The whole Machina album is a sort of fictionalized, dramatized version of the Smashing Pumpkins itself. Billy was sort of taking the piss out of the public's and media's portrayal of the Smashing Pumpkins, its fans and himself.
I think a lot of the imagery in this song is lifted straight from David Bowie's song "Glass Spider" (on his Never Let Me Down album) and I doubt it's by accident. Machina II has a few Bowie/Ziggy Stardust references as well, Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders From Mars being the ultimate fictionalized rock band of course.
Like Ziggy Stardust, Machina was just pure theatrics.
The whole Machina album is a sort of fictionalized, dramatized version of the Smashing Pumpkins itself. Billy was sort of taking the piss out of the public's and media's portrayal of the Smashing Pumpkins, its fans and himself.
I think a lot of the imagery in this song is lifted straight from David Bowie's song "Glass Spider" (on his Never Let Me Down album) and I doubt it's by accident. Machina II has a few Bowie/Ziggy Stardust references as well, Ziggy Stardust & the Spiders From Mars being the ultimate fictionalized rock band of course.
Like Ziggy Stardust, Machina was just pure theatrics.