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On the tail end of his acoustic tour in support of his latest effort Ogilala, Billy Corgan (yes, he changed his name back to Billy) stopped by the NPR offices for a fantastic Tiny Desk performance, his iconic voice accented by a string quartet.
Clad in full winter attire, Corgan opened his set with a beautiful rendition of the Smashing Pumpkins’ emotional Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness cut “Tonight, Tonight,” before turning to a grand piano that was somehow mashed behind the desk for Ogilala tracks “Aeuronaut” and “Mandarynne.” While it should be noted that it’s somewhat surprising Corgan didn’t try his lauded Miley Cyrus cover, or even pull out a new one for “incredible songwriter” Nickelback,
All in all, Corgan’s Tiny Desk performance a beautiful, intimate affair that shows why he is one of the staying powers in the alt-rock world, despite his strange claims of dealings with the supernatural that seem to come entirely out of left field. Ogilala is out now on Martha’s Music, and it’s a pretty good set of Rick Rubin-produced tracks to tide you over while we wait for that Smashing Pumpkins reunion. Stream it here.
