Get all your news in one place.

100's of premium titles.
One app.

Get all your news in one place.

100's of premium titles. One news app.

HISTORICAL FACTS: James iha | History Defined

“I found myself sitting next to Keith Richards – just two guys playing the guitar. Doesn’t get much better than that!” From Eric Clapton to Daft Punk and Avenged Sevenfold, Greg Leisz has played with everyone. But don’t call him a session guitarist

He says finding himself working with Matthew Sweet, k.d. lang, and Lucinda Williams has been a dream. But he still wants his stolen ’64 Strat back

Guitar World

"I have this memory of killing myself, blasting my head off, and then throwing the guitar at the amp over and over." The story behind the most intense song on the most ambitious rock album of the '90s

Life isn't always easy as a perfectionist

Louder

"Look at the bands that are out there now, crap like Radiohead. You can't tell us that we don't deserve to be more than that." On the eve of the release of Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness, Smashing Pumpkins wanted to take on the world

"Everyone keeps telling us how pretentious this album is without even hearing it"

Louder

From analysis to the latest developments in health,
read the most diverse news in one place.

"A masterpiece, and yet not the band's finest hour." Every Smashing Pumpkins album ranked from worst to best

The collected studio works of Billy Corgan and company rated and ranked, from the so-so to the smashing

Louder

"They told me I was insane – things like 'career suicide' and all that stuff was thrown around." The drama behind the recording of Smashing Pumpkins' era-defining, bombastic masterpiece

Thirty years after its release, Billy Corgan looks back at the making of The Smashing Pumpkins’ Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness

Louder

Life isn't always easy as a perfectionist

Louder

Alien-shred, Brit-rock royalty, one blues icon and a hardcore superstar: here are Guitar World's Guitarists of the Year 2025

All the players who rocked our world, in the year of Oasis reunions, Black Sabbath farewells, and guitarists keeping their shoulder to the evolutionary wheel of guitar playing

Guitar World

Read news from The Economist, FT, and more,
with one subscription

Why the Adore tour was the messiest, most all-over-the-shop moment in Smashing Pumpkins’ history (and it’s not just because some bloke wee’d on my foot at one of the gigs)

Billy Corgan & co. totally lost the plot in the bid to try and replace Jimmy Chamberlin in 1998. Two words: "percussion solo".

Louder

“Distortion, distortion, gain and more gain were my digs before I joined the Smashing Pumpkins. But they’ve introduced me to a whole new world of pedals”: Kiki Wong on her life-changing audition, and what she's learned from Billy Corgan and James Iha

Wong enjoyed a high-profile on social media and maybe that would have been enough. But when Billy Corgan called an open audition, she beat 9,999 others to live out her grunge dreams as guitar player for the Smashing Pumpkins

Guitar World

The 10 best Smashing Pumpkins B-sides and outtakes

Billy Corgan’s alt-rock titans were one of the most prolific bands of the 90s. Here’s ten brilliant cuts that never made it onto one of their records.

Louder

The 10 best cover versions by Smashing Pumpkins

Billy Corgan and crew's renditions of hits by U2, Hole, Fleetwood Mac, Depeche Mode, The Cure and, umm, Natalie Imbruglia

Louder

Into The Pumpkins-Verse! Your guide to The Smashing Pumpkins' ever-evolving line-up from their inception to the present day

Introducing the hardy souls who did a stint in Billy Corgan's crew

Louder

“I may not be the absolute best player out there – in fact, I know I’m not! But what I have is an undying love for guitar and heavy metal”: Kiki Wong landed the gig of a lifetime with the Smashing Pumpkins – and she knows she has big shoes to fill

The 35-year-old Instagram shredder was chosen from 10,000 applicants after she’d almost given up on her dream. She opens up on the interview and audition process, bonding with Billy Corgan over Dimebag Darrell, and why getting the guitarist spot was as joyful as giving birth

Guitar World

"I never thought little ole 15-year-old me playing metal guitar in my bedroom would amount to this moment": Kiki Wong named as new Smashing Pumpkins guitarist

Vigil Of War guitarist joins the Chicago band after an open audition process that attracted 10,000 applications

MusicRadar

Get all your
news in one place.

100's of premium titles.
One news app.

Metal Hammer

Every The Smashing Pumpkins album ranked from worst to best

The collected studio works of Billy Corgan and company rated and ranked, from the so-so to the smashing

Guitar World

“There are 8 people working full-time to review each and every one”: The Smashing Pumpkins receive 10,000 submissions for new guitarist role

The alt-rock icons have recruited an entire team to review every single application

MusicRadar

"As good as D’arcy and James are, it was just going to sound better if Billy played it" – Billy Corgan, Jimmy Chamberlin, Butch Vig, Flood and more on the Smashing Pumpkins' recording history

Classic interview – From Gish to Zeitgeist, through the eyes of the key players… plus the 11 underrated Pumpkins songs guitarists need to hear

Guitar World

The Smashing Pumpkins are looking for a new guitarist – anyone can apply, but securing the position won’t be easy. Here are 5 things you need to nail to get the gig

Reckon you’ve got what it takes to play alongside Billy Corgan and James Iha? It will take much more than just learning the songs

Get all your
news in one place.

100's of premium titles.
One news app.

MusicRadar

Could you be the next Smashing Pumpkins guitarist?

Applications are open now

The Independent UK

Smashing Pumpkins to hold open auditions for new guitarist

The search for Jeff Schroeder‘s replacement is on

Louder

"We have one rule: you can have body punches and choke-holds and throw bottles at each other, but we never crack each other in the face": What happens when bands fight

The 40 bitterest bust-ups in rock history: From fisticuffs to wars of words to litigation and beyond, rock'n'roll’s divorce courts are packed with ire and animosity:

Guitar World

“Even though we went through some really rough and confusing years, I feel like the band is in a better place than when I joined”: Jeff Schroeder opens up about his departure from the Smashing Pumpkins

After 15 years with the alt-rock mainstays, virtuoso guitarist Jeff Schroeder has departed the Smashing Pumpkins. In this exclusive interview, he reveals what prompted him to leave, how the return of James Iha impacted his decision, and why his time with Billy Corgan and co changed his guitar playing forever

Louder

"It was us saying, This is us, we're here to kick your door down": The tortured birth and eternal genius of Smashing Pumpkins' masterpiece Siamese Dream

Released on July 27, 1993, Smashing Pumpkins second album is one of the greatest alternative rock albums ever. "All I had to figure out was how to write a pop song," recalls Billy Corgan

Newcastle Herald

Smashing Pumpkins serve night of riffs, hits and power slams

Smashing Pumpkins, Jane's Addiction and more.

Newcastle Herald

Smashing Pumpkins' Billy Corgan blends wrestling and music

"It's a bit like punk rock back in the day, in the sense that people in wrestling feel marginalised by American culture."

1 2

People

From analysis to the latest developments in health,
read the most diverse news in one place.

Organisations

Read news from The Economist, FT, and more,
with one subscription

Topics

Places

Fourteen days free

Download the app

One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.