If these guys came on the radio, and the DJ said, "That was Silversun Pickups from their 1993 album, Carnavas," you wouldn't bat an eye.

L.A.'s latest are unabashedly poaching the fuzzy guitar sound that Smashing Pumpkins made famous on Siamese Dream. But that's ok, they still rock out in a not-totally-guilty-guilty-pleasure sort of way. This new band is a blast from the past, and thankfully, it's an era I don't mind revisiting (unless they sounded like Candlebox, of course).

Not to give the impression that the Pickups are just trying to be the Pumpkins, they're definitely different bands. Vocalist Brian Aubert sounds nothing like Billy Corgan (he's a much more delicate singer), and their songs don't have the Pumpkins angst-meets-arena rock vibe (think less Madison Square Garden, and more Mercury Lounge). It's really just the guitars that conjure up Corgan.

Silversun Pickups are serious about their songs, perhaps a little too serious. They are definitely "emotional too," with verses leading into choruses and crashes just as you would expect, and while we've heard it before, I don't mind hearing it again. I mean, I still listen to "Siamese Dream" approximately every other week.

Silversun Pickups play Schubas, on Sunday, August 13th.