Billy Corgan said his main concern on his tour where he'll be dipping into deep cuts from The Smashing Pumpkins albums Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, Machina and Aghori Mhori Mei is remembering the lyrics.
Corgan told Rolling Stone, "There’s a lot of lyrics. I picked a lot of songs and there’s a ton of lyrics. Last night, my son wanted to watch Doctor Who. I was like, 'I gotta learn these lyrics.'"
When asked if he would ever use a teleprompter, Corgan said, "Oh no. I try to memorize everything...Listen, it helps to cheat. It’s a lot less stress. But I feel like I’m not as connected to the songs because I haven’t committed to understanding what I’m saying and why I’m saying what I’m saying."
He added, "When you’re singing a song that’s 30 years old, I think it’s important to get back into the mindset of, 'What was I trying to say?' or 'Why was this important for me to say this way?' Sometimes I’ll write funny words and I’ll go, 'Why the [heck] is that word in there?' So it helps me as a singer to think, 'Okay, I was upset about this thing and I sang this thing.'
Corgan and his solo band, The Machines of God, start their tour June 7th in Baltimore.