The bald frontman of the Smashing Pumpkins is known as a man of big, often controversial words. As a passionate wrestling fan, he has mastered the art of loud provocation from scratch. Recently, in an interview with the trade magazine “Guitar World”, he called for greater appreciation of his skills on the electric guitar.
A new episode of the Australian podcast “Everblack” was about songwriting and inspiration. The conversation touched on the Pumpkins’ 1995 song “Tales of a Scorched Earth,” from the album “Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.” The interviewer wanted to know from Corgan why it had never actually been played live. He began to give a winding answer:
“Well, I’ll start off by saying that I absolutely love James Hetfield as a person. I love Metallica…James is probably the greatest riff writer, apart from Tony Iommi from Black Sabbath,” he said.
“Naaaa…. Which song did you think came first?”
“James created some of the greatest and most amazing riffs, and he’s still writing them. YET if you listen to ‘Tales of a Scorched Earth’ and that Metallica song ‘Give me fuel, give me fire, give me that which I desire’. …Naaaa…. Which song did you think came first?”
The songs in comparison:
The interviewer confirmed to Corgan that “Fuel” was only released two years later on the album “Reload”:
“God bless you…” Corgan continued ironically and mischievously. “I don’t think James would steal anything from me. BUT when I first heard ‘his’ song I thought, ‘This is pretty damn close.’ But I love James. And I would love it if someone turned it into a troll headline, a clickbait.”
In patronizing fashion, he also adds: “My father always said that everything revolves around just 12 notes. That’s the exciting thing about it. We all check each other out. And if it works like that, it’s great. I have no problem with that. I’ve often borrowed one thing or another from Metallica.”
Since the talk, a wild song comparison contest has been raging in the comment columns of various US rock platforms. One comment on “Consequence” is: “These songs don’t sound similar at all. And if one of these bands is going to copy a thrash metal song from anyone, then it’s definitely the Smashing Pumpkins. And not the other way around.”