2001- January 2001-At the start of the month, the Machina Mystery was revealed with the release of "Glass and the Machines of God/a modern fable" on the SP official website. "Cash Car Star" and "Let Me Give
the World to You" were released on a CD promo to radio stations a little later. Photos taken by James Iha during the Resume The Pose Tour were featured in an issue of I-D, a British art/fashion/music/
culture magazine. The issue also included an interview with James about the end of the band and
what his feature plans were. He mentioned that he wanted to eventually work on a new solo record
new solo record, and collaborate with some of his friends' bands.
February 2001-Melissa Auf Der Maur was named Best Female Bassist for the Gibson Awards. Cheap Trick's live cd, Silver was released on the 27th. The cd was a double disc set of their 25th
anniversary homecoming concert from 1999 in Rockford, Illinois. Billy Corgan performed a few songs with them on stage, all of which appear on the cd. The model on the cover of Adore, Amy Wesson
appeared in this year's Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Edition. Melissa Auf Der Maur may news again
when she was interviewed by Launch.com this month. She revealed that she had plans to release
plans to release a photo diary of her years touring with Hole and The Smashing Pumpkins. Melissa had recently recorded a bass part for Rufus Wainwright's newest release.
March 2001-It was revealed early in the month that James Iha started his own clothing line called Vapor. Billy was rumoured to be collaborating with Marrianne Faithful on her new solo record and
and with New Order on their new album (both would later become a reality). Jimmy Chamberlin
was inducted into his hometown of Joliet's hall of fame. Billy performed later on in the month with
Marriane Faithful at Metro during the 3rd Waltz benefit concert. April 2001-James Iha was keeping busy again by producing Japanese pop star, Chara's new album. The Pumpkins' former touring drummer, Matt Walker performed on the album. In a move that upset
many SP fans in the online community, Rolling Stone mentioned SP's Adore in their commentary,
"When Good Artists Make Bad Albums". Sebastian Bach was busy promoting the online sale of the
Last Hard Men's album this month, which featured Jimmy Chamberlin on drums. On the 24th and
25th, James was busy again, performing on stage with former Shudder ToThink guitarist, Nathan Larson. May 2001-Billy appeared on Guitar Legend's Top 100 guitarists list. James began collaborating with Ivy on their latest album in NYC. Billy was rumoured to be joining New Order but these were quashed
when bassist, Peter Hook revealed that he would be merely a temporary touring member. Billy filled
the void left by keyboardist, Gillian Gilbert, who took indefinite leave from New Order to take care of
her daughter. The Pumpkins' "I Am One" was featured on a cd compilation in celebration of Hut
Recordings 10th anniversary. June 2001-It was reported that Billy would be making a cameo appearence in the Jonas Akerlund film, "Spun" and he recorded the soundtrack for it as well. Meanwhile, Melissa Auf Der Maur appeared on
the soundtrack for the Comedy Central show, 'Mr. Show'. July 2001-Billy Corgan made an appearance at the first installment of Act IV-A Tribute To The Smashing Pumpkins on July 7th, 2001. Along with introducing the headliner, Kill Hannah, Corgan also
announced their would be a Greatest Hits cd and DVD released before Christmas. The cd would
include the last song the band I ever recorded, 'Untitled'. Billy also said that a limited number of
copies would include a bonus disc-the followup to Pisces Iscariot, Judas O'Reilly. He also said that a
DVD of the final SP concert at Metro was also in the works, which would include a documentary about
the end of the band. But the release date of the Metro DVD would be no earlier the X-mas 2002. The
concert also included performances by Ketamine (South Africa), D'arcy (the band from Hobart, IN),
Lost Logic (Long Island, NY), Christophe Thibault (San Francisco), Lindsey Kuper (Iowa), and Robyn Del Resario (San Diego). Also released at the concert was a tribute cd called Ghost Children, which included covers by some of the performers from Act IV as well as people who had submitted demos to
Act IV or the Ghost Children project itself. The concert was held at the legendary Metro nightclub
in Chicago with a sold-out crowd. The day was eproclaimed Smashing Pumpkins Day in Chicago via a
declaration signed by Chicago Mayor, Richard Daly. Ex-Pumpkins engineer, Bjorn Thorsrud approached
Ketamine after seeing their performance at Act IV, to further develop their material. Billy, Jimmy, and
Chris Holmes performed a cover of Bob Dylan's "Forever Young" for Bozo the Clown's farewell special,
which aired on the 14th. On the 17th, Billy performed his first gig as touring guitarist with New Order
with New Order in London. Corgan also colloborate with Paul Oakenfold and Lisa Marie Presley on their respective forthcoming albums.He had also became Chicago band, Sleeping at Last's executive
producer, trying to help them get signed. Billly was also rumoured to play as a part of a Breast Cancer
benefit at the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, but he later revealed that the rumour was not true. Mellon
Collie and the Infinite Sadness reached another milestone by being certified 9 times platinum by the RIAA. Billy also continued touring with New Order as they joined the Area One tour on the 31st.
