Latest news with #MellonCollieandtheInfiniteSadness
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Rock Icon Says This 90s Band Is 'Bigger Than the Ramones'
When you think of punk, you think of the Ramones, right? The New York City quartet ushered in the sound we now know as punk in the 1970s. But to of The Smashing Pumpkins, one band has eclipsed the Ramones: Green Day. 'I think it had something to do with the fact that they just got their star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame,' Billy told Rolling Stone. 'I'm watching them get their star and…I had this moment where I was reminiscing and I was like, 'Wow, I've known these guys for over 30 years, and we just did this tour. Oh my God, they're bigger than the Ramones.'" The 58-year-old alternative icon explained his reasoning in putting his fellow '90s rockers ahead of the band many consider invented punk. 'In the world I grew up in, the Ramones were number one,' he said. 'In a way, they always will be number one because they were first.' "But then I realized, 'Oh my God, Green Day has actually done it. They are bigger than the Ramones. Their influence is greater, their reach is greater, and certainly their success is greater,'' said Corgan. Both Green Day and The Smashing Pumpkins formed in the late 1980s but experienced massive success in the early '90s. The Pumpkins became synonymous with alternative rock with Siamese Dream, released in 1993, and 1995's Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness. Green Day ushered in the punk explosion with 1994's Dookie. A decade later, they experienced a career renaissance with the release of American Idiot and remain one of the biggest rock bands on the planet. The Pumpkins toured with Green Day in 2024. 'It was awesome,' Billy told Rolling Stone. 'Green Day was so gracious. We couldn't have had a better summer. It was one of my favorite tours of all time.' 'They were so gracious in being hosts, not only to us, but to Rancid and the Linda Lindas,' said Corgan. 'It was just the spirit of what it's supposed to be when you put bands together. It was one of the best experiences we've ever had, and we're forever grateful to them.'
Time Out
13-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Time Out
Bangkok welcomes back The Smashing Pumpkins this October
If you've ever paid attention to The Smashing Pumpkins – not just the sound but the mythology, the tantrums, the bald ambition of it all – you'll know Billy Corgan has long treated music less as a career and more as a divine crusade. He once described his art as a 'true narrative,' only to watch, in his words, 'people quite cleverly try to disassemble what I'd actually built.' Translation: he's never been one for subtlety. Or brevity. This year, the band returns to Bangkok for the first time in 29 years. Yes, twenty-nine. Their last appearance on Thai soil was at the Thai-Japanese Stadium in 1996, back when '1979' was still fresh enough to feel prophetic rather than nostalgic. This time, they'll take the stage at Union Hall on Friday, October 1 – part of a long-overdue Asian tour that also includes dates in Japan, South Korea and the Philippines. For the uninitiated, The Smashing Pumpkins are the goth-adjacent, guitar-heavy architects of alt-rock's most theatrical moments. They were moody before moody was a brand. Their 1995 double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness remains one of the most ambitious records of the decade – part concept album, part existential cry into the void. Tracks like 'Tonight, Tonight' and 'Bullet with Butterfly Wings' weren't just radio staples; they were angst anthems for anyone who felt dislocated by their own youth. Corgan, with his monk-like dome and Nietzschean one-liners, has remained an enduring (if polarising) figure in music – part provocateur, part poet, wholly convinced of his own genius. Yet for all the myth-making, the band's return to Thailand feels less like a legacy act cashing in on old glories and more like a strange kind of homecoming. The music never really left; it just became harder to categorise. Whether you're there for the nostalgia or the noise, it's difficult to deny the weight of their return. Three decades later, The Smashing Pumpkins are still wrestling with the void – and asking the rest of us to listen in.
Yahoo
30-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Today Is the Worst: Another Car Crashes Into Billy Corgan's Tea Shop
The post Today Is the Worst: Another Car Crashes Into Billy Corgan's Tea Shop appeared first on Consequence. Either Billy Corgan's tea shop is in a bad location traffic-wise, or people aren't digging the Smashing Pumpkins frontman's scones. On Tuesday (April 29th), a car crashed into Madame Zuzu's in Highland Park, Illinois, for the second time in six months. Thankfully, unlike the incident in October, no one was hurt this time around, and the damage to storefront wasn't nearly as severe. According to WGN9, the alt-rock musician's wife, Chloe Mendel Corgan, reported that it was 'an honest accident' and that there was 'some exterior damage.' Get Billy Corgan Tickets Here A statement on the shop's official Instagram page read, 'Earlier today, there was an accident outside of Madame Zuzu's involving a vehicle that struck the front of the café. Thankfully, no one was injured. Thank you to everyone who checked in and offered support.' By the time WGN9's helicopter was over the scene, the car had been moved from the area, with only some damage to the shop's brick facade visible. Billy himself posted a photo of the damage on X/Twitter, with the caption, 'Can you believe someone drove into Madame Zuzu's again?' The rocker can be seen taking the photo in the window's reflection. The result was far worse in October, when a red Mini Cooper crashed into Madame Zuzu's, injuring Billy's mother-in-law, with his son narrowly avoiding harm. The shop's windows were completely blown out due to that incident. The Pumpkins singer-guitarist originally opened the tea shop in Chicago's Ravinia neighborhood in 2012. After shutting it down in 2018, Billy and Chloe re-opened the store at its current Highland Park