Once upon a time, before the days of hairless cultural icons, drug overdoses and shameless electronic pop, Billy Corgan was a badass. In the land of Chicago and the province of Indie Rock, the Smashing Pumpkins' leader reigned supreme as Lord of the Stratocaster. With his three more-than-adept accomplices, he took to Wisconsin in December of 1990, holing up with Grand Production Wizard Butch Vig.

Four months later, Gish was born. And rock fans rejoiced: a new savior was in our midst. From the pinnacle of stereos everywhere, the Smashing Pumpkins sent wave after wave of layered guitar bliss to wash our souls clean of the '80s. The alternative revolution was here. Nirvana was right around the bend.

Don headphones and insert Gish: The pounding drums of skinsmaster Jimmy Chamberlin herald the onset of an epic journey, through the rushing peaks and valleys of "Siva", the crunching plateaus of "Bury Me", the chiming melancoly of "Crush", the sparse landscapes of "Suffer". Corgan and guitarist James Iha will pick you up, spin you into the stratosphere, lie you gently on a pillow of clouds, and then shove you off into free-fall, catching you at the last second only to kick you out the door on your ears.

Somehow, on their debut album, the Pumpkins (and the stellar pre-Nevermind Vig) found a way to funnel the sounds of the cosmos through their instruments and make them obedient to Corgan's epic song structures. Perhaps no little part of this was due to Corgan's admittedly huge appetite for lysergic mind-benders, Hendrix and Black Sabbath at the time.

Listen to his painful croon on the album's penultimate track: "Window Paine / around my heart / shadows streak / around my heart". As the band builds tension, Corgan's shadows start screaming. At least his suffering is beautifully cathartic, and the release was caught on tape.

The 10 songs are the triumphant arrival of one of the most era-defining careers of the '90s. And regardless of what the future held for the young band, the first chapter was a great one.