The Smashing Pumpkins released their debut album on May 28, 1991 under the indie label, Caroline Records, about three months before Nirvana released their iconic album, Nevermind. A big year for Butch Vig, who shares producing credits on both albums.
Although Gish only peaked at 195 on the Billboard 200, it became a cult classic that impacted the music industry in a huge way and paved a path for the alternative rock scene in the 1990s. It’s also worth mentioning that the album quckly hit the #1 spot on the CMJ charts, which tracks the popularity and rotation among college radio stations.
Butch Vig called this album a “Godsend,” Stating that he “had found a comrade-in-arms” in Corgan. Lead singer, writer, and guitarist, Billy Corgan described the album as personal:
The album is about pain and spiritual ascension. People ask if it’s a political album. It’s not a political album, it’s a personal album. In a weird kind of way, Gish is almost like an instrumental album—it just happens to have singing on it, but the music overpowers the band in a lot of places. I was trying to say a lot of things I couldn’t really say in kind of intangible, unspeakable ways, so I was capable of doing that with the music, but I don’t think I was capable of doing it with words.