We are finally back from our travels and ready to report on the sights and sounds of the August tour.  Billy and Jimmy got interviewed and played six concerts last week, so the least we could do was break down the new shows and analyze the new single. 

Listen to the whole show (1:08:12)

(download)(iTunes)

This week’s topics:

Panelists
-Chris, Jason, Jill, and Andrew

News
-Billy and Jimmy are interviewed on Mancow’s Morning Madness, and we talk about why Europe gets all the CDs while we get stuck with downloads.  Plus, the on-again/off-again Gish Box Set. (9:25)

Tour Roundup
-In case you missed it, the Smashing Pumpkins played out for the first time since the early days of the podcast.  Those of us who attended talk about the highlights, lowlights, and problems with playing the same setlist every night.  Plus, Jill gets jealous. (26:23)

In-Depth Discussion
-We finally got to hear G.L.O.W., so now we can debate its merits.  Jill has a theory on why the song may be so radio-friendly.  Plus, Ginger’s sleeping habits, and we outline Billy’s continuing love affair with ”come on” as a lyrical turn-of-phrase. (25:11)

This Week in Pumpkins History
-Matt Walker joins the band, but more importantly Andrew meets Tim Meadows! (2:13)

Song of the Week
-G.L.O.W., August 12th, 2008

…starring former Pumpkins drummer Matt Walker, with a closing cameo from Billy himself.  Watch it below; figure out what the heck is going on by reading this and/or this.

During the Zeitgeist recording sessions, Billy Corgan gifted former Pumpkins drummer Matt Walker’s new band The Most Dangerous Race with a song called “Signal to Noise” (stream at myspace.com). TheMDR keep the track’s production within walking (sorry) distance of that developed on TheFutureEmbrace, but J.T. McCluskey’s vocal drama lends a Kill Hannah-ish air to these little-known proceedings.

I suppose my personal award in the category “tortured love song written by Billy, executed primarily with synths and drum machines, and sung by someone else” still goes to “Identify”. Even though the song featured in a major movie and had a standalone video made by a hot-shot director (watch, YouTube), it still missed inclusion on singer Natalie Imbruglia’s new greatest-hits disc. Comments are open to your theory that record execs at Sony deemed the song too “dark”.