JJJ Interivew
1998
B= Billy Corgan
D= D'Arcy
I= Interviewer
I: You Guys are like [D'Arcy clears throat] gigantic now and we're doing this secret gig in Sydney on Friday and we've been giving away tickets and we've had people ringing up from Adelaide saying if they went -- Oh the 14 hr drive, yeah got no trouble with that -- does that ever freak you out? The sort of level of Admiration and exultation you have from your fans. I mean, it must be a buzz but does it ever occasionally just, clock you?
D: It does for me when we come in to new places because i really... coming in here, you know, we haven't been here in what? 2 years or something and we have no idea of what's going on here with the band and so, it's surprising.
B: It's Amazing, Its Amazing. I mean, to read some of our press and stuff, sometimes you'd think we were this awful, horrible, insane monster of a band and then you turn around and you meet some fan and you realize how much your music means to them and really - If anybody will believe me - its the thing that keeps us going, it really is. Its that kind of love that we get when we play that really keeps us going because the world just doesn't seem to want to accept a band like us on certain levels because we're just too different, too weird, not... not cool enough, whatever all those things add up to be. And so those are really the things that keep us going.
I: At the same time, you've seen pictures of your own garbage on the internet...
B: Mmm?
I: ...That must freak you out?
B: I do have luxury garbage so, there's nothing embarrassing about my garbage I have really expensive garbage.
D: One man's garbage is another man's...
B: Garbage
D: Yeah
I: [Laughs] And a third persons web page
B: Yeah. Exactly, I feel like Oliver North now. I have like a shredder and ah, Its all very 007 now I have to, Like I have to give bags of my receipts and stuff to people to take to far away lands to burn because lest somebody get into my trash and...
I: So there's a whole network of people...
B: Yeah
I: ...Just covering the tracks (Trash?). Same with you D'Arcy? Have you got sort of...
B: Her fence is higher now so...
D: No
B: If you wanna talk about paranoia...
D: I have big dogs, and a tall fence, and i live in the middle of nowhere, where there are no people.
B: She actually lives in Central Australia.
I: [Laughs] One of the best kept secrets in rock. That's why you're doing the Australian gig. Sort of a coming home for D'Arcy.
D: Exactly
I: And its a long way, sort of 16 hrs straight into the desert but, for privacy, sometimes you gotta be willing...
B: She's got her own Mad Max thing going on
D: There aren't even roads out there, I have to walk [I Laughs] B: She's got her own Unicopter [All Laugh]
I: People say - What's that? Ah that's just D'Arcy, Don't worry she's just going back to the property.
I: You guys are at the stage now where you are sort of Heroes to many people. Do you still have heroes yourself, Do you still need them? Do the heroes still play any role in your life?
D: Unfortunately all my heroes are dead. But yes they are there.
I: [Laughs] Who were they?
D: All the musical heroes mostly from... I Dunno, Tom Wates (?) still alive isn't he?
I: As far as I know
D: He's out there somewhere, in Seattle brumming around in his cattle farm.
I: Tom Wates is is gonna out survive all of us. Tom Wates is great.
D: Yeah
I: Yourself Billy?
B: I take a lot of cues from people, I think, who have, like, kept there self respect and dignity throughout their careers and so, I often look at people like that to see what they did in certain situations, You know, like, uh Bob Dylan or John Lennon, you know, its like where they had the courage to go against what people thought and, you know, John Lennon was so controversial in the 70's because he wanted world peace, I mean, that was such a big deal but remember how much crap he got for the bed ins (?) and everything and, you know, you look at it, he actually brought the idea of peace as a concept to the entire world and maybe that's why now we're actually moving towards it. He may have played a part in that so, and he was willing to lose public adulation and record sales and all this to do the right thing and so I often think on my heroes in those ways because i think, you know, its always, you should be doing the right thing and not always about what somebody's telling you to do because its gonna sell you more records, you know. Its like there's what, almost 5 billion people on the planet, the biggest selling record in history is what? Michael Jackson 40 million, that's, like .00001 % of the planet. You know at the end of the day there's still plenty of people who don't care about the music but they care about the kids and their, and the environment, things like that so, I try to keep that kind of perspective.
