The buzz around the Oct.

Smashing Pumpkins main man Billy Corgan launched his latest endeavor, Spirits in the Sky, last night at the tiny, 225-capacity Cellar Door in Visalia, California, with Jane's Addiction axeman Dave Navarro, fresh from his band's massive tour with Nine Inch Nails, joining in on guitar.

Like many born and bred New Yorkers, rap mogul Jay-Z was irrevocably changed by the events of September 11, 2001, and on the tragic day's eighth anniversary, he'll headline a major event to honor the fallen.

Tickets are on sale now for SPIN.com's Liner Notes event Oct. 1, a benefit featuring a collaborative performance between Satanic Verses author Salman Rushdie and San Francisco rockers Dredg.

After three wildly successful albums that sold some 36 million copies worldwide, singer/songwriter Norah Jones will shake up her winning formula on her as-yet-untitled fourth effort, which is due for a November release.

Tributes to Michael Jackson have come by the barrelful in recent weeks, but rarely from a source as unexpected as Pearl Jam.