Oh, welcome back Mr. Corgan, and I’m not referring to his absence since the last Smashing Pumpkins album, “Machina: The Machines of God” I’m talking about his absence since “Pisces Iscariot,” the Pumpkins’ last pure rock ‘n’ roll album.

Between “Pisces Iscariot” and the recent release of Corgan’s new band Zwan’s album, “Mary Star of the Sea,” Corgan has been meddling around with electronica, orchestrations and the Gothic image.

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It seems that now, with “Mary,” he is back to his old self. Remember the distorted guitar riffs and hammer-like drumming of “Siamese Dream”? Well, those are back – in Zwan form.

Aside from a welcome return to Corgan’s old guitar styling, the highlights of “Mary Star of the Sea” are Jimmy Chamberlin’s fantastic drumming and Corgan’s new brand of lyrics. They are happier than anything he’s ever done, and surprisingly they are very religious.

The first song of the album, “Lyric,” sums it up.

“Here comes my faith to carry me on.”

This religious aspect appears again in songs like “Declaration of Faith” and the album’s culmination, “Jesus, I/ Mary Star of the Sea.”

“God and Heaven are all my own.”

The majority of the tracks on the album are fast-paced, giving Chamberlin a chance to let the percussion fly, and he does. Undoubtedly, all the songs on the disc lead up to one monster of a tune, and that tune is “Jesus, I/ Mary Star of the Sea.”

Clocking in at roughly 14 minutes, “Jesus” is divided into two parts with a masterful instrumental interlude between them. While there is one song left on the record after this, “Come With Me,” it seems to be more of an afterthought than a closing number.

If you have heard “Honestly” on the radio and thought what I did, “Eh, it’s alright,” don’t let that stop you from buying this album, because that song is only a small taste of what the rest of the record sounds like.

“Mary Star of the Sea” already is an early contender for “Album of the year,” so don’t hesitate to pick this one up. Although most Smashing Pumpkins fans probably already own it, for anyone who is remotely interested in “Mary,” don’t wait any longer.