The band Billy Corgan called “everything great about rock”
All great rock music tends to be made by the outsiders of society. Even though it might be easy to try and make one’s fortune off of songs that everyone can relate to, it’s often the most harrowing tales that leave the most significant impact on the listener, whether that means peeling back the layers of one’s psyche or telling their deepest darkest secrets in song. While rock musicians might not like to expose themselves to their audience like this, Billy Corgan found solace when he heard this rock band for the first time.
During his first years playing guitar, Corgan often gravitated to anything that struck his fancy when he turned on the radio. Even though he could appreciate what went into making a fantastic bubblegum pop song, he was equally interested in trying to make the caustic sounds of what he was hearing from his favourite hard rock and metal records.
That eclectic taste is evident in Smashing Pumpkins’ sophomore release, Siamese Dream. While the lyrics and music can sometimes be abrasive to listen to, the production and pop sensibilities make the whole album feel like it could be blasted in a stadium, from the massive opener ‘Cherub Rock’ to the nihilistic ode to self-destruction on ‘Disarm’.
While Corgan would have that slightly cynical edge to most of his music, he was indirectly pulling from the massive rock spectacles that had before. Years ahead of Corgan’s rock and roll dreams, Pink Floyd was already making their presence known as one of the most uncommercial commercial outfits to come out of England.
Known as one of the first progressive rock bands, Roger Waters steered the band through some of their most adventurous material after the loss of Syd Barrett, working alongside David Gilmour to craft amazing works of art like Dark Side of the Moon. While Waters may have been looking to satisfy his muse half the time, Corgan would grow to appreciate everything the music said.
Taking a more introspective view on rock and roll, many of Floyd’s themes centred around mental health issues while also dissecting how human beings can truly relate to each other. While their albums may have been too abrasive for even Corgan to take in at first, he would hold them in the highest regard once he started understanding Waters’s vision.
When inducting them into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Corgan complimented the band’s resilience to follow their muse, stating, “They’ve always stood for and been about music because it is the people who drive the business, not the other way around. They’ve always been everything that’s great about rock. The grandeur, pomposity, nihilism, humour and, of course, space”.
Corgan also attempted to follow in the band’s footsteps with some of his own masterpieces. When talking about how he approached the Pumpkins’ double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, Corgan would say that he was trying to recreate a version of The Wall for Generation X. Music must keep evolving with every generation, but thanks to Pink Floyd, many rock bands have had the confidence to stretch what they can do beyond what any of singles market wants.
