Billy Corgan picks the greatest metal songs of all time
While The Smashing Pumpkins have explored various musical genres throughout their career, they share an undeniable connection with the world of metal. Billy Corgan, the band’s frontman and guitarist, honed his craft by closely following the evolution of this genre. Even as time goes on, Corgan consistently remains an intriguing and insightful commentator on the world of metal. Thanks to his creative accomplishments, his perspectives on this genre continue to offer a wealth of wisdom and intrigue.
In 2012, Corgan expressed his strong views on the current state of metal, saying: “Heavy metal is obviously way more mainstream than it used to be. For the most part, musicality is really embraced in heavy metal. A lot of us ‘alt people’ have stolen vigorously from that musicality.” In terms of his own personal favourites, therefore, it may come as no surprise that a lot of them are more traditional when it comes to metal sensibilities.
As the owner of the National Wrestling Alliance, Corgan picked Pantera’s anthem ‘I’m Broken’ to feature as the theme song for season three of the wrestling programme NWA Powerrr. He also deems it one of his favourite metal songs of all time, explaining, “I got to see [them] many times live, and I knew the band a bit back in the day. Dimebag Darrell even gave me a guitar which I treasure.”
In terms of their impact, Corgan says that “not everybody on the alternative side of the equation understood them right away, because they were seen as just a straight up metal band”. However, with time, more recognised their ability to “transcend genres”. Although he cites Pantera as one of the greatest bands of all time, Corgan ventures a bit further back to the 1970s to explore another important band, Judas Priest.
In Corgan’s eyes, Judas Priest masterfully “forged their own path” but have always been “criminally underrated”. He picks the band’s ‘Victim of Changes’ as one of his most beloved tracks, taken from their second album Sad Wings of Destiny. Many metal enthusiasts have heralded this song as the one that changed the course of metal history on account of Robert Halford’s vocalisation and K.K. Downing and Glenn Tipton’s intense guitar solos. When Corgan saw them perform live in 1982, he recalls thinking: “If I’m going to die, I’m going to die watching Judas Priest.”
Alongside many of his other picks, like Rainbow’s ‘Man on the Silver Mountain’ and Accept’s ‘Fast as a Shark’, Corgan also notes the impact of metal’s most prominent players, like Metallica, Slayer, and Black Sabbath. He chooses ‘Fade to Black’ by the former, stating that they’re “the greatest metal band of all time in terms of success”.
As with many other artists, Corgan struggles to put Black Sabbath’s artistry into words due to the unrivalled talent they possess as the inventors of the genre itself. “Tony [Iommi]’s the man,” Corgan says while praising his guitar talents as significant contributions to a genre that still very much attempts to imitate his work. “I still go back to Black Sabbath for inspiration,” Corgan adds, choosing ‘Supernaut’ as one of their best songs of all time.
Many revered metal bands worship the works of Slayer, whose album Reign in Blood brought their sound to a mainstream metal audience. Corgan notes its song ‘Raining Blood’ as a particularly solid effort, epitomising everything he came to know and love about Slayer: “Slayer makes Slayer music,” he says, “Only Slayer sounds like Slayer.”
Ultimately, Corgan’s choices not only track the evolution of metal as a mainstream art form over the years but also highlight the genre’s diverse accomplishments, illustrating its versatile nature. As a master of the craft himself, Corgan’s affinity for metal adds an additional layer of depth to his understanding. This perspective extends further and sheds light on The Smashing Pumpkins’ success, including their capacity to defy traditional rock and metal conventions.
Billy Corgan’s favourite metal songs:
- ‘I’m Broken’ – Pantera
- ‘Victim of Changes’ – Judas Priest
- ‘Man on the Silver Mountain’ – Rainbow
- ‘Fast as a Shark’ – Accept
- ‘Supernaut’ – Black Sabbath
- ‘Into the Fire’ – Dokken
- ‘Raining Blood’ – Slayer
- ‘A Dangerous Meeting’ – Mercyful Fate
- ‘Fade to Black’ – Metallica
- ‘Gutter Ballet’ – Savatage
- ‘Ulvinde’ – Myrkur
