Rhinoceros (song)

Rhinoceros (song)

"Rhinoceros" is a song by American alternative rock band The Smashing Pumpkins from their debut album, Gish. It was written by Billy Corgan and is one of the few songs from Gish that has been performed consistently throughout the band's career.

The song is an early indication of the loud/soft dynamic that would come to define the band's overall sound. The song was cited as a turning point by Corgan in an interview about Siamese Dream: "I can remember bringing in 'Rhinoceros', which didn't sound like anything else we had. But after a while you get used to playing 'Rhinoceros', so you bring in something that's a little weirder." In an early radio appearance from 1989, Corgan can be heard referring to the tune, which D'arcy Wretzky audibly protests playing, as "that real slow one". The album recording reportedly features 17 tracks of feedback.

Instead of being released as a CD single, "Rhinoceros" was instead featured as the first track on Lull. Songwriter Billy Corgan has mentioned that Lull is known within the band as "the Rhinoceros single".