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The Smashing Pumpkins have announced their plans to celebrate three decades of 'Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness,' with a two-set show making its way across the country later this year. Frontman Billy Corgan checked in with KROQ’s Klein/Ally Show to give us details on the tour, their upcoming headlining slot at Lollapalooza, and of course, who would win in a wrestling match between the Pumpkins and the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
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00:00On our phone right now, fine, better late than never.
00:03Here is the great Billy Corgan.
00:05Hey, Billy.
00:07Good day.
00:07Now you have to blame the other DJs for making me late.
00:10I'm always on time.
00:11It's the DJs that make me late.
00:13It's the DJs that are the ones that are messing you up?
00:16Yes, because they put a schedule where it's like I have a different call every 15 minutes.
00:21And, of course, the DJs go over their time.
00:24Those crazy coke-snorting DJs.
00:28Ain't that the way?
00:30Well, in that case, we will ramble less to get you back on your schedule.
00:32But congratulations on an announcement that we were pretty excited to hear at K-Rock.
00:37And usually a funeral is not something we celebrate.
00:39But that was some event you put on on Sunday.
00:41And, of course, our spiritual home out there in Los Angeles.
00:44You know, we've had so many great experiences in Los Angeles.
00:47And so it always feels like a second home to us.
00:50So, of course, it was great to announce the tour there.
00:52And how did it come about to start it with a funeral for zero?
00:57Well, you know, there was this thing that we should think of something because of social media, something that would
01:02get people's attention.
01:03So we thought, what better than a funeral?
01:06What band could do a funeral to announce a tour?
01:08I think we're the only band that could pull that off.
01:10And my wife did put all the funeral part together and did a great job.
01:14And when Howie Mandel was up there with my wife giving a eulogy, I just thought, okay, this is peak
01:20absurdity.
01:22So, yeah.
01:22And then we played an hour show at the Hollywood Legion Hall.
01:27And that, I think, is like a preview of what people can expect with the tour that was just announced.
01:32Of course, you'll be back in L.A. at the Forum where we got a chance to see you a
01:35few years ago.
01:35K-Rock's Almost Acoustic Christmas, a venue you've played many times previously.
01:39But this tour is interesting because it's almost like they're getting two shows for one in the sense that it's
01:44not a standard.
01:45You do two different acts.
01:47They're totally almost different shows you're putting on, right?
01:50Yeah.
01:50First set is all Melancholy stuff.
01:53So, about an hour 15 of Melancholy, and then we'll take a short break and we'll come out and do
01:57a kind of a deep cuts and hits type set.
02:01So, it's going to be a big challenge.
02:02But I really want to force myself and the band to take it up another level.
02:09We've had so much energy around us in the last few years.
02:11A lot of great young fans coming on board that really want to see the band played at a super
02:16high level.
02:16And they really deserve the band's best.
02:18So, we're going to try to bring the best that we can possibly bring to the table.
02:21I think you mentioned before that you've been wanting to do something around Melancholy for a long time.
02:26And it just didn't work out.
02:29Why now?
02:30I mean, of course, the anniversary.
02:31But why didn't you do this sooner?
02:32Why weren't the stars aligned then?
02:35That's a great question.
02:36You know, a lot of times when it would come up, people would want us to play the whole album.
02:39And I would say, I don't know.
02:41That seems like a bit much, you know.
02:43And it was this thing of like, well, that's what would sell.
02:46You're playing the whole album.
02:48And I was like, no, we really should just do something that's more akin to what we would do with
02:52it and what our fans would respond to.
02:55So, I think it took a while to get everybody on the same page on that.
02:58Billy Corgan is on with us right now.
02:59Just announced the Rats in a Cage tour.
03:02It's going to be heading all over the place.
03:04And if you're lucky enough to see them in their hometown of Chicago, they're back to headline Lollapalooza, which I
03:09couldn't possibly fathom this.
03:10But it's been 30 years since you played Lollapalooza or headlined that show.
03:1432, but who's counting?
03:17That's insane.
03:18You are, Billy.
03:19Were there no invitations over the last three decades of you to go back and do that?
03:24It seems crazy.
03:25Or were you just busy and couldn't?
03:28I don't want to talk too much out of school, but basically speaking, the offers would occasionally be there, but
03:36it was never the headline.
03:38Got it.
03:38And I was like, how do we come back and play Lollapalooza in Chicago and not be a headliner?
03:44So, the argument would be over whether or not we were strong enough to be a headliner.
03:49And I was like, that's crazy.
03:50It's Chicago.
03:51I mean, that's a no-brainer.
