May 08, 2008 - Pumpkins plans for the rest of 2008

Original article and VIDEO can be found HERE

The Smashing Pumpkins, fresh off being inducted into Hollywood's Rockwalk, show no signs of slowing down in 2008. After the much talked about reunion of Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain, who brought out new members Jeff Schroeder, Lisa Harriton and Ginger Reyes for a Smashing Pumpkins tour in 2007, the band are currently working on a documentary of their small club reunion tour. The small club reunion tour, which featured multiple night runs in Ashville, North Carolina and at the legendary Fillmore in San Francisco, California, showcased The Smashing Pumpkins new lineup performing songs from their extensive catalog, songs from the band's latest album 'Zeitgeist' and a certain amount of improvisation in each set list.

We caught up with Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain to get their thoughts on staying very busy in 2008.

"Right now we got a lot up in the air. We're working on a DVD that's sort of a documentary of our residency Fillmore shows. We're going to put out hopefully some of our early demos for Christmas, probably put out a new Pumpkins single with new Pumpkins in the fall and then do a fall tour and then we start putting out a new Pumpkins album probably beginning next year."

Billy Corgan also talked about the documentary capturing the bands surprise at some of the crowd reactions to the bands small club reunion tour.

"It was interesting because we didn't do what you would've expected us to do coming back after seven years. We decided to play these small shows and also write new songs while we were doing it and play lots of different songs from our catalog and we were met head on by the new American audience that just basically wants greatest hits. So it was a very interesting dynamic. It kind of surprised us and the documentary we're making actually sort of charts the progress of our sort of optimism to the shows going in to sort of being surprised and shocked by some of the reactions we were getting and then the songs that came out of that process. It's not a bad thing because the world is changing and I think we were sort of blind sided a little bit by the world that we're living in now. Which I think now we're totally acclimated to. It doesn't shock us at all but at the time was sort of surprising."

The Smashing Pumpkins will mark their 20th anniversary this September with a special series of shows in New York, Los Angeles and their native Chicago. Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlain say they want to make each show special and they plan to have special guests at each show. The Smashing Pumpkins are also currently suing Virgin Records over the labels use of the band's music in a recent Pepsi ad. The lawsuit demands that Virgin pay the band the profits that were earned in the campaign, and asks for an injunction against using the Pumpkins' name or music in the future.

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Sueing Virgin
Thursday, May 29, 2008 - 7:33 am - djmatthewschwartz
I hope they win everything from Virgin. They are lucky to be in a time when we really are seeing the crash of big corporate music companies loosing to the internet.

Usually the way most contracts work with bands, Billy and Jimmy wouldn't even own the name Smashing Pumpkins, Virgin would and when they broke away Billy and Jimmy would've had to form a new band name.

Only one losing from this is Virgin and that blond aussie prick who runs it. I don't think anyone is crying from him losing some pocket change.

oh, ok
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 - 1:50 pm - DrShulgin
yo, yo, yo YO!!!
lol

RE: Yo! This Name ( :
Wednesday, May 21, 2008 - 12:54 pm - ThisName
YO, YO, YO, YO
YO, take that!

The band has already changed, so I guess I'd be more appalled than anything. All I'm trying to do is help influence with the rest of you Pumpkins' fans a better album than Zeitgeist.
I have nothing but love in my heart for what Billy Corgan does next and always excited for what's upcoming. But Alisha Keys sings great music and it always sounds like Alesha Keys, it's beautiful music, in a funny way her songs remind me of the greatest songs off MCIS such as Lily, We Only Come Out At
Night, By Starlight, Beautiful, In The Arms OF Sleep and Thirty Three... she has an old fashion sound that the Pumpkins had and it always sounds great. Billy Corgan gets really futuristic with most of what he does and it's failed to capture hearts the same way he did when he stuck to just writing great songs no matter how out of touch they are with politics, space ships and in touch with love, agony and beauty. Anyways, I really like the songs off American Gothic,
I'm just hoping for a full American Gothic album, with some truly Gothic American songs!!!!

