i of the mourning

This is a sum-up of BC:s visit to Sweden in april 2005.

It includes:

*Full transcript of the article in Aftonbladet (the biggest newspaper in Sweden)

*Info about the "yellow room" interview (Studio Pop)

*Link to the interview from "Kulturnyheterna" ("society news")

To begin with we have a Billy Interview from "Kulturnyheterna

":rtsp://qstream-rm.qbrick.com/00928/nyheter/2005/050427/knintervju.rm

The interview was broadcasted 000427 and runs approx. for 17 min's. You will need to download RealPlayer to play this file.(When downloaded, copy the link above and paste in the address field, hit enter)

Onto STUDIO POP:

The Swedish TV-host Per Sinding-Larsen interviewed Billy Corgan in a show called "Studio Pop" on april 27:th - 05.This is known as "the yellow room" interview. It has not (to my knowledge) yet been uploaded on the net. If it's still not available within the two weeks to come, I will make sure it will be, just wait and see :)

Snippets:

Corgan said he was feeling paranoid about the world we lived in, that being one of the thoughts in his head when writing songs for "TheFutureEmbrace".He thought Jimmy was the one that contributed the most to The Pumpkins (with him), and that there was no surprise they still were friends."If I break the rules (of alternative rock) again, do I get to sit here in this yellow room with you again?" "When i was singing "I'm just a rat in a cage" I was singing about how I enslaved myself, cause noone else was".Billy seemed a bit shy and laughed after they showed the world premier (parts only) of "Walking Shade"

....and finally the transcript of the Aftonbladet article: (free translation)

Name: Billy Corgan

Age: 38

Background: Engine, songwriter and singer in the trendsetting alternative rock band Smashing Pumpkins that was divided in 2000.Took the drummer Jimmy Chamberlin with him and built Zwan, along with three other musicians. Also that band was divided, only two years later.

Currently: Releases the solo debut "TheFutureEmbrace" june 21:th."

Burned out and disappointed"After the failure with The Zwan, Corgan has decided to stay away from bands. "Now it's me and two kittens. It's very simple: I feed them - they are loyal".

Billy Corgan from Smashing Pumpkins aims for a solo carrer.

Today they are enemies.

Matt Sweeney and Billy Corgan in Zwan before the band collapsed totally. Today Corgan feels ashamed for being involved with his former band mates."They were playing really bad and did stupid things, like bringing drugs over the borders when we played."

Drugs, sex scandals and lies.

After Billy Corgans latest band Zwan totally collapsed, the Smashing Pumpkins legend aims for a solo career."I feel completly decieved" he says to Aftonbladet.

The problems in Zwan began early. In the middle of the recording of the bands record debut, Billy Corgan discovered that the guitarist David Pajo was having sex with the producers girlfriend."It was crazy! The producer is my friend and then you've got a band member who's sleeping with his girlfriend.I threathened to fire him - he kept sleeping with her", says Billy Corgan.The sex drama was only the beginning. When Zwan didn't achieve immedieatly commercial success, the newcomers lived the rock myth instead."They began to play bad and did stupid things like bringing drugs over the borders when we was on tour. They didn't care about the music, me or the band, he says.- Didn't you realize it was untenable? "My brain didn't want to understand. My friends told me they were using me, but I didn't want to listen. These were my band members".But Billy became more and more unsatisfied and after two messy years with Zwan he had enough."I woke up and understood I was in the same situation as in Smashing Pumpkins, but with people I didn't love." In the loge (?) after the final concert on the european tour, Billy made an ultimatum."I told them they didn't seem to care a shit about the band and that they had to prove it, if they thought I was wrong", he says.Since then he's heard nothing from them."A year later I got a mail from Matt. The subject line was: "send me money", says Billy Corgan.Today Billy feels ashamed over being involved with the members of Zwan, with the exception of his inseperable friend Jimmy Chamberlin."It was a nightmare that I had created myself. I had invested my heart, money and my credibility. But I really thought that I had put together a good band that would last for long."On his solo debut he has for the first time moved away from the alarming rock and instead aimed for a bare and synth-oriented sound."If I do more guitarbased alternative rock it would sound as Smashing Pumpkins. It was the same problem with Zwan, so I felt it was important to do something different".

Corgan about:

The Argues in the Pumpkins

"The time in Zwan actually made me appreciate Pumpkins. It made a lot of those problems seem small. In the Pumpkins we argued about things like intergrity, focus and personal problems.But there was always commitment to the band. No matter how much we argued we still trusted each other".

Reunions

"I don't talk to James Iha or D'arcy anymore. Those relations are all gone. Smashing Pumpkins will never reunite, not with those members. But it's my band - I own the name and it's my songs. So if I want to play under that name I will".

The lies in Zwan

"Paz Lenchantin said she was playing on the first A perfect circle record - not true. She said that she and Billy Howerdel built the band - not true. She said that she got fired by Maynard and Howerdel - not true. With these people you wonder if they have been stealing from your house".

The article (in Swedish, with pictures) can also be found here:http://www.aftonbladet.se/vss/noje/story/0,2789,639070,00.html

*Updated 050502*

by (C)hristian

The Jack of all trades