03:53So, the stars are finally aligned in that.
03:55We're very grateful.
03:56You know, we have a great relationship with everybody.
03:58So, you know, the business is hard behind the scenes.
04:01It hasn't always been easy for us to rebuild what we thought we had or what we felt we were
04:06due.
04:07But it's made us tougher, and I think it's made us a better band.
04:09So, I don't have any regrets on that.
04:11You know, Melancholy was such a smash hit when it came out.
04:14And, you know, I would say it's by far the most listened to Smashing Pumpkins album of all time.
04:21Do you think if that album were to come out now versus 30 years ago, it would have been received
04:28in the same way?
04:28Just with how differently people absorb music these days?
04:32You know, that's a fantastic question.
04:34I really can't say, because your modern alternative slash rock listener really listens for a lot of different things.
04:42And it's such a wide-ranging album.
04:45You know, whether it be a somber or a young blood or, you know, there's a lot of great young
04:52alternative artists.
04:55I think that audience kind of listens to music differently and maybe has a different tolerance for time.
05:02So, it's hard to imagine that they would want to absorb that much music at one go.
05:07But then again, didn't Morgan Wallen, I think, just put out like a 38-song country album?
05:12So, I mean, I don't know.
05:14Maybe we're underestimating the audience.
05:16Maybe part of the problem is the last 10, 15 years is everybody's been underestimating the audience.
05:20People want great music.
05:21So, maybe the answer is if it's great, it should work no matter when it comes.
05:25It's also interesting, because like 1979, for instance, has become this weird almost anthem for Gen Z.
05:31And that's, you know, talk about songs that were written a long time ago that are being embraced by a
05:35totally new crowd now.
05:37And it's got to be weird.
05:39I don't know how you look at it now looking back on 30 years.
05:42But were there ever moments during the rise of Smashing Pumpkins where you were like, we got to call it
05:48quits?
05:49Did you go through periods of I'm calling it quits right now?
05:51Like, we've done what we could do?
05:52Because now I feel like you're getting a whole new life for the band.
05:56Yeah.
05:56I mean, I think there's times where you just feel like the whole thing kind of runs out of gas.
06:00I mean, when you've had success, there's always going to be a gig at a county fair or something.
06:06But like, to the level of your experience and to the level of your enthusiasm, no, it starts to get
06:13weird at certain times.
06:14And that's when you really have to double down on what you believe in music and, I guess, trusting the
06:20fans that you do have to carry you through the hard times.
06:23I don't know how we've landed where we've landed.
06:26We're in the best position we've been in probably since maybe melancholy.
06:31You know, with the momentum that's going on with the band right now, I mean, that's a long time.
06:35That's 30 years plus.
06:38And somehow we've stumbled back into a really sweet spot with the audience, with the world.
06:46We've had to learn a lot of lessons along the way.
06:50But we've also been punished for things that maybe we weren't responsible for.
06:53So it's hard to say.
06:55Maybe that's all for a book someday.
06:57But all I can tell you is we're very grateful that there's a young audience that still cares about what
07:03we do.
07:04And the fans that have stuck with us, I mean, we couldn't be more grateful.
07:06It's been amazing.
07:07And, of course, even K-Rock.
07:09We've had this long, great relationship with K-Rock.
07:11No station has been more supportive of the band through the decades than K-Rock.
07:16So we're very grateful to K-Rock as well.
07:18But you've also said before that we hold it over your head every day and we make you do things
07:22for us because of favors that we gave you 30 years ago.
07:24Right?
07:24True?
07:25Well, I think I once joked on the air that Kevin Weatherly makes me wash his car.
07:30Yeah.
07:30Still.
07:31Uh-huh.
07:31That's true.
07:32And, by the way, his car's a little dirty.
07:34Saw some bird crap on it this morning.
07:35Get over here, Billy.
07:35That's all I'm saying.
07:37You know, one thing I just want to add, and I'll be brief about it.
07:41It's, you know, when you're young, you know, you think the world owes you everything.
07:46And maybe there's something that works about that when you're young.
07:50But as you get older, you start to realize there's a lot of moving pieces in the world.
07:55Radio stations need ratings.
07:57Bands need to sell records.
07:58It's not so simple as maybe you want to make it out to be.
08:01So, I think that's where the appreciation comes in now is the fact that these relationships have sustained through the
08:08ups and the downs is really what matters.
08:10Well, we're excited that there's a new Smashing Pumpkins tour to announce and to attend.
08:14We've also talked about a couple of K-rock bands announcing, you know, and performing at the Sphere, doing residencies
08:19in Vegas.