I: Now you guys wear a fair bit of black and darker shade colours, what's a single colour that looks worst on you. What's the single colour Billy that you just put on sometimes and go -- Oh nahnah.
B: I look terrible in white. I Jus- I Don't look look an angel ill tell you that. [All Laugh]
I: D'Arcy, Any shades you won't go near?
D: Oh, Stay away from the neon greens
I: [Laughs] That sounds like a warning someone's giving at woodstock or something, you know...
B: Yeah Yeah right
I: ...Its going really cool man but stay away from the neon greens
B: She did have a Neon phase though
D: I did?
B: Long before the band
D: Really?
I: Are you in denial D'Arcy?
B: Your sister went into the whole thing the other day
D: I don't recall
B: I c-.. Ive never see you in green
D: This is not true
B: I Have seen you in green?
D: Yes, but more like, Army green
B: Oh, ok
I: A sort of Khaki, A sort of Camouflage
B: She went through a whole Castro phase [I laughs] I don't know if you've ever seen those pictures
I: The big cigars, I thought the beard looked great
D: Thank you [All Laugh]
I: Lets throw a hypothetical situation, You've got somebody you want to impress coming over, they're gonna be there in about half an hour at a place that you two share. Who cooks?
D: What??
B: [Laughs] What kind of Damn question...
D: What did you say?
I: You two are sharing a flat somewhere, someone you really want to impress is gonna be there in about half an hour, someone's gotta cook. Who's putting their hand up?
D: Ah that would be Billy's girlfriend Yelena
B: Yeah [All Laugh]
I: Quick on the phone to Yelena again
B: D'Arcy,- D'Arcy's not much of a cook
D: I can cook!. Are you kidding? Don't, Don't even get me started. I Just don't...
B: All i have to say is she used to have this ferret, and then one day she served me this meat...
D: The ferret couldn't cook.
B: ..And yet the ferret was gone so... [All Laugh] ...I don't know what happened to the ferret but that sure was some tough meat.
I: You Ever had any nasty experiences with Billy's cooking D'Arcy? Wanna shot back here?
D: I never really thought about it before but i don't think ive ever seen Billy cook.
I: Umm, you guys are doing the secret gig on Friday afternoon and...
D: Yeah Thanks [Laughs]
B: Not so secret now is it
I: I'm pretty sure i can tell the day... [All Laugh] ... Its a pretty big...
D: We can edit this out Yeah
I: Its a big country, I think people just knowing its a Friday's...
D: You know we're going to have to kill you now [I Laughs]
I: I chuckle yet it sounds so real. I don't know why I would do...
D: I'm smiling, but...
I: On the inside. One of those nervous laughter as the eyes focus on you and say, 'Well we're going to have to kill you'
I: The tour off the back of Mellon Collie was just absolutely gigantic
B: Yeah
I: You're playing more uh, large scales and select sort of gigs these days, what's- Is there any fundamental difference for you gus in doing a concert like that?
B: I think our thinking was to try to change the expectation level of the audience coming in. I think when you do like the big rock concert all of the time, people come in expecting a lot of like, lights and explosions and rightly so. Um, I think the kind of shows we try to do now, Its more like a Jam in the park if that makes any sense, like more fun kind of more music...
D: Minimalistic, like, Phillip (Fill Up?) Glass
B: Except the glass is broken
I: [Laughs] Phillip Shard
B: And we're not filling up much of anything
D: And Phillip ran away
I: [Laughs] Apart from that it's very close
I: I look forward to seeing the secret gig sometime - Can I - Sometime in the next 5 years, Yeah the gig...
D: STOP [Forced Whisper:] Mentioning the secret gig. Its a secret
I: [Laughs] I look forward to seeing you at shhhhhhh...
B: Yeah
I: ...Sometime in the next Dot Dot Dot. Thanks so much for popping into the departure lounge, Billy, D'Arcy
B: Thanks, Thanks so much for having us
I: Thank you Very Much
D: Thank you