 The Pumpkins After the Smashup-Jim Sullivan They have climbed the highest of rock mountains. And yes,they'vecrossed the valley of death. Hyperbolic? Maybe. But if truth is a defense... "We know that we're lucky," says D'arcy, bassist for SmashingPumpkins."We know that we've gotten another chance at a brand-new start. Thingsweregoing so well before, [but] there was still this thing in the back ofyourmind that tells you to worry, that something bad is going to happen." Smashing Pumpkins' latest album, "Mellon Collie and the InfiniteSadness," has sold 3.5 million copies in the United States, making itthebest-selling double CD of the past two years. The album has hadblockbustersales in Europe and Australia as well. They're currently kings of thecommercial alternative rock. Their arena concerts, including the oneSept.8at Providence Civic Center, are jam packed. A fleet center or WorcesterCentrum concert is in the works for early November. "Bullet withButterflyWings," "1979" and "Tonight Tonight" have been all over modern rockradio.They've received nine MTV music video nominations in the next week'scompetition. But, of coarse, there is "this stuff," as D'arcy refers to it.As in'before this stuff happened" and "after this stuff happened." The badstuff. The first event happened May 11. A young female fan was crushedtodeath at a Pumpkins concert in Dublin. "That shouldn't have happened,"saysD'arcy. "That was terrible. We stopped the show twice before thatbecausekids were just out of control and we though kids were getting crushed infront. We're like, 'We're gonna stop before someone gets crushed.'" They didn't manage to do that. A pained Billy Corgan,singer-songwriter-guitarist-keyboardist, said later that is was onlyrock n'roll- not worth dying for. Then, on July 12th, the Pumpkins' touring keyboardist, JonathanMelvoin died. He overdosed on heroin. Drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, whotriedto revive Melvoin, had allegedly shot up with him. Chamberlin wasarrestedfor possession-he goes to court Sept.25 and faces a year in jail ifconvicted- and was subsequently ousted from the band. Matt Walker, from Filter, has replaced Chamberlin. DennisFlemoin,of the Frogs, has replaced Melvoin. The delayed tour kicked up again last week out west. D'arcycheckedin from Las Vegas on her cell phone, where after taking in a hokey KingArthur's Faure, she was wandering around a casino's giant fake pyramidandtrying to be heard over the clanging slot machines-"This is insane!"-anddiscussing what's up with the tumultuous band she play in. "Never a dull moment in Pumpkin-land anymore," D'arcy sayswryly. D'arcy's comment recalls an interview with Chamberlin, aboutthreeyears ago. He was out of drug rehab and amiably chatting during a tourstop:"We seem to have overcome the biggest monkeys on our backs, emotionallyandphysically, so things seem to be clicking-very blissfully even-keeled.Whichis a scary thing. We're starting to wonder what's wrong: 'Why aren't Ithrowing a chair at you?'" Prescient thoughts, it turns out. Chamberlin was dismissed five days after Melvoin's death. "Itwasall so stupid," says D'arcy. "Really sad and really just senseless. Ontheother hand, it makes us very angry. It never should have happened." The band though Chamberlin had beat his addiction. "It was thelaststraw," D'arcy says. "We thought they were both clean. It was just aslap inthe face, finding out that we had been lied to for so long." Smashing Pumpkins brought in Walker, whom they knew from a jointEuropean tour, and Flemoin, whom they've known for years. Walker makessenseto anyone, insider or outsider. He's a had rocker, also from Chicago,thePumpkin's home base. Flemoin? He's the wild card. He's part of aMilwaukee-based, glam-rock cult duo prone to dressing up likeinsect/angelsonstage and singing misanthropic, scabrous punk rock songs that can beconstrued as sexist and homophobic. Or a send-up of sexism andhomophobia.Sometimes hilarious, often off-kilter, guaranteed obnoxious. "I love them!" exclaims D'arcy. "We've been friends for years.They're doing a record with me and my brother-in-law's label. I'm goingtoplay with them [this weekend in New York]. I'm gonna be a Frog!" So they're not, like, scum of the earth? "See, that's the thing they're not at all," she says. "They justlike to make fun of everybody. They're not at all biased. It's like theoldsaying: 'I'm not prejudiced, I hate everyone.' They just have a reallybadsense of