Billy Corgan, frontman of The Smashing Pumpkins, will return to Montreal this summer under the banner of a new project: Billy Corgan and The Machines of God. The group is set to play the Beanfield Theatre on June 13 as part of a 15-date North American tour titled A Return to Zero.
The tour will revisit material from two pivotal Smashing Pumpkins albums—Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995) and Machina/The Machines of God (2000), along with its independently released sequel Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music. The setlist will also incorporate songs from Corgan’s most recent solo album, Aghori Mhori Mei, released in 2024.
Unlike the large-scale productions of past Pumpkins tours, this outing marks a more compact setup—a four-piece band with two guitars, bass and drums. Joining Corgan are guitarist Kiki Wong (recently recruited into the Smashing Pumpkins), drummer Jake Hayden, and bassist Jenna Fournier, who performs under the name Kid Tigrrr.
Montreal’s date falls near the halfway point of the tour, which opens in Baltimore on June 7 and wraps in Minneapolis on June 29. Canadian fans will also have the opportunity to catch the show in Muskoka on June 11 and Toronto on June 12.
The tour aligns with two significant anniversaries: 30 years since the release of Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness and 25 years since Machina. Both albums are considered turning points in the band’s evolution—Mellon Collie being a commercial and critical peak, while Machina marked the start of a more conceptual, narrative-driven approach.
Corgan has also overseen the long-delayed reissue of Machina, now remixed, remastered, and compiled into a definitive 80-track box set. The expanded edition unites both Machina albums as originally envisioned, complete with unreleased material, outtakes, and live recordings. While the physical set is being sold exclusively through Corgan’s Madame Zuzu’s tea shop in Illinois, the digital release is expected to reach a broader audience.
Tickets for the Montreal show go on sale Friday, April 4 via Ticketmaster. Presales begin earlier in the week.
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