MANILA, Philippines -After the success of Morrissey’s gig at the World Trade Center, Charlemagne Lim, owner of the 11-year-old restaurant chain Little Asia, is bringing to Manila Billy Corgan’s latest iteration of seminal ‘90s band The Smashing Pumpkins.
The gig happens Tuesday, Aug. 7, 8:30 p.m., at the Smart-Araneta Coliseum. The band will perform tracks from their latest release, “Oceania,” armed with brand spankin’ new technology in video mapping (organizers promise “something new and previously unseen.”).
Corgan will sound out the hits. If our spies are accurate, fans will be hearing Today, Bullet with Butterfly Wings, 1979 and Disarm, among others. Just be sure to demand an encore — stomp your foot and yell your lungs out until Corgan comes back out and plays your favorite songs.
Mixes and fusion
Little Asia is the official caterer for this concert. It’s only fitting. The Smashing Pumpkins mixes genres from shoegaze to heavy metal and from dream pop to post punk, while Little Asia swings from regular restaurant to bar, from party catering to concert catering. Little Asia has been around for 11 years, with four branches (Greenhills, Tomas Morato, McKinley at The Fort, plus a new one is set to sprout in Lucky China Town Mall, Binondo this month), and they’re serving a 14-year-old band.
We better start calling Charlemagne Lim the title “concert consigliere,” because here’s another fun fact: Little Asia isn’t just about rock. They play R&B at their outlet in Promenade, Greenhills after 9:30 p.m. This is perfect for barkadas, as Little Asia offers a six-bottle beer bucket for just P180, and 50-percent off on all liquor. Just remember to drink in moderation, kiddos.
New line-up
D’arcy Wretzky, James Iha, Jimmy Chamberlin, and Melissa Auf der Maur are no longer with the Smashing Pumpkins, but joining Billy Corgan on stage are 22-year-old Mike Byrne and guitarist Jeff Schroeder. Veruca Salt bassist Nicole Fiorentino will join Corgan on the stage as well. This is not necessarily a bad thing at all. Tuesday’s gig won’t just be a full-on nostalgia trip, but also a dose of something new. As the song goes, “Time is never time at all; you can never ever leave without leaving a piece of youth.”
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The Smashing Pumpkins Live in Manila is presented by Little Asia, and co-presented by Russian Standard Vodka; with major sponsor Fox. Special thanks to Edsa Shangri-La Manila, Music Management International, Polyeast EMI, and FILSCAP; with media partners: Philippine STAR Supreme, MYX, Rogue magazine, and RX 93.1