humor. We can't all do that all the time like they can. I mean,it's nothing sacred? You just love going to their shows and seeing thekidsstanding with their mouths open." Will Pumps fans be getting a smidgeon of the Frogs? "Just whenthings get dull we can bring Jimmy [the other Frog] or Dennis out andtheycan do a little dance and liven things up." Forewarned if forearmed. "We need a little levity after all this stuff," says D'arcy.Not Selling Out Smashing Pumpkins' ascent has not been smooth glide. Theysprouted upin Chicago in 1989, but D'arcy, a Michigan native, says, "Chicago was avery conservative city, more oriented towards blues bars and sportsbars.There was not much support for rock music at all." They did better, she says, out of town. When they playedChicago,which was only occasionally, people would ask where they were from."Well,"they would say, "we're from here." Smashing Pumpkins released "Gish," on Caroline Records, but wereseen more as poseurs than peers by many in the clique-laden punk/indyrockscene. What they heard in Smashing Pumpkins was a debt to the un-hippseudo-progressive hard rock of the 70's (Deep Purple, ELO). What theysawin songwriter Billy Corgan were outlandish ambition and overtlycommercialtunes. Not punk at all. Indy heroes Pavement took a swipe at them in asong. No apologies from D'arcy here. "I mean how many of these bandsarestill around? We believe in working hard. And I guess that some peoplebelieve that they get into music and they can have a good time andparty.Music as always been the most important thing for us... "Everybody always thought that we were selling out, but we werewanting to make a decent living. The thing is: We are doing what we wanttodo. As long as you don't compromise your art and stay true to what youaredoing. We love what we're doing...and we don't want to have to work aday job." With their second album, "Siamese Dream," in 1993, they moved toVirgin. It was a hit- as was a follow-up album of rarities and B-sides,"Pisces Iscariot"- but there was no smooth sailing within the band.D'arcyand guitarist James Iha, once a couple, went through a breakup;Chamberlinhad his drug problem. Corgan, the brains of the band, was prone to deep,dark mood swings- something fans can hear in the music as well. Andtherewas the perception- that remains in some ways - that Corgan, and admittedcontrol freak, is the band. "There's a lot more give and take than people realize," saysD'arcy."We spent six hours a day, seven days a week, for 10 months writing thisalbum. In the rehearsal space for three months. It's like, 'What are wedoing in there?'"Keeping rough edges Corgan has, tough, talked somewhat cryptically about and era ofSmashing Pumpkins coming to an end after this tour. "I try not to thinkabout it," says D'arcy. "I'm really into organic music and he's reallyintokeyboards. I'm just gonna see how it goes. If it gets to a point thatI'mjust not interested anymore -well, oh well. I mean he's done a fewthings onhis own, on the side, that's pretty good. Then it's like: 'You don'tneed me?' "A lot of what he writes is personal," D'arcy continues. "A lotofit is universal. He really tried for the last album to make it moreuniversal -things everyone can relate to." This, sometimes, can have a leavening effect -a sanding-off oftheedges. "I don't think that happened with us," D'arcy says, with a laugh."Idon't think we could ever do that." A nation that sang along -pumping their clenched fists in theair-with "Despite all my rage/ I'm still just a rat in a cage" (from"Bullet...") would no doubt agree. Smashing Pumpkins in concert are a somewhat different-soundingoutfit that they are in the studio. Some critics have faulted them forthoserough edges. D'arcy is happy with the roughness, and says people whoonlyknow the studio work will tell them, "I didn't know it was such a rockconcert." And she adds, their sound is better then ever with theirsoundmanbeing a veteran of the ex acting Prince. "The musicianship is soimportantto us," she says. "Some things we do to re-create and other things we dotolet go and change and make as interesting as possible." The goal is, at this point, just to keep on keeping on. Staycentered. Let the media vortex ease. "I know that I'm a good person,"saysD'arcy. " I just am who I am and I'm not going to do something becauseI'mafraid I should set a good example but...I just go about my business.BecauseI don't really have anything to feel guilty about either." |