Formed in Chicago in 1988 by Billy Corgan, James Iha, D'arcy Wretzky, and Jimmy Chamberlin, The Smashing Pumpkins fused gothic rock's brooding depth, Black Sabbath's heavy riffs, My Bloody Valentine's shoegaze haze, and Kurt Cobain's raw grunge angst into a densely layered alternative rock colossus. Their sound evolved from the fuzz-drenched psychedelia of Gish to Siamese Dream's razor-sharp fury and Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness's ambitious double-album sweep, blending heavy metal crunch, dream pop shimmer, and progressive sprawl.

Corgan's anguished wail and auteur control defined their turbulent path through lineup upheavals, personal demons, and reinventions like Adore's electronic intimacy or recent Aghori Mhori Mei's fiery return with Iha and Chamberlin. Amid 90s alt-rock royalty, their refusal to conform—eschewing grunge's conformity for orchestral grandeur and synth experiments—cemented them as unpredictable icons of emotional excess and sonic ambition.