08:20And would Smashing Pumpkins ever be interested in doing something at the Sphere?
08:24Because I feel like that would be incredible.
08:27Absolutely.
08:28It's a no-doubter for us.
08:30We just haven't been asked yet.
08:32Yeah, don't wait 30 years like Lollapalooza.
08:35You know what I'm saying?
08:35Sphere, step it up.
08:37Billy's ready.
08:37A guy's shaped like the Sphere.
08:39He should get a spot.
08:40See, if the Sphere came to us and said, we'd love you to do all of Melancholy with that production,
08:45now that makes sense to me.
08:47That makes sense to me to do something like that, to build a show around the album, much like we've
08:52done the opera with the Lyric in Chicago and now it's going to Europe.
08:56You know, that makes sense to me because then you have a chance to recast the songs and the music
09:02in a different dynamic.
09:03But playing a 30-year-old album with that pacing and that song order and expect everyone to sit there
09:09and be happy, I think that's asking a lot of the audience.
09:11That's why we fought against just going out and playing the record.
09:15The Rants in a Cage tour.
09:16Tickets officially go on sale.
09:18General ticket goes on sale a week from Thursday, May 21st, 10 a.m.
09:22We have tickets to give you coming up in about 10 minutes on K-Rock.
09:25We'll be doing that at 9, noon, 3, and 6 for the long relationship that K-Rock's had with Billy
09:29and, of course, the Smashing Pumpkins.
09:31And, as always, we have to wrap up every conversation with not one but two epic questions for the great
09:36Billy Corgan.
09:37Here we go.
09:38Two.
09:39Two.
09:40Two.
09:41Epic.
09:42Two.
09:42Epic.
09:43Question.
09:44Question.
09:45Question.
09:46All right.
09:47Question number one, Billy.
09:49If there were a wrestling match between Smashing Pumpkins and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, who would win in that
09:55wrestling match?
09:56Oh, the Peppers.
09:58Why?
10:00Yeah, no doubt.
10:01They're all in good shape.
10:03They all dance around naked.
10:05There's no, there's no, I mean, you know, it's the Peppers all day.
10:09We're going down.
10:12You know, you talk a lot about big issues.
10:14You always get our minds racing in directions that maybe we necessarily don't want them to go, but then we
10:19think about things.
10:20At least your music does that for me and I think other people as well.
10:22Are you more concerned for our future because of aliens or robots?
10:30I'm not worried about aliens because that if I'll start here, if the supposition is there are aliens, okay, and
10:36there have been aliens.
10:37Well, if they wanted to take us over, they would have done it a long time ago or they could
10:41take us over at any time.
10:42So I don't really, I don't really worry about that.
10:46That's like worrying about the elephant stomping on a bug, you know.
10:49Right.
10:50As far as the robot thing, I think the havoc that it's going to wreak is on the working class.
10:57And I think you already, you already see it.
11:00It won't be long where just those jobs that used to support the middle class, like people in my family,
11:05the people I grew up with, and those jobs are just not going to be there.
11:08And I think the government is known for a while that robotics is going to take over a lot of
11:13the workforce, which is why they started floating out universal basic income, and which is also why they passed pot
11:20legalization, because they just want people to stay home and play video games.
11:23Yeah.
11:24They want us to be checked out, right.
11:26Well, you can check that quote in about 30 years, because why would you start floating out paying people to
11:31stay home and not work?
11:33The only reason you would float that out is because you know they're going to need something to do and
11:38not be out in the street rioting, asking for jobs.
11:42Until the robots start staying home and playing video games, and then we don't know what we're going to do
11:45anymore.
11:45Well, and we're using robots to deliver us food so we can get more high and eat more.
11:49Well, Billy's on to something, man.
11:50But honestly, the question you should ask, not to do your job, but the question you should ask is, should
11:55we be more scared of AI or robotics?
11:57Mm-hmm.
11:58Because really, AI is going to be the real havoc wreaker here.
12:03Well, listen, Billy, when you're back in L.A. not doing funerals, or maybe when you come back in November
12:08for the show at the Forum,
12:09please stop into the K-Rock studios so that you can wash Kevin's car, and we can continue the chat.
12:13And always good to talk to you.
12:15Congratulations on a new tour for the Smashing Pumpkins, and thanks for spending some time with us this morning on
12:19K-Rock.
12:20Always great to talk to you.
12:21The great Billy Corson.
12:22The world-famous K-Rock.
12:24Klein-Ally Show.
12:25Chef, chef, chef, chef, chef.
12:26Klein-Ally Show.
12:27K-Rock.
12:27K-Rock.
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