Smashing Pumpkins

Smashing Pumpkins is an alternative rock band from Chicago, Illinois, that grew to become one of the most iconic mainstream rock bands of the 1990s. Led by lead singer and front man Billy Corgan, the band rose to international prominence with the release of its second album, Siamese Dream, in 1993, which earned several Grammy nominations as well as spots on numerous Best Album lists. Following the release of its acclaimed 1995 effort Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, a double album that timed in at over two hours long and featured the hit tracks "Zero" and "Tonight Tonight," Smashing Pumpkins embarked on an extensive world tour that would eventually lead to tragedy and the end of an era for the band. During a stop in New York City, keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin overdosed on heroin, and although Chamberlin survived, he was subsequently arrested and fired from the band. The substantial line-up change that followed Melvoin's death and a transition into electronic music attributed to the band's shift into darker tones and a more subdued appearance. Though Smashing Pumpkins never regained the fame it earned during the 1990s, the band survived a four-year break up, reformed in 2005 with Corgan as its only original member and has since been touring and releasing albums.