Watch Smashing Pumpkins Play An Oldie & Discuss Their New Rock Opera On Corden

Watch Smashing Pumpkins Play An Oldie & Discuss Their New Rock Opera On Corden

The Smashing Pumpkins just announced an arena tour with special guests Jane’s Addiction, and they’re prepping an ambitious new album. They discussed both ventures on last night’s Late Late Show with James Corden before performing a classic from 1993’s Siamese Dream.

Before the band’s performance of “Today,” Corden welcomed Billy Corgan, James Iha, and Jimmy Chamberlin to the bar area of his set for a little chat. The upcoming tour with Jane’s Addiction occasioned a story about the Pumpkins opening for Jane’s way back in 1988. “It was our third gig as the original lineup of the band,” Corgan said, “and we got this call: ‘Do you guys want to open for this band Jane’s Addiction?’ We already knew their music, and we were, like, floored. It was literally our third show as a complete lineup. And we’ve known them ever since, so it’s such an honor to play with them.” Gesturing to Iha and Chamberlin while mentioning the “complete lineup” was kind of awkward given the absence of D’arcy Wretzky, but what can you do.

Corgan also gave the elevator pitch for the Pumpkins’ follow-up to 2020’s Cyr, billing it as “a 33-song triple-album concept,” a “return to form,” and “a sequel to our Mellon Collie album from 1995 and our Machina album from 2000.” He’s been calling it the completion of a trilogy with Mellon Collie and Machina for a couple years now, and honestly if it’s got even one song as good as Machina’s “Stand Inside Your Love” I’ll be happy.

Watch the interview and the “Today” performance below.

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