Today is the 30th birthday of Smashing Pumpkins guitarist James Iha. Best
known for such songs as "Bullet With Butterfly Wings," "Today" and
"Tonight, Tonight," Smashing Pumpkins stand out from the grunge pack
by incorporating elements of
art-rock into their angst-filled guitar
anthems, layering sound upon sound and mixing in lush melodies. Born in
Elk Grove, Ill., Iha joined the group in 1989 after being recruited along with
drummer Jimmy Chamberlain by singer/guitarist Billy Corgan and bassist
D'Arcy Wretzky, who was Iha's girlfriend at the time. The group's mixture of
punk energy with art-rock pretension quickly established Smashing Pumpkins
on the Chicago scene and the major labels soon came calling. Their debut,
1991's Gish, was produced by Butch Vig. The album introduced the alt-
rock world to their layered grunge sound and spawned a minor hit in the form of
"Siva."
Siamese Dream, released in 1993, launched the group into rock
stardom and produced the hits "Today," "Cherub Rock," "Rocket" and
"Disarm." In 1994, the group headlined the Lollapalooza festival.
A B-sides collection entitled Pisces Iscariot was released in 1994,
around the same time that the group was settling into the studio to make a
concept album. Those sessions were released in 1995 as the largely
successful Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, a double-CD
collection divided into "Dawn to Dusk"
and "Twilight and Starlight." A massive world tour
followed and the group's popularity soared accordingly. Chamberlain was
fired in July 1996 after he used heroin with touring keyboardist
Jonathan Melvoin, who died of an overdose. He was replaced by Filter
drummer Matt Walker, who continued working with the group until late last
year. Earlier this year, Iha released Let It Come Down, a much
gentler sounding album than one might associate with a member of the
Smashing Pumpkins. As of late, the Smashing Pumpkins have been working
on Adore (due in May), an album that reportedly will be softer than their
earlier efforts.
Other birthdays: Fred Paris (Five Satins), 62; Diana Ross, 54; Fred
Sheehan (Boston), 52; Steven Tyler (Aerosmith), 50; Richard Tandy (ELO), 50;
Teddy Pendergrass, 49; and Martin Price (808 State), 43.
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