Billy Corgan orchestrated a reimagined version of one of the most popular albums in The Smashing Pumpkins catalog in Europe last month, opening his A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness run with two performances at De Doelen in Rotterdam, Holland, on Saturday (8/29) and Sunday (8/30).
To call them solo shows might be a little misleading: instead of the band members we've come to expect live, Corgan was surrounded by the Belgian chamber orchestra, Casco Phil, a choir and operatic vocalists, with over 100 musicians and singers involved in the production.
The European dates were a follow-up to the seven performances Corgan staged at the Lyric Opera in his hometown of Chicago last year.
The concept centered around reworking the 28 tracks of the double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness (1995) into orchestral and operatic pieces.
Conductor and arranger James Lowe collaborated with Corgan and turn it into something new, despite being over 30 years old.
That included looking at songs like "Bullet with Butterfly Wings," which won the Grammy in 1997 for Best Hard Rock Performance, in a more symphonic way.
James Iha's delicate guitar was absent, Jimmy Chamberlin's steady drum beats were gone, and for noticeable stretches Billy wasn't even there.
The ever-surprising maestro only had the spotlight on him 5 of the 20 songs, and didn't make an appearance on stage until about 20 minutes into the program.
Billy appeared to applause for “Thirty-Three,” in which he sang the lush tune that reminds us how "tomorrow's just an excuse away," retreated to the wings as the presentation continued without him.
When it was time for “Bullet With Butterfly Wings,” Corgan ceded the singing to the classically trained, who belted out that “the world is a vampire” while the orchestra and choir delivered something even more powerful than what Pumpkins fans have grown accustomed to from Marshall stacks and PAs.
The good people of the Netherlands did get something Chicagoans didn't.
“Zero,” which didn't make it into the setlist in 2025 appeared in Rotterdam as Corgan joined the classical singers on a decidedly unique arrangement of the chart topper that was intoxicated with the madness three decades ago.
Another single that benefited from the radical rearrangement was “1979” which also found Corgan rocking the mic.
Billy and the crew will be touring Europe and the UK for the next two weeks including two shows in one day in Antwerp, featuring a matinee for those of us with early bedtimes.
Grab your tix on the Smashing Pumpkins website.
A Night of Mellon Collie and Infinite Sadness
9/2 Royal Festival Hall, London, England
9/4 BOZAR, Brussels, Belgium
9/6 Koningin Elisabethzaal, Antwerp, Belgium — 3 p.m.
9/6 Koningin Elisabethzaal, Antwerp, Belgium — 8 p.m.
9/8 Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
9/9 Salle Pleyel, Paris, France
9/11 Palacio Vistalegre, Madrid, Spain
9/12 Palacio Vistalegre, Madrid, Spain
9/15 Coliseu de Lisboa, Lisbon, Portugal
