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1997 August
The TIG insurance sued the band for $200,000 for allegedly damaging equipment on January 26th at the War Memorial Stadium in Rochester, New York. They wanted to recover damages that "amounted to complete destruction of the equipment" and cited four projectors, four zoom lenses, and four mounting frames all used in the Rochester show. September The band unfortunately lost all four nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards on the 5th. Addicted to Noise reported on the 9th, that the band had taken a turn in the opposite direction and were going unplugged on the new album, according to the publicist Gayle Fine.
Billy began taking voice lessons in a whim from his dissatisfaction to the current state of his voice. He believed that it was from something more troubling and permanent. He said "I'm not technically proficient as I should be, and that really holds us back.". His voice teacher informed him that he was singing "completely wrong". Nonetheless, there is a noticeable improvement on several of the softer songs in the album Adore. The New York Post reported on the 29th about a "cyber psycho" named Sam Manzie, 15, who assaulted and murdered an 11 year-old boy. Sam was a big pumpkinhead, and the story linked his obsession with the Pumpkins a possible reason or influence for the murder. Go figure. October The Pumpkins played two shows on the 18th and 19th, each 50-minute sets, for Neil Young's annual Bridge School Benefit (usually an all acoustic gig). The band debuted two new songs on the 18th, "To Sheila" and "Ava Adore". Marilyn Manson and his bandmate Twiggy Ramirez joined them onstage for two songs, "Eye" and "The Beautiful People". The band played one new song on the 19th, "Behold! The Night Mare". They were joined onstage by Blues Traveler frontman John Poppper for "Porcelina of the Vast Oceans". In a later interview, Billy explained that the 'night mare' in the title was referring to a horse, running along at night, not a bad dream. Addicted to Noise reported on the 22nd that the band had reached an undisclosed settlement with Laura Melvoin, widow of their late touring keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin. Laura sought reparations from the band on behalf of her infant son and alleging that the Pumpkins should have monitored Jonathan more closely to ensure that he did not use drugs. November
Addicted to Noise reported on the 14th that tour drummer Matt Walker left the band to pursue his own rock band, the Cupcakes, who signed a record deal with Dreamworks. Walker's last gig was to be when the band opens for the Rolling Stones in Miami on December 5th. December Ex-Soundgarden drummer Matt Cameron tried out for the Pumpkins in the first week. He was among several musicians and drummers who contributed to Adore. The band opened up for the Rolling Stones again in Miami, Florida. The second of two shows, it was also the final performance for tour drummer Matt Walker. The band moved to Los Angeles to do recording sessions for Adore. They recorded at Studio A at Sound City in Van Nuys, California. Home - The Early Years -
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The band headed to Chicago Trax Recording and Hinge in Chicago
with producer Brad Wood, most known for his work on Liz Phair and Red Red Meat (a band
that opened for the Pumpkins during the MCIS tour as well). Wood first worked with Billy
as a co-producer on a 1990 single by Chicago band Catherine. Sessions with Wood were later
scrapped. Wood also departed just before the band moved to Los Angeles. Billy had said
"I felt like he was not completely grasping everything that needed to go into making
a Smashing Pumpkins record.". Billy also felt that Wood was not experienced to
working with someone "like Liz Phair, whom he can mold, and I'm not the kind of
person you can mold". He started to feel that Wood was taking on an engineer role and
was dropped once the band moved to LA. Flood was also in the crew, and Billy felt that
"he helped focus us, and take the album to another place."
Billy was announced on the 26th to be one
of the artists featured in a '97 "Very Special Christmas 3" album due out
October 7th. Billy delivered an original Pumpkins holiday tune, "Christmastime".
The song had renowned arranger Arif Mardin and a 45-piece string ensemble.
The Pumpkins opened up for the Rolling Stones on the
1st at Texas Motor Speedway in Fort Worth.
The Pumpkins did a surprise appearance opening for Jane's
Addiction on the 3rd at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom. Billy was decked out in a long
licorice-red wig, day-glo lipstick, and a black and red, full-length velvet dress. The
band did a potent six-song set drawn from Mellon Collie. There was some nostalgia
involved in returning to the Aragon. Billy told the crowd, "We played our first show
here back in '88 with Jane's."
