I couldn't figure out how to describe the vibe I was getting, but you put it into words very neatly.

Oh absolutely. Adore was actually the album that got me into them.

Not OP, but agreed. Still, even though I'm very fond of everything by them up through the American Gothic EP (even Zeitgeist), I'd agree with OP that Mellon Collie is the pinnacle. Everything past that (Teargarden, Oceania, etc), however, I put at the bottom of a very tall cliff.

Not plot holes, although there may be some of those that I didn't notice. It's more to do with the pacing of the investigation (trying to be vague so it doesn't ruin anything for you).

Heavy (but still somewhat vague) spoilers:
::: spoiler I remember it being a new suspect practically every episode type of deal; knowing they're probably going to be ruled out by the end of the hour gets a bit old. Season 2 tones that down a bit. spoiler

:::

I enjoyed it well enough, although I actually think season 2 is better. If you're a regular whodunnit watcher, you might be mildly disgruntled at a couple of aspects in season 1, but it's still a fairly compelling watch imo.

I mean, it's subjective, right? So far, yes, I'm enjoying it more than Glass Onion, but I'm sure there are people who loved Glass Onion that won't like Death and Other Details. Besides, it's hard to judge a whole season from just two episodes. Maybe as the season goes on, the plot twists will become ridiculous, or maybe the resolution will be mindblowing. Dunno yet.

For me, it's in the "fine" category so far: nothing I'd jump to recommend to others, but engaging enough to likely watch the whole season. It's fairly light and fluffy, but I don't find it as charming as I think it's trying to be. (For comparison, I thought Knives Out was also fine, but didn't really care for Glass Onion.)

Link works for me, but here's the original article. Movie is called The Day the Crown Cried.

The 1st, in fact.
Season 2 trailer

Despite the first book winning the 2021 SPSFC (admittedly, a much less well-known competition than the SPFBO), I almost never see the Primaterre series by S.A. Tholin mentioned. They are doorstoppers, but very well paced, imo: I inhaled the first two books. If you like space opera that manages to avoid a lot of plot tropes, give the series a try!

(Sidenote: if you're put off by the "cosmic horror" label on the first book, I recall there being a couple of mildly gory scenes, but it's mostly in the realm of "unfathomably alien" rather than trying to scare.)