Even though you can hear ’90s alt-rock influences all over Los Angeles four-piece Silver Snakes‘ latest album, Year of the Snake, it’s always a bit of a shocker when someone can name their favourite album of all time in a flash like Alex Estrada does. The Silver Snakes vocalist/guitarist doesn’t need any time to think when we ask him for his Classic Platter.
Estrada: My classic platter would definitely be Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.
Wow! No hesitation!
Yeah, that one’s a no-brainer for me. Smashing Pumpkins were the first band that I actually formed an emotional attachment to when I was younger. The general aesthetic of the album, the artwork and everything about that band had that weird mysticism surrounding it. I was 10 years old when that album came out and I bought the cassette and was sitting in my room reading the liner notes, night after night, and listening to it. It was just something that took me away. That was one of the records that really inspired me to play music and, to this day, I revisit that record very often and it’s just something that stuck with me. I didn’t grow up listening to classic rock and The Beatles. My dad is Mexican and he’s a mariachi, so he only does Mexican music, and I was never into it as a kid. And my mom was a Mexican folk dancer, so that’s what I grew up with around them and I needed something that was in the complete other direction. So Smashing Pumpkins were the first thing I found watching MTV as a kid.
So you honestly can listen to the whole thing, front to back, both albums?
There’s one song I skip on that entire record, and I will own up to it. It’s the one that James Iha sings, just because that dude’s voice is awful. And some may argue that about Billy Corgan as well, but I’m just not a James Iha fan.
I remember putting on that album when I owned a record store and I’d always end up turning it off halfway through the first album. Double albums are a big investment, and naming one as your favourite album of all-time is a pretty ballsy move.
It is. And I back nearly every track on that record, which is something you don’t hear very much. People argue with me on that often, saying Gish or Siamese Dream is better, but I think the band just went above and beyond with the songs on that thing.
How do you feel about modern-day Smashing Pumpkins?
Oh, it’s dead to me. It doesn’t even exist. That band broke up 15 years ago. That dude, what, does he have a wrestling organization now? He has Tommy Lee playing drums on the new record [laughs].
What’s your favourite track on Mellon Collie?
Even though it was a big pop single, “1979” is actually my favourite song of all-time.
I’m more of a “Zero” guy.
“Zero” is a good one, too. Like I said, I back every song on there. I spent so much time on that record, it’s my favourite band, so I spend a lot of time with their records. Put it this way, I’m barely at the tail end of the album Adore, it’s taken me this long just to start diving into that one. So I spent a good decade just with Mellon Collie and I find that every few months my favourite songs on the album start to change. But “1979” is definitely my favourite and lately I’ve been really getting into the song “33.” And the heavy ones, too, like the first track on that second disc, “Where Boys Fear to Tread,” I think is one of the heaviest riffs I’ve ever heard, and they’re not widely regarded as a metal band, or a hard rock, riffy band.
Okay, so here’s a scenario for you. Billy Corgan calls you up tomorrow and says, “Hey Alex, I like your stuff and I’m doing a Mellon Collie anniversary tour and I want you on board to be the new James Iha.” What would you say?
I’d do it. Why not? I don’t think he’d do that though. I don’t think he likes me. We had a weird Twitter thing that happened once and he got pretty upset about it.
Uh oh.
Yeah, I was talking shit about his girlfriend at the time and I remember him tweeting something immediately after I tweeted her, saying, “Don’t worry about what these assholes are saying.” And, of course, it had to with cooking. Because he was dating this vegan girl at the time and she was bragging about how good she makes rack of lamb for him, and I was like, “What the fuck?!” You’re doing all of these PETA ads and now you’re bragging about how you’re making rack of lamb for your boyfriend?” And he was like, “Don’t let it bother you, babe.”
You’re not supposed to shit-talk the girlfriends of the people that made your all-time favourite album, Alex! That’s the first rule.
Yeah… if it was back in 1996 or 1997, I wouldn’t have said something like that, but at that time I probably also would have been eating KFC and not really caring.
-Jason Schreurs
Silver Snakes‘ Year of the Snake is out now on Bridge Nine Records.
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