Heavy Metal, Heavy Metal Machine let me die for rock n roll - BC

Yo! ~ThisName
Saturday, May 17, 2008 - 6:32 pm - DrShulgin
A reply to ThisName:

Maybe I'm not getting what you are saying, if so call me a dumbass or something But...
...I'm getting the feeling from your last post that your (maybe not much but just a little ) living in the past, afraid (or just unwilling to except) change. A bands music represents the personality of the band members. Sh*t! I'm hoping it's thier way of shining a little light on thoughts and opinions they normally would not just blurt out to anyone
A little bit of intimacy, ya know...
So to not expect the music to reflect the times, and change just as, is to expect the band members to stay the same. Which in my opinion is just an unrealistic view of them as somehow not like real people like you and I. They are affected, therefore changed, by all the BS going on just like everyone else. So do you see how their music would have to COMPLETELY change as their personality is molded by time?
Hope I'm not sounding bitchy and I hope I interpreted what you were saying pretty well
Waiting for a response ~or a "F*ck you! You're a dumbass! You did not get me at all!" ,
Doc
P.S. No spellcheck (and I can barely spell my own name ) *blush* Feel free to bitch at me~ANYONE *wink*
P.S.S. Are you maybe saying that you fear they will create music that is kinda selling out.. Bowing down to what the public (and the radio stations, the direction of the music industry)wants instead of staying true to thier own thoughts, feelings, opinions and perception of these times?

finally!
Thursday, May 15, 2008 - 5:38 pm - GATMOG_Fans
A show in NY?! At last my prayers will be answered....I hope...

RE: help!!!
Thursday, May 15, 2008 - 10:53 am - ThisName
7 Shades Of Black was as good as it could get on the new album for me, the song is perfect.. and the lyrics are phenomenal. With the experience of the break up with my ex girlfriend, I couldn't have said it better! But I think the new album was lacking style beyond that song... Tarantula was great, but the Pumpkins feel like their too unknown now to the new generation to have that summer feel of excellence with the single. Mellon Collie doesn't have to be why the band is touring today, it can be because they still have the f'kin juice, the Metallica, the means to be the greatest teen angst rock band that ever f'kin lived... Go Pumpkins Go ( :

ps. 'we're only going to be astonished if you stop trying to change your band and start helping change the radio' Kyle Black

Been too long
Wednesday, May 14, 2008 - 11:39 am - DrShulgin
I have been reading some of your comments and I agree on many things but the one that really stuck out was heavier music on the next album. Nice booming guitars like in '7 shades of black' and 'bleeding the orchid'. There were great samples of what I speak of in 'pomp and circumstance' but what I'm really looking for is that nice bumping rock I think we all are craving in these crazy times. As for the upcoming tour.. I don't mean to sound ungrateful but the ut show kinda sucked just cuz the band seemed disinterested and worn out So if yall have the time try to swing this way and show these dumb[bad word removed]s out here what you guys can really do. I must say that beside that very insignificant, small complaint about that show- the lighting was amazing.
Hoping as always for more,
Doc

Because...
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 - 4:27 pm - Glassperlen
...as history (of times, literature and arts) teaches us, classic can not be recreated. Classic is classic and belongs to the past. The longer classic you remain, the more in the past you fall, blind, unable to explore yourself as an artist or art itself at its borders and selfish to the world around you, as it is our natural cause to change, to seak, to create.

I understand for many of us it was and maybe still remains a difficulty to follow the new musical ways this band is paving for what i foresee, some future 'classics'.
Personally i 'grew up' with music of this band since my 12 (am now 28), i experienced its ups and downs, i love the classics, however i would really be disappointed if it remained to that.
The new album is a fresh musical air; the more i listen, the more i begin to understand it and making it 'mine' in my own ways...I adore Superchrist; (i know some of you will find idiotic)it is from my point of view one of the best pumpkin-long-guitar-jam-songs (with its fantastic drum playing) i have ever experienced from this band! HOWEVER: just a personal opinion. Anything new takes time to get 'established' in the minds of ppl, it's a matter of taste and interpretion..."in" or "out", what matters is that they are "on" again!!! Thumbs up!

Greeds and Peace on board...
Perlen of Glass

Help!!!
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 - 8:50 am - ThisName
I hope their next album is heavier, and if it [and always does] has soft or upbeat songs on it "please make them as good as others like 'by starlight' 'luna' and '1979'. Why doesn't Billy Corgan think he can recreate classic music??? I need an answer! with love ( ;

Special series of shows ?
Tuesday, May 13, 2008 - 1:11 am - 180etops
Why not include one special show in europe.
Pleaaaaaaaaaasssssssseeeeeeee !

For all your European fans that can't afford a ticket to the US.


Guilt trip..... Is it working??? .....

:-P

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