This year’s Shiny and Oh So Bright reunion tour has brought the Smashing Pumpkins together again, or rather, as “together again” as humanly possible. Excluded from the tour is original bassist D’Arcy Wretzky, who wasn’t able to make amends with other original band members Billy Corgan, James Iha and Jimmy Chamberlin, who she says wronged her throughout the process of forming the reunion.
Wretzky hasn’t performed live in nineteen years, unlike the other members who have played thousands of shows since the band’s initial breakup in 2000. “We made every effort to involve her,” Corgan said in a recent radio interview, “including offering her the ability that she does not even have…to be on tour. She could show up at any time, she could play as much as she wanted to play.” Despite Corgan and the band’s offer, Wretzky insisted upon playing no less than every three-hour show, an idea Corgan knew was unrealistic after the bassist’s lengthy hiatus.
With the chance of a full resurgence for the Smashing Pumpkins riding on the Oh So Bright and Shiny tour, the band ultimately felt it was too big a risk to take. “What it came down to is that she didn’t really wanna be involved,” Corgan concluded. “It was like a game of chicken and, eventually, we called her bluff and we made a decision to move on.”
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