Explaining his decision to leave the Smashing Pumpkins in 2023, guitarist Jeff Schroeder told Guitar World that he’d always known he was “in a situation where you’re joining something that already has a history”. And even though he’d become a chapter of that history by joining in 2007, it felt like the right moment to make a change.
After declaring a desire to “create some space and do something different,” Schroeder has returned with an ambient guitar album titled Metanoia. “Although I love playing in bands, it was powerful to know I could perform completely by myself," he says.
“The music is purposely blurry and a bit amorphous. It’s a new identity at the very beginning development. As a metaphor, I like how it works.”
Unsurprisingly, he’s not looking back right now. “I haven't kept in touch with anyone in the band,” he confirms. “After so much time, it’s been important to create space for myself and my musical interests.” He hasn’t reached out to his replacement, Kiki Wong, either. “I haven’t seen or heard anything – but I’m sure Kiki is doing an incredible job.”
While keeping his options open, Schroeder sees plenty of gigging and more sonic exploration ahead. “I recently played some shows in Los Angeles with a new band called Glass Bow. It’s a jangle-meets-fuzz dream pop band. We’re just about to start making our first album.
“I’m also planning another solo album of all-new material, which I plan to record before the summer ends. In the future, I see myself making more experimental instrumental music under my name, and more conventional rock music in a group format.”
What’s life been like for you post-Pumpkins?
“Wonderful! At first it didn’t feel too different because we had just finished a tour cycle. As time went on, the magnitude of my decision started to settle in.
“I’m very fortunate to have a community of friends and musicians who were extremely supportive of my decision and were there to give me the necessary encouragement to walk into an unknown future. Not counting the pandemic period, it was the first time in 15 or 16 years I didn’t have my schedule prepared.
“But beyond that, the biggest adjustments were psychological. I had to come to terms with the fact that I was no longer a member of the Smashing Pumpkins. Letting go of that identity took some work and time.
“There hasn’t been one moment I regretted my decision. It has allowed me to be creative in ways I would never have imagined if I’d stayed.”
What sounds were you taking in as you began to explore?
“I listen to a wide variety of music, and there’s always a mixture of old and new sounds. Every couple of years, I take a deep dive into the Jimi Hendrix catalog. There’s so much to absorb in his playing, songwriting, production and guitar tone. Robert Fripp has become a major influence, both musically and philosophically.
“Through the Brooklyn Institute for Social Research, I took a course on the New York downtown avant-garde music scene from 1945 to 1980. We studied such people as John Cage, La Monte Young, Yoko Ono, Steve Reich, Philip Glass and Julius Eastman. I found so much inspiration there. In addition to music, books are an important part of my daily life.
“Thomas Mann’s Doctor Faustus made me want to learn more about classical music. The writings of literary and cultural critic Fredric Jameson have been important to me during this period.”
Were there any new gear discoveries on that journey?
“I was so deep into listening to Hendrix that I started exploring his gear more seriously: Fuzz Face, Octavio, Uni-Vibe and Wah. Mike Piera from Analog Man was kind enough to build me two of his Sun Faces, one with BART germanium transistors and one with BC109 silicon transistors – both fantastic takes on the Fuzz Face. The Shin-ei Vibe 2 sounds and feels great.
“Jim Dunlop also hunted down a large-enclosure Octavio for me. What a sound! I’ve also started playing a Moollon S Classic guitar that Young Joon Park made a few years ago. It’s a pleasure to play and does an excellent job replicating those vintage Strat tones. Moollon is mostly known for basses, but the guitars are great as well.”
How did you go about making music again?
“For the past few years, I’ve been producing great bands and solo artists here in Los Angeles – Livingmore, Taleen Kali, Supergloom, Izzy Outerspace, Lauren Lakis, and Flatwaves from Philadelphia.
“After leaving the band, I worked on a couple of great tracks with Izzy, and she asked me to play a little guitar on them as well. That was a rewarding experience.
“I have a studio setup at home, so I’m always writing and recording. I also love to practice the guitar; I still play every day. It didn’t feel like I had to find a way to start making music again.
“The bigger question was – and still is – what type of music did I want to make? I still want to push myself to be a better musician and guitar player. I wanted to release a solo album because I wanted to have control over every aspect of the record, from the sonics to the artwork.
For those who only know me through the Smashing Pumpkins, I suppose this is a big departure
“In addition to artistic control, I wanted to make a certain type of statement. For those who only know me through the Smashing Pumpkins, I suppose this is a big departure. I have to thank Chris Stellman at the Clerestory AV label for giving me total artistic freedom. I’m so happy with how the record turned out.”
So what led you to make an ambient guitar record?
“Matt Ferguson at Yamaha Guitars suggested it. He asked me if he could use some ambient loops I’d recorded when we shot a video at East West Studios in Los Angeles.
“After that conversation, I started going through the live recordings from a set of solo guitar performances I’d given in Toronto in 2021. Over three days, I’d performed seven 40- to 45-minute improvised solo sets in front of a large-scale art installation inside Fort York.
“At first, I wanted to go through all the sets and use the best parts. But something of the record’s inherent spirit was lost in making it a slew of fragments. The real power in the music is listening to the slow journey that takes place over the course of an entire performance. Hence, I used two consecutive performances from the last day – the whole album is live and there are no overdubs.”
It was extremely difficult for me to improvise for a long duration. Ambient music is expressive and emotive by nature
How different was that from working with the Pumpkins?
“It was completely different since it was live and improvised. I had to do a lot of preparation before the performances. It was extremely difficult for me to improvise for a long duration. Ambient music is expressive and emotive by nature.”
Is Metanoia a reflection of your state of mind to this point?
“Although the album was recorded in 2021, the spirit of the music resonated with my frame of mind in the present. It’s almost as if I made those recordings in 2021 to be released now – it’s quite strange.”
Looking back, is there a theme that runs through it?
“The overall theme is transformation: letting things go so that something new can emerge. Like the music on the record, change and transformation is not a linear process. The loops come back and repeat themselves, but never in the same way twice. I constantly alter and disfigure them.”
- Metanoia is released on August 23 on vinyl and cassette via Clerestory AV, and digitally via Bandcamp.
