Listen along as writers in Chicago and Switzerland learn to play songs from The Smashing Pumpkins on guitar. To prove they've put the time in, they're forcing themselves to record versions of each track to play for all to judge. Armed with this knowledge, they'll discuss each song, while simultaneously admitting to potentially embarrassing personal stories from more than 20 years of fandom.
In the first season, Nick and Austin learned every officially released Radiohead song. For season two, they are making their way through The Smashing Pumpkins from 1991 to 2000. While we'd love to learn every one of the band's songs on guitar, Billy Corgan is simply too prolific. We apologize.
It's time to wrap up Pisces Iscariot. Austin braves a monstrous psychedelic meltdown, while Nick tries to remember Pearl Jam's "Hey Foxymophandlemama." The two discuss classic rock guitar solos, Natalie Imbruglia, and how much Elvis belongs in "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space." They wrap up the episode with their picks for the album's best song, solo, and riff. And, as is becoming a tradition, they try to quantify the Corgan-iest moment. Thanks for listening!
2:20 - "Starla"
14:35 - "Blue"
21:26 - "A Girl Named Sandoz"
28:15 - "La Dolly Vita"
33:30 - "Spaced"
Best Song
Austin - "Hello Kitty Kat"
Nick - "Whir"
Best Solo
Nick - "Starla"
Austin - "Starla"
Best Riff
Austin - "Pissant"
Nick - "Frail and Bedazzled"
Corgan-iest Moment
Nick - "Soothe"
Austin - "Whir"
Olivia Rodrigo - "You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So in Love" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/You_Seem_Pretty_Sad_for_a_Girl_So_in_Love)
Lynyrd Skynyrd - "Free Bird" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0LwcvjNJTuM)
Eagles - "Hotel California" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dLl4PZtxia8)
Dad Rock "Blue (Acoustic)" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WE3fVo4gLng)
Natalie Imbruglia - "Torn" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VV1XWJN3nJo)
The Animals - "A Girl Named Sandoz" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9_qRiePB6xE)
The Animals - "House Of The Rising Sun" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N4bFqW_eu2I)
Spiritualized - "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space" (Less Elvis Version) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iB7E1D_3Na4)
Spiritualized - "Ladies and Gentlemen We Are Floating in Space" (More Elvis Version) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-UGbOqadHb0)
Pearl Jam - "Hey Foxymophandlemama, That's Me (Stupid Mop)" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdAHK7TQhsQ)
22 Jul 2026
The Smashing Pumpkins - Pisces Iscariot (Pt. 2)
It’s a weird week. Nick and Austin kick things off with a James Iha track before diving into the loudest songs on the record. After a quick pause for some psych-rock—which one host loves a lot more than the other—it turns into an unofficial Fleetwood Mac episode as they finally get to "Landslide." Nick gushes about Tusk, and Austin goes on yet another Taylor Swift rant.
1:37 - "Blew Away"
8:03 - "Pissant"
13:45 - "Hello Kitty Kat"
21:49 - "Obscured"
29:00 - "Landslide"
"Pissant" whelp (https://youtu.be/RWr4a52ctrA?si=c7b6k5DdN5l8e3A8&t=143)
Rats in the Cage Tour (https://smashingpumpkins.com/tour/)
"Blew Away" liner notes by Billy Corgan (https://spcodex.wiki/Blew_Away)
PopMatters on Hello Kitty Kat (https://spcodex.wiki/Hello_Kitty_Kat)
"Hello Kitty Kat" liner notes (https://spcodex.wiki/Hello_Kitty_Kat)
Fleetwood Mac "Landslide" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Landslide_(Fleetwood_Mac_song))
Billy Corgan on "Landslide" (https://spcodex.wiki/Landslide)
Time (Fleetwood Mac album) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Time_(Fleetwood_Mac_album))
Fleetwood Mac "I Don't Want to Know" (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2xykVVzzWY)
Fleetwood Mac (Rumors https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rumours_(album))
Dreams on TikTok (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2xykVVzzWY )
Fleetwood Mac (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tusk_(album))Tusk (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tusk_(album))
Joshua Burnside (https://joshuaburnside.bandcamp.com/album/its-not-going-to-be-okay)
Pitchfork's Pisces Iscariot Album Review (https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16929-pisces-iscariot/)
14 Jul 2026
The Smashing Pumpkins - Pisces Iscariot (Pt. 1)
Instead of skipping straight to Mellon Collie, Nick is forcing Austin to wrestle with the band's 1994 b-side album, Pisces Iscariot. Does it, as Nick suggests, transcend its b-side album status and deserve to be a regular album? Or is this a wasteful diversion that sours Austin on the band? Nick begins with a thorough lesson on the history of the b-side album. They split on Plume, and then ponder important stuff like why Phish fans are so nice. Thanks for listening.
13:20 - "Soothe"
22:15 - "Frail and Bedazzled"
27:30 - "Plume"
33:45 - "Whir"
Smashing Pumpkins at Lollapalooza (https://www.axios.com/local/chicago/2026/03/18/smashing-pumpkins-lollapalooza-infinite-sadness-billy-corgan)
Billy Corgan joins Lyric Opera board (https://www.lyricopera.org/about/press-room/press-releases/20262/lyric-elects-five-leaders-to-board/)
Alien: Earth episode 5 ending song (The Smashing Pumpkins - Cherub Rock) (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i9t7gpVQZxU)
A-side and B-side (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A-side_and_B-side)
CD Singles (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/CD_single)
Pearl Jam - Lost Dogs (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lost_Dogs_(album))
Nirvana - Incesticide (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Incesticide)
Oasis - The Masterplan (album) (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Masterplan_(album))
Mitski (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mitski)
Smashing Pumpkins - Mashed Potatoes (https://spcodex.wiki/Mashed_Potatoes)
Bob Dylan discography (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bob_Dylan_discography)
Phish discography (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phish_discography )
Ian Cohen's Pitchfork review of Pisces Iscariot (https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/16929-pisces-iscariot/)
"The Everlasting Gaze" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Everlasting_Gaze)
Bush - "Swallowed (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8FIBPKRV3kk)"
R.E.M. - Dead Letter Office (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dead_Letter_Office_(album))
Reach and audience
Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.
Apple Podcasts (US)
4.3 / 5
6 ratings
Spotify
4.9 / 5
16 ratings
Podcast Authority Score: 26 / 100
A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.
Quality
19
Social presence
0
YouTube
0
Engagement
82
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Guest appearances
Does not typically book guests
Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.
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