The Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan has hailed JILUKA as “the greatest Japanese band I’ve ever heard” after crossing paths with the visual kei EGM outfit in Tokyo.
Corgan invited JILUKA to the Pumpkins’ Nippon Budokan date on September 17th, part of the band’s first run of Japan shows in 12 years on the Rock Invasion 2025 Asia tour. Posting on Instagram and X (formerly Twitter), Corgan told fans:
“Loved meeting JILUKA, the greatest Japanese band I’ve ever heard and my favorite so if you haven’t heard them please do! Amazing music.”
The post was also picked up on the Pumpkins’ official Instagram account. On Instagram, the visual kei four-piece wrote:
“Big thanks to @billycorgan for inviting us to an amazing night. We exist today because of the legendary bands who created bold and groundbreaking music.”
The Pumpkins’ Rock Invasion 2025 serves as their first full-scale Asian tour in more than a decade, with dates in Nagoya, Tokyo, Osaka, Yokohama, Fukuoka, Hiroshima, Busan, Manila, Bangkok, Jakarta, Singapore, Bahrain, Abu Dhabi and India.
Corgan’s words hit JILUKA during a year already packed with milestones. Earlier this year they joined Swedish metalcore outfit Imminence for a 22-date North American tour, before returning to Europe for their third set of dates in less than twelve months. August also saw the release of ‘XNDII’, a 34–track best-of album marking their 10th anniversary.
They’ll wrap THE KVLT world tour with a final show at Zepp Shinjuku on November 18th, followed by an additional date in Shanghai at Bandai Namco Shanghai Base on November 30th. Before that, JILUKA will also support Imminence on their first-ever Japan show at Shibuya’s duo MUSIC EXCHANGE on October 7th.
