts to kill my parents, so I thought I'd get back at them through song." Generation X has also been said to feel the affects of divorce more than anyone before. Because some (most?) of our parents have put us through pure hell, we vent in other ways too. We are all like Billy, D'arcy, James, and Jimmy. We are all each struggling with our own problems, habits, and pain. Because Billy has pretty much been the main spokesperson for the band, we can identify with his personal past. The reason they are representatives of Generation X is because they are different. Not just within the band, but as a band. They are brave, blunt, and most of all accurate. Know them, love them, remember yourself through them.
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