Billy Corgan and The Machines of God @ Beanfield Theatre▪

F1 weekend kicks off in goth rock style at Théâtre Beanfield on Friday, with the return of one of the most recognizable faces and voices in rock: Smashing Pumpkins frontman Billy Corgan and his new touring project, Billy Corgan and the Machines of God. The tour is a celebration of the 30th anniversary of 1995’s Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and the 25th anniversary of the Machina/The Machines of God and Machina II/The Friends & Enemies of Modern Music albums. Having sold out the Bell Centre last time out in October 2022 with his regular band, Beanfield is a much more intimate setting to hear some Pumpkins classics.

But you have to earn it! The first half of the two-hour show digs deep into the Pumpkins archives, “Glass Theme” from 2000’s Machina II kicking off the set in a blazing rock-out, followed by the filthy riffs of “Heavy Metal Machine,” with harmonies added by touring bassist Jenna Fournier (aka Kid Tigrrr), who bears more than a passing resemblance to original Pumpkins bassist D’arcy Wretzky. She takes vocal lead on a cover of Nancy Sinatra’s “You Only Live Twice,” which leads to the best line I overheard all night from a guy next to me: “That lick sounds like Robbie Williams!”

“Pentagrams” showcases Billy’s ageless vocals, which stand out over a delicate drumbeat, though that vibe is obliterated by a mammoth solo moments later. “The Crying Tree of Mercury” has power-ballad vibes for sure, as does “Real Love,” though the latter sounds overlaid with Everlong drums. It sounds great, but so many deep cuts on the spin does lead me to wonder if he might be losing a good chunk of the crowd—the “casual” fans? By the time “Glass and the Ghost Children” arrives, and Billy is churning that low bassline, I can definitely hear some chatter around me… and I’m only in the 7th row or so.

But then, on the hour, that chunk of the crowd refocuses with five simple words from Billy: “THE WORLD IS A VAMPIRE!” With those five words, the timeless “Bullet With Butterfly Wings” ignites the room—a singalong notably louder than anything that came before it, and a floor section now jumping. The heavy-hitters have finally arrived. Strobes blare as the song falls to pieces in the middle as Billy screams, “RAT IN A CAAAAGE!!,” until the song reforms with the crowd chanting the chorus over the remnants of the song. “Muzzle” immediately follows to another huge singalong, before leading into the timeless “1979.”

“Edin” and “White Spyder” are ferocious, which makes the contrast of what follows even more striking. Billy goes into an acoustic run-through of Gordon Lightfoot’s “Sundown,” stopping midway through the first chorus: “What, you don’t know that song?? I thought that was the Canadian anthem!” After the first hour of barely addressing the crowd at all, Billy is now joking around with us! It’s a Pumpkins anthem that actually follows—the glorious “Tonight, Tonight”—a solo acoustic version that draws an enormous singalong, almost drowning out Billy and Kid Tigrrr (who takes the second verse). An acoustic “If There Is a God” follows, before the main set closes out with the rest of the band for a thunderous “Bodies” and a sludgy “The Aeroplane Flies High (Turns Left, Looks Right).”

After their summons back to the stage, Billy declares, “Thank you so much for a beautiful evening, we have a special guest—Montreal’s own, my former bandmate, Melissa Auf der Maur!” There are huge roars all around as Melissa strides out and relates how she met Billy on 23 July 1991 at Foufounes Électriques (and ultimately was a full-time Smashing Pumpkin from 1999–2000). She looks like she never left as she takes over bass duty on a thunderous rendition of “The Everlasting Gaze,” the noise threatening to blow the roof off Théâtre Beanfield.

And then it’s over, all too soon. There’s still 30 minutes to curfew, but the encore ends after one song (albeit an amazing one). “Sicarus,” “Blue Skies Bring Tears,” “Stand Inside Your Love,” and the classic “Zero” are listed on the printed setlist, but ultimately not played—which is kind of a bummer. Toronto and Boston got them earlier this week.

Still, it doesn’t detract from a great show overall. Perhaps better spacing of the bigger songs within the set would help keep the attention of the casual fans a little better; the second hour is unquestionably better received than the first. Still, for the OG fans, this show was a dream come true. Deep cuts in an intimate venue—doesn’t get any better than that!

Set List