Song Review: Smashing Pumpkins – Rose March (by Eva Kurtz-Nelson)

The most promising Smashing Pumpkins reunion track didn’t exactly enter the world with a bang. Instead, “Rose March” recently whimpered its way into our lives as part of the American Gothic EP, an unheralded iTunes exclusive in the United States. While Zeitgeist was heavy on Billy Corgan’s I-just-chugged-four-Red-Bulls-and-also-hate-my-life output (see also: DESPITE ALL MY RAY-AGE I AM STILL JUST A RAT IN A CAY-AGE) with mixed results, “Rose March” more strongly resembles the lush ballads the Pumpkins perfected on their last great album Adore. “Rose March” is unmistakably a love song, with enough “la-da-da”s and sappy lyrics like “I’ll lay roses at your feet” to make a kitten weep, but it’s impeccably crafted and achieves exactly what it sets out to. Sure, twelve-year-olds can slow dance to it, but is that always a bad thing? Corgan used to write some of the prettiest pop songs of his time, and while “Rose March” is no “1979” it proves that he hasn’t forgotten everything. If you’ve ever swooned to the Pumpkins’ softer side, “Rose March” is definitely worth your 99 cents.