Smashing Pumpkins internet hoax exposed!

Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan has claimed that the band's bassist Nicole Fiorentino (pictured on the left) is one of the young girls on the cover of their 1993 album, Siamese Dream (pictured below).

"Nicole said she didn't want us to know because she thought maybe we wouldn't let her be in the band," explained Billy in a post on Twitter last month.

But it seems this happenstance is part of an elaborate prank by the Chicago rockers.

Model Ali Laenger, who is the girl on the right of the photograph, has dismissed the claims in an interview with TMZ.com. She tells the gossip blog that the bassist, who is now 31, would actually have been a teenager when the photo was taken.

Billy, you almost had us fooled!