Billy Corgan and Rivers Cuomo recently did an interview on BBC Radio 6 in the UK, and it was conducted on the tour bus in Cardiff. The main focus of the discussion was on the Smashing Pumpkins and Weezer tour itself, particularly the large number of young people attending the shows. This was seen as a positive sign that rock bands like theirs are still relevant. Corgan mentioned that his words in press interviews before the tour were often misunderstood, such as the headline: “Billy Corgan: ‘I won’t play the songs I don’t want to play'”.
He clarified that he simply prefers to play songs he’s in the mood for, but it was wrongly interpreted as a statement about his older songs. This misunderstanding led him to play along with it by questioning whether anyone would recognize the songs in the setlist.
Rivers also shared his experience of meeting the Smashing Pumpkins in the past and expressed his admiration for their album Gish. He also talked about how much he and his band enjoyed touring with the Smashing Pumpkins and playing Pickleball, a game he compared to giant table tennis. Billy praised Kiki Wong, the new Pumpkins guitarist, for her exceptional attitude and character. He shared a story where she humbly admitted that she may not have been the best guitarist during auditions, but cherished every moment.
In response, Billy wrote to her, acknowledging that there may be better guitarists than him, but they were all on stage together for a reason, which is what made their chemistry work. On top of that, Billy talked about the impact of childhood trauma and how it can lead to dissociation from oneself and others’ perceptions. He stated that he is not really worried about what fans think of his actions or words, but finds comfort in knowing that his music still really resonates with people, as shown by the success of their recent tours.
