Zwan had two different incarnations. The first, and more common version, the True Poets of Zwan (or simply "Zwan"), used three guitars, bass guitar and drums. Zwan's only album, "Mary Star of the Sea", is attributed to the True Poets of Zwan in the liner notes. Zwan is credited with being a bridge between the success of the Smashing Pumpkins in the 1990s and the further career developments and experimentations undertaken by Corgan in the 2000s, as well as his shift from his sombre, dark themes towards more hopeful lyrics in line with his spiritual development at the time.