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When the Smashing Pumpkins announced that they were touring in support of their 20th anniversary they promised that the two night shows would be different shows. Billy Corgan and the Pumpkins kept to their word and delivered another outstanding performance last night. The Show was completely different from start to finish. Everything from Billy’s clothing, to the setlist, to the light show was different from the night before.

Being at the show the night before I didn’t know what to expect as Billy Corgan walked on stage draped in a black dress/jacket carrying a plastic pumpkin filled with glitter, which he later tossed onto the crowd. Just as the band picked up their instruments, they tore into the 1998 hit single Ava Adore which got the night started off on the right foot. While the song ended Billy Corgan took off the black jacket and revealed a black long-sleeve t-shirt with a spider contrasting what he wore the night before. Jimmy Chamberlin then joined Billy Corgan on stage with a single drum for a rare performance of Cupid de Locke, which was great to see. With Jimmy back on the drums they broke into the crowd favourite 1979, which had the sold out Massey Hall singing along to.

They continued the trend of mixing old classic hits with new material throughout the night but it was most evident when they play three new songs, 99 Floors, Owata & Sunkissed back to back which was then followed by the three classic hits, Soma, Cherub Rock (which was heavily requested in night one) and Zero. All of which had great sing-a-longs that definitely made it worth purchasing a ticket.

Similar to the night before, the light show was fantastic. There was one part of the show where it went from being pitch black to quick flashes of red and white lights that had an amazing effect on the stage and on the actual band.

The Pumpkins played I Of The Mourning off of Machina/The Machines of God, which happens to be one of my favourite songs off that album, which was then followed by an amazing performance of A Song For A Son. After hearing it last night and watching it over and over again, it has definitely become a favourite of mine. The lyrics, the riffs and the drums are just great.

After the played A Song For A Son drummer Jimmy Chamberlin and bassist Ginger Reyes left the stage leaving just Billy Corgan and fellow guitarist Jeff Schroeder with acoustic guitars in hand. Before starting the song Billy Corgan talked for a bit and mentioned he didn’t write the next song they were going to play. Which left me thinking what song could it be and even before I could answer my own question he broke into an amazing rendition of Stevie Nicks’ classic Landslide which had the crowd singing along. And before playing the next song, he told the crowd that he had written the song and performed the classic hit Disarm with the help of crowd.

Those two incredible performances were followed up by a slew of old and new stuff which included Gish’s Suffer, Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness’ Galapogos, new tunes As Rome Burns and The March Hare. They ended their set with Age of Innocence off Machina/The Machines of God which capped off an amazing two hour show.

But they weren’t done. They emerged from the side of the stage to a roaring ovation, this crowd wanted more. Prior to starting their encore, Billy Corgan took the time to announce that Barack Obama won the Presidential election and praised at the fact of how proud he was of his fellow Chicago brother. Their encore consisted of an acoustic version of That’s The Way (My Love Is) and to end the night they performed I Am One Part 2.

And just like that the Smashing Pumpkins came into Toronto and rocked the roof off Massey Hall. They performed 48 songs and played for nearly 5+ hours. This has to be the greatest concert experience of my life and it couldn’t have been with any better band than the Smashing Pumpkins. I hope all who attended both shows enjoyed them as much as I did and if you missed the first night, read my review of it here.

Setlist:
Ava Adore
Cupid de Locke
1979
99 Floors
Owata
Sunkissed
Soma
Cherub Rock
Zero
Bodies
Crestfallen
I of the Mourning
A Song for a Son
Landslide
Disarm
Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness
Galapogos
Gossamer
As Rome Burns
The Sounds of Silence
The March Hare
Suffer
Age of Innocence

Encore
That’s The Way
I Am One Part 2

Photographs Taken By Puga

Posted on Wednesday, November 5th, 2008 at 5:55 pm by Alberto and is filed under Concerts & Events.

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