10 Best Debut Rock Albums Of The 1990s
7. The Smashing Pumpkins - Gish
The 1991 debut release from The Smashing Pumpkins is named after silent film star Lillian Gish, rather than just a nonsense word Billy Corgan made up one drunken night.
Sorry to be a killjoy.
The group put out Gish with the help of legendary producer Butch Vig, who was about four months out from securing his legacy for his work on Nevermind by Nirvana.
You can hear Vig's influence on this record through its washy guitar sounds and gravelly vocal textures, but the two albums differ wildly in other places.
Gish is home to some really smart lyrics, a leftover from the shoegaze era that the band were paying homage too. It's also melodic as all hell, with every single member of the Pumpkins playing their instruments to perfection.
Whilst it would only get major recognition from critics in hindsight following the release of the group's second album, it's clear today that Gish played a fundamental part in influencing the sound of the early 90s that we all remember so fondly today.
Even if its name doesn't have as funny a backstory as you would like.