A Message to the Smashing Pumpkins from Music Spectrum

Dear James, D’Arcy, and Jimmy,

Billy Corgan wants you back as a band. He took out a whole page ad in the newspaper to prove it. Here’s my open letter to you, James Iha, D’Arcy Wretzky, and Jimmy Chamberlin. Please may the Smashing Pumpkins reunite.


While Billy has had his fun now with the solo album, TheFutureEmbrace, there are huge, gaping holes in his songs without you. Considered independently from the Smashing Pumpkins, the album would find a place near Placebo, combing dance rock and charged guitar. The fact that he asked Robert Smith to sing on the cover of the Bee Gees’ “To Love Somebody” isn’t a stretch since there are elements of the Cure’s sound here too. On its own, the album is worthy of attention, accolades, and a place in rock history.

However, this isn’t independent of the Smashing Pumpkins and history. This is Billy Corgan. The songs he writes still hearken back to what came out of Chicago in the 90’s. While you can hear strains of Siamese Dream on TheFutureEmbrace, this is no Gish.

Do you why it’s no Gish? Gish blew me away with your drums, Jimmy. Those fills, patterns, and bombastics cemeted Gish as a truly great album. Drum programming just never ever fills that important role in Billy’s songs. (Why didn’t you bang the drum more on your TheFutureEmbrace guest appearance?).

While Billy’s signature guitar does its airy electricity on TheFutureEmbrace he needs your real lead, James. Plus, D’Arcy, there’s no true rock bass to push the songs to throw down intensity. You did that, D’Arcy.

Billy actually cranks a little more energy into “DIA” (see what you inspired, Jimmy, with your drums?), although there’s also a chime tone guitar on the bridge that’s almost like the Edge. It shows that Billy has grown, but the growth will be forever stunted without the Smashing Pumpkins. Just think what you could do together now.

I want the Smashing Pumpkins back. I want Gish. If /when you do reunite, it’s not that I want an exact replica of the Gish sound. I just think in you there’s another album of such rocking ferocity that will never be heard unless you’ll just let it gush forth the day you meet one another again at Pumpkinland in Chicago.

Rock on and may God bless you!
Benjamin Squires