August 2001-Early in the month, the arguably horrible Pumpkins' tribute CD, Midnight in the Patch was released.
September 2001-It was revealed that there would be a cartoon on Screenblast based on the Glass and the Machines of God fable. Billy described rational and story behind the comic in an interview with
Screenblast, and revealed that the music would consist of remixes of SP songs, and possibly cover as
well. October 2001-On the 15th,the official SP website starting broadcasting a documentary about the band called, "Graceful Swans of Never" in 6 installments over a period of 6 weeks. At that time, the documentary was known to fans as The Smashing Pumpkins 1988-2000. Further details of the Greatest Hits CD and DVD were revealed, including a complete tracklisting of the cd. Around this time, a video for "Untitled" premiered on MTV Europe. The video consisted of a composite of live performances featured
in the Vieuphoria video, as well as other live video from the archives and shots of the band recording
the song at Chicago Recording Company. James returned to the studio to record a cover of The Beatles
track, "Hey Bulldog" with The Blank Theory. Rumours were also spreading that James and Melissa would
be forming a supergroup called Virgins with Ryan Adams, Evan Dando, and Jesse Malin. Meanwhile, tour
dates were confirmed for Billy and Jimmy's new band, Zwan, which also features David Pajo and Matt
Sweeney. In Zwan's first incarnation, The True Poets of Zwan, David Pajo was known only as Skullfisher.
November 2001-On the 6th, the post-humous single for "Untitled" was released. It featured the b-sides, "Try, Try, Try" (Version 1) from Machina 2, as well an alternate version of "Age of Innocence". Billy
appeared as a guest panelist on Politically Incorrect on the 12th. The Pumpkins were selected for The
Record Academy's (Chicago chapter) 2001 Heroes award for musical accomplishment in the local community. On the 14th, Zwan played the first gig, supporting Bonnie Prince Policy during an event to
raise funds to reopen the RAWA Malalai hospital. 2 days later, on the 16th, Zwan played their first official
their first offiical played their last gig of the mini-tour at the Roxy in Los Angeles on the 21st. Meanwhile, screenings of the SP documentary, "Graceful Swans of Never" were shown throughout the month across the US. The Greatest Hits CD, DVD, and Video were released on November 19th in the UK and the 20th in
North America (see Landslide's discography for full details). The DVD/video included an alternate version
of the "Untitled" video, which shows the band recording the song at Chicago Recording Company.
December 2001-The Zwan performed a series of shows under the name, Dhali Zwan. They performed both early and late shows in Grand Rapids, Michgan @ The Intersection (Dec. 13th) and Indianapolis, Indiana
@ Emerson Theatre (December 14th). Back on the 5th, the achivements of SP and other honorees were celebrated at the dinner gala for The Record Academy's (Chicago chapter) 2001 Heroes Awards
2002-
January
2002-A remix of Glass' Theme was released on
the internet, which was featured on the trailer for
the Screenblast cartoon, "Glass and the Machines of God".
There was also talk of a Melissa Auf Der Maur
solo album, tenatively called "Auf Der Maur". Project for
release at the end of 2002, the album was said
to include guests such as James Iha, Chris Holmes, members of Melissa's
former band from Canada
-Tinker, as well as Rufus Wainwright. She also debuted her Black Sabbath
cover band, Hands of Doom in
a NYC club. Billy Corgan also elaborated more on the story behind
the "Glass" cartoon later on in the month.
