Billy Corgan says he’ll probably disband the Smashing Pumpkins in 2015, ignoring the fact that the group more or less disbanded more than a decade ago when he parted ways with both James Iha and D’Arcy Wretzky. Corgan told the Chicago Tribune that he’ll decide whether or not to continue on based on the public reception of the group’s forthcoming records, saying, “When this [new album] process is over, I’m either going to bail on this ship for good, like ‘I’m done,’ or I’m going to have a new ship to sail on.”
Corgan also said that he struggles with the challenge of releasing new material when most people just want to hear “Ava Adore” or “Tonight, Tonight.” As Corgan noted, “How do you say, ‘I still matter’? How do you say, ‘How does one of my contemporaries get treated like a contemporary artist, and how do I get treated like I’m supposed to play Siamese Dream for the rest of my life?’ At some point you’ve got to fight this fight or go away.” Corgan says he always intended for the “reunited” Smashing Pumpkins to be “progressive” and “moving forward,” but that “a lot of people [expect] us to be nothing more than a reunion band, playing its greatest hits.”
Currently, the only other regular member of The Smashing Pumpkins is guitarist Jeff Schroeder. Drummer Mike Byrne recently left the group, and Mötley Crüe’s Tommy Lee guests on some of the material Corgan and company are due to release in December.