Hours of Radiohead material from the 1997 OK Computer sessions recently leaked, and now Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan is weighing in. Below are highlights from his Q&A.
With the recent OK Computer leaks, how would you react if there, how would you react if there was a SP sessions leak?
“There have been leaks and violations of our trust. Very hurtful, and the FBI file on our leaks remains open.”
Plans to play more solo songs with the full band? Would love Zowie or Walking Shade.
“There is no firewall between SP and WPC solo. James and I have discussed solo shows together, and SP is capable of playing James’ solo works, or mine, and so on. Or Zwan songs.”
Any chance the new lineup would perform Mary Star of the Sea if you reissue the album?
“More likely that you’d see a Zwan tour with Jimmy, Jeff, and I and a few friends who are fans of the band.”
How can you ‘reform’ Zwan without any of the original band? That’s not reforming.
“Who said I was reforming the band. You are projecting your own issues outward. It’s my band (currently defunct) and my songs to sing, and if you need to see an OG lineup I guess you aren’t coming to see SP either.”
Trust me- no issues here! And you eluded to reforming Zwan plenty.
“You have to love the passive aggressiveness in this statement. Beware how others (these days) define what words mean to you. Reform means simply to reform an idea. Reunion means the same people.”
I love how people seem to be enjoying GLOW and SC now more than when they were released.
“Maybe I’m not as washed up as was reported 12-15 years ago.”
Tech Dirt reported about the Radiohead leak:
As noted in that parenthetical, someone apparently hacked Yorke, and somehow got access to a set of 18 minidiscs of somewhat random/eclectic material that Yorke had recorded in the 1996/97 timeframe, when the band was working on its seminal Ok Computer album. The hackers apparently then asked Yorke/Radiohead for $150,000 not to release the material. The band chose not to give in to the hackers, who then did leak the material.
However, soon after the material was leaked, the band announced (via Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood’s Instagram) that the band was now officially “releasing” that material on Bandcamp for £18 (or more) and donating any funds raised to Extinction Rebellion (a climate change advocacy group).