February 2002-Melissa Auf Der Maur performed with her side project band, Chelsea on February 6th at LA's
Spaceland. The band also features, Paz from A Perfect Circle, Samantha Mahoney (former Hole drummer), and Radio Sloan. March 2002-On the 23rd, Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin performed at the 4th Waltz benefit concert in
Chicago. April 2002-Zwan performed their first show of 2002 on the 5th with new bassist, Paz (A Perfect Circle) at the Blue Note in Columbia, Missouri. Meanwhile, an article/interview by James Iha was featured in Spin Magazine. Billy reportedly bought a condo in Chicago's Gold Coast. Billy returned to Chicago for three sold out shows at the Double Door from the 12th to the 15th. May 2002-Zwan retook the stage at Q101's Jamboree on the 18th at Tweeter Center in Tinley Park, IL. June 2002-At beginning of the month, it was revealed that the Metro DVD would be put on hold for the time being. On the 29th, Melissa and her Black Sabbath cover band, Hands of Doom performed their first show in Canada at Montreal's Campus Cafe. James Iha performed with The Blank Theory at Metro during Mobfest on the 20th. July 2002-On Canada Day, Hands of Doom took the stage as a part of Edgefest in Barrie (near Toronto). The second installment of Act IV-A Tribute to The Smashing Pumpkins was held by fans of the band at Metro in Chicago on the 5th. In support of the event, Joe Shanahan (Metro club owner) set up screenings of the "Graceful Swans of Never" documentary through the Gene Siskel Memorial Film Center. Screenings were held on the 6th and the 11th. Immediately following the 11th showing of the film, there was there was a panel discussion about the Pumpkins with special panelists: Joe Shanahan, Greg Kot, Jim Derogatis, Norm Weiner, and Hank Neurberger (Chicago Recording Company). Meanwhile, Zwan was busy recording tracks for their forthcoming debut album. Joining Zwan in the studio was former Pumpkins recording engineer, Bjorn Thorsrud.
August 2002-Marrianne Faithful's album, Kissing Time is released. Billy Corgan collaborated with her on three songs: "I'm on Fire", "Where Ever I Go", and "Something Good"
September 2002-It was reported by a Swedish website that James Iha was allegedly assaulted and robbed while in the country, working with a Swedish artist. Also, a song by James Iha called "Never Ever" surfaces in the US. It was released earlier in Japan in the 2002-2003 Vapor catalog. The song was described as sounding reminiscent of early SP Adore era material. On the 9th, the members of Zwan begin playing a series of open mic nights at the Hideout in Chicago. Dubbed "Jack Sweeney's Open Mic Night" the series of shows occurred every Friday for 9 weeks straight. Some songs were performed by each member solo, some with other band members, but never as a whole band. Also, they played a mixture of covers and Zwan originals.
November 2002-The last of the series of "Jack Sweeney's Open Mic" Nights occurs on the 4th. They also retook the stage on the 26 at Park West in Chicago. Also, it was announced earlier in the month that Zwan had signed deal with Reprise Records, with hopes of finishing recording their album by year's end. The band's first single, "Honestly" hits the airwaves in Chicago on Q101 on the 22nd. On the 20th,Vieuphoria is released as a DVD with extras including 40 minutes of concert footage from 1994 called "The Lost Basement Tapes". The CD companion to the video, Earphoria was also re-released. This time it a commercial wide release rather than a limited promotion.
December 2002-On the 2nd, "Honestly" is premiered on the airwaves in the rest of North America. Then on
the 5th, Zwan performs in Las Vegas at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. Zwan performed at the KROQ
Almost Acoustic Christmas. At the show, Billy was tripped by Bert McCracken of The Used. In response,
Billy proceeded to kick McCracken in the stomach. Their mini-tour also comprised of a series of radio station Christmas events starting in Boston on the 11th and ending on the 18th at the Opera House inToronto. They also performed a small set an and were interviewed on Much Music on the 17th
2003- January 2003-At the start of the month, the video for "Honestly" premiered on MTV. From the 19-25, Zwan played a sold-out 5 night stand at Metro. On the 23rd, they also performed "Honestly" on Late Night with David Letterman. Their cd release party for their new album was at the Museum of Industry and Science in Chicago on the 27th. Finally, the band released their first album, "Mary Star of The Sea" on the 28th. The album debuted at peaked at #3 on Billboard, and #4 on Soundscan (Canadian charts). February 2003-Zwan played a small promotional tour in Europe, starting in Tokyo and ending on the 24th in Libson Portugal. Some performances of note included an all acoustic set at Cafe de la Danse in Paris,
as well as a series of radio performances in London for XFM and BBC. Early in month, JBTV aired an 1 hour hour Zwan special on the 5th. The special included an interview, videos the band requested, and the "Honestly" video. It was reported that James Iha, as well as Foo Fighter Dave Grohl, would be appearing on Melissa Auf Der Maur's solo album, set for release sometime in the summer of 2003.
March 2003-Zwan begins the North American leg of their world tour with a show in Minneapolis. On the 9th, Billy Corgan and Jimmy Chamberlin performed at the Fifth Waltz at Metro. They both performed seperately for a few songs, as well as collaborating with jazz vocalist, Kurt Elling by covering Jimi Hendrix's "Freedom. "Spun", the first feature film by Jonas Akerlund was released in LA and NY on the 14th. The soundtrack featured Zwan's music. Billy also makes a cameo in the movie, playing a doctor. It was announced at the end of the month that Zwan would be releasing a CD and DVD in 2004 for their acoustic incarnation, Djali Zwan. In addition to Paz, Djali Zwan was reported to also now include her sister, Anna at cello as well.
