 Music critics were not often fans of Corgan's angst-filled lyrics.Jim DeRogatis wrote in a 1993 "Chicago Sun-Times" article that Corgan's lyrics "too often sound like sophomoric poetry", although he viewed the lyrics of later albums "Adore" and "Machina" as an improvement.The band's songs have been described as "anguished, bruised reports from Billy Corgan's nightmare-land" by journalist William Shaw.