The tail end of 2017 and the beginning of 2018 seemed to be riddled with the back and forths of the elusive Smashing Pumpkins reunion. Whether it was getting fans to help choose the setlist for the band’s reunion tour or publically blasting former bassist D’Arcy Wretzky, Pumpkins fans were once again introduced to the drama and vitriol that permeated the band’s career.
Now, Corgan has opened up to the Creative Independent, to discuss his creative process and allude to the idea that his ego has often gotten in the way of the band’s upwards trajectory.
Corgan spoke about the transition between the success of 1995’s Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness to 1998’s Adore, mentioning that his ego got in the way of decision making, especially when it came to writing “singles” for the album.
“I was more of a slash and burn, scorched Earth kind of person – hence making a record like Adore after Mellon Collie I could say something like, ”Adore’ was exactly the right move at exactly the right time and the only mistake I made was not making sure there was hit singles.”
When asked whether success warped his enjoyment of simply creating music, he mentioned that his ego was the driving force behind the process.
“No. I never had that problem so much. I was more like an egoist who was always looking for a mandate, and when I had it I didn’t always carefully consider my options.”
He also added that he “got everything he wanted” which was simply a character flaw that interfered with the band.
“The character flaw in that moment was that I got everything I wanted, I did everything the way I wanted to do. Through force of will, I got the vision I was after and it held. You can still hear it. It didn’t wither away with time, but my ego got in the way of just being pragmatic.
