Billy Corgan has said he has “mad respect for artists” who have played at the Las Vegas Sphere and says The Smashing Pumpkins “could put on a show that nobody else would”.
- Read More: U2 live in Las Vegas: a dazzling opening night at the $2 billion Sphere
It comes after he recently revealed that was keen to bring the band’s ‘A Night of Mellon Collie And Infinite Sadness’ live show to the venue.
The concerts, which were first announced in March 2025 and kicked off in North America later that year, see the frontman join up with a 60-piece orchestra to deliver an operatic reimagining of Smashing Pumpkins’ hit 1995 album ‘Mellon Collie And The Infinite Sadness’.
Now in a new interview with Consequence, Corgan said: “I’m really impressed by anybody who can play the Sphere because it’s a heavy lift. It’s a production thing, and you really have to draw a lot of people.”
He referenced previous acts that have performed at the venue such No Doubt, Eagles and U2 and added: “So number one, I’m not sure sure we’re big enough to draw enough people over time to do it – but if somebody came and said, ‘Yeah, we believe you can do it,’ I think the Pumpkins could put on a show that nobody else would put on, because of the theatrical nature of the records and the presentation.
“And with that level of production, it would be like a goth winter in there, and I think we’re probably the only band that could pull that off at that level.”
Elsewhere, Tool have been in talks for a Sphere residency next year and Metallica recently announced a live residency at the venue for later this year.
U2 were the first act to perform at the venue in September 2023. NME was at the opening night and described the “inner sanctum of the Sphere” as something that “truly takes your breath away”.
Reviewing the five star show, we wrote: “Reaching its cinematic climax, it feels like the band, venue and audience are transported to the vast depths of the Mojave Desert itself as they rattle off ‘Where The Streets Have No Name’, ‘With Or Without You’ and ‘Beautiful Day’. Edge previously pointed out that U2 are taking the live concert experience ‘to the next level’ and this opening night does a fine balancing act of doing just that while also ensuring their music remains very much at the forefront.”
Elsewhere, Billy Corgan recently promised that there are “two LPs” of unreleased songs from his short-lived band Zwan on the way – as the band have 60 unheard tracks in the vault.