April 2003-The "Lyric" video is posted on the 9th on MTV's website, and then is premiered on MTV on the 10th. On the 12th, Zwan performs of Saturday Night Live. The songs that were played were "Lyric" and "Settle Down". Lisa Marie Presley's debut album, To Whom It May Concern was released. The album featured a collaboration between Lisa and Billy Corgan. Billy co-wrote and played guitar on the song, "Savior".
June 2003-Early in the month it is announced that Zwan would be cancelling the rest of their European tour reportedly due to 'Family Matters'. The dates affected were the June 15th-Imola, Italy show and onwards. The last show Zwan played was in St. Poelten, Austria on the 13th. The "Lyric" single was released on the 2nd. Zwan.com posts Compilation One of the performances at the Hideout. It was It was announced that Probot, a side project organized by Dave Grohl, would be releasing their first album in early fall. Probot also features Zwan's Zwan's Matt Sweeney and Foo Fighters' producer Adam Kasper. The band is described as death metal and the album features different metal vocalists on each track. On the 10th, Fountains of Wayne's newest album, Welcome Interstate Managers is released. James Iha appears on this album.
July 2003-At the start of the month, rumours of James Iha joining A Perfect Circle surface on the net, but an article on Rollingstone.com does not confirm this, as well as the absence of a press release to that effect. Finally it is confirmed that James Iha has joined A Perfect Circle by the band's official website and MTV.com. August 2003- The first indications of a Zwan breakup arise when bassist Paz Lenchantin announces on her website that she has left Zwan, and will be touring with another Zwan member, David Pajo and his band, Papa M. On the 12th, it is reported in Mix Magazine, that producer Bjorn Thorsrud and Manny Sanchez are mixing Zwan's Aragon Ballroom show. This month, James Iha begins touring with A Perfect Circle. Also, it is announced that Billy will be doing a poetry reading at the Art Institute of Chicago on September 17. September 2003- All rumours are finally confirmed, when Billy Corgan states that Zwan has broken up, and that "his heart had been in the Smashing Pumpkins", and that he will be pursuing a solo career. On the 17th, Billy does his poetry reading for the Art Insitute of Chicago, and takes a lot of slack from the critics regarding his poetry. At the reading, he performed a few songs including: "Bobby Franks", "Friends as Lovers", "I Held A Rose", "Riverview", and "El-a-noy". October 2003- On the 8th, Butch Vig's legendary Smart Studios, where Gish and Nirvana's Nevermind were recorded was destroyed in a truck hit a car, and slid off the road into the studios. Later that month, on the 15th, Billy sings "Take Me Out to the Ball Game" at the 7th Game of the NLCS (Cubs v.s. Marlins), but the Cubs lose. And an interesting historical note, this is the game in which a fan catches a ball that Moses Alou (Cubs outfielder) was trying to catch, and everything seemed to go downhill from there. The curse of the Goat continues, and the "Bartman ball" incident is entered into Cubs' history. November 2003- On the 3rd, Papa M plays at the Elliott Smith Tribute concert, playing a couple of songs with a lineup including Paz and her sister, Ana. Probot- Dave Grohl and Matt Sweeney's project would release their first 7" single, "Centuries of Sin". Melisssa Auf Der Maur did a small tour of Canada, and announced that her album would be released May 18, 2004. Late in the month, it was announced that Billy and Jimmy would be putting on a Rock 'N Roll Fantasy camp (the winners of a charity auction participating) at Metro, through the RockforKids organization, which benefits the homeless children of Chicago. December 2003- On the 9th, Billy joined other musicians and performers at the legendary Second City in Chicago for a 24 hour marathon of performances, the proceeds went to help provide holiday gifts for kids in need. In an interview from http://www.shns.com/, James Iha said that he would likely work on the next, A Perfect Circle record as a full member of the band, and that we would "not be opposed to" working with Billy Corgan again, either in a reunion of the Pumpkins or in any other capacity. Later that month, it was announced that Melissa Auf Der Maur's band, Auf Der Maur would be opening for Iha's adopted band, A Perfect Circle for their European tour. The Sony Pictures' Smashing Pumpkins Official Website reappears online near the end of the month (http://www.sonypictures.com/smashing pumpkins/ but has not been updated since the early Zwan era. It is unclear at this point what it will be used for. At year's end, it was confirmed that Pumpkins/Zwan Engineer and Producer, Bjorn Thorsrud, would be working on Billy's solo album.
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