location in September 2020. In addition to selling tea, Madame Zuzu's offers a largely vegan menu of food items. On the music front, Corgan is as busy as ever. He recently announced a solo tour celebrating the Smashing Pumpkins albums Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (30th anniversary) and Machina/The Machines of God, plus its sequel Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music (both 25 anniversary). That outing kicks off June 7th in Baltimore and runs through June 29th in Minneapolis, with tickets available here. Additionally, Corgan is teaming up with the Lyric Opera of Chicago for a series of concerts reimagining Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness in November. Watch WGN9's report on the latest car crash at Madame Zuzu's, and see Billy Corgan's tweet of the damage, below. Popular Posts LAPD Releases Body Cam Footage of Shooting Involving Weezer Bassist's Wife Jillian Lauren Katy Perry Goes Viral for Cringe Choreography at "Lifetimes Tour" Kickoff Phish Snubbed by Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Despite Winning Fan Vote Jack Black's Minecraft Song "Steve's Lava Chicken" Sets Billboard Record for Shortest Hot 100 Hit Bruno Mars Adds New Dates to His Eternal Las Vegas Residency at Park MGM Rock & Roll Hall of Fame's 2025 Class: The White Stripes, OutKast, Soundgarden & More Subscribe to Consequence's email digest and get the latest breaking news in music, film, and television, tour updates, access to exclusive giveaways, and more straight to your inbox.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Billy Corgan to play classic Smashing Pumpkins album on new tour
Billy Corgan is celebrating the anniversary of a couple of pivotal Smashing Pumpkins recordings by taking a non-Smashing Pumpkins project on the road to play Smashing Pumpkins songs. Billy Corgan and the Machines of God will take off on a tour that starts June 7 in Baltimore and wraps up with a date at the Varsity Theater in Minneapolis on June 29. While the ensemble isn't actually Smashing Pumpkins, it does have Corgan as the frontman, and they will be performing music from the band's albums, with a focus on Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995), Machina/The Machines of God (2000), and Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music (2000). All three of those albums are celebrating round-number anniversaries, which is all the occasion required. (2024's Aghori Mhori Mei isn't at a familiar anniversary number but will still have tracks that are part of the setlist.) Corgan's band for the tour includes new Pumpkins' guitarist Kiki Wong, drummer Jake Hayden, and bassist Kid Tigrrr (aka Jenna Fournier). As part of the anniversary, the Smashing Pumpkins will release newly remixed and remastered versions of their 2000 companion albums. For those who truly can't get enough of Corgan and co., his Chicago cafe, Madame Zuzu's, will have an exclusive release of Machina and Machina II in an 80-song box set. Elsewhere in the Upper Midwest, Corgan and the Machines of God will stop in Detroit (June 19), Joliet (June 20), Grand Rapids (June 21), and Milwaukee (June 27). Tickets go on sale to the general public at 10 a.m. on Friday, April 4.
Associated Press
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Associated Press
Lyric Opera of Chicago will start to reflect John Mangum's production picks in 2026-27
CHICAGO (AP) — The Lyric Opera of Chicago's 2025-26 season will include five productions that first appeared elsewhere and one revival, all picked by the previous general director, Anthony Freud. The current general director, John Mangum, arrived on Oct. 14 from the Houston Symphony after the retirement of Freud, who had led the Lyric for 13 years. Mangum plans on seven mainstage operas in 2026-27, including three of his choosing. Freud left in place two titles for 2027-28, the final season he partially programmed. Mangum is planning a 2029-30 season marking the 75th anniversary of the company and the 100th anniversary of the opera house. Following an opening gala on Oct. 10, next season's staged works start the following night with the company premiere of Cherubini's 'Medea' in the Italian version, the company announced Tuesday. Sondra Radvanovsky sings the title role in David McVicar's staging, repeating her performance that opened the Metropolitan Opera's 2022-23 season. 'It's expensive to originate a production on your own,' Mangum said. 'The `Medea' is a great example. That's a co-production that we invested in from the beginning and was always intended to come here. That really I think is the new model. The idea that the house can just do a production on its own is economically not really feasible these days.' The number of performances will increase to 59 in 2025-26 from 47 this season, down from a pre-pandemic high of 66 in 2017-18. Next season includes three concerts of Orff's 'Carmina Burana' and seven by alternative rocker Billy Corgan focusing on the 30th anniversary of his recording with The Smashing Pumpkins, 'Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.' The Lyric has sold 72% of tickets this season prior to remaining productions of Puccini's 'La Bohème' and Missy Mazzoli's 'The Listeners' that open this month. The 2023-24 season ended at 75%, down from 76% in 2022-23. Elijah Moshinsky's 2002 Lyric Opera productions of Mascagni's 'Cavalleria Rusticana' and Leoncavallo's 'Pagliacci' open Nov. 1 and feature Yulia Matochkina and SeokJong Baek in their company debuts. Elena Stikhina and Nicholas Brownlee make their company debuts on Jan. 25 in Strauss' 'Salome,' in a McVicar production first seen at London's Royal Opera in 2008. Mozart's 'Così fan tutte' opens Feb. 1 in Michael Cavanagh's 2021 staging from the San Francisco Opera that sets the action in a 1930s U.S. country club. Matthew Ozawa directs Puccini's 'Madama Butterfly' starring Karah Son in her company debut on March 14, 2026, in a staging first seen at the Cincinnati Opera in 2023. Gabriela Lena Frank's 'El último sueño de Frida y Diego' opens March 21, 2026, in the Lorena Maza staging from the 2022 world premiere at the San Diego Opera.
