NASHVILLE |FR: MITCH SCHNEIDER/ALEXANDRA GREENBERG
TODD BRODGINSKI/MSO
RETURN TO EUROPE
FOR EARLY 2008 HEADLINING ARENA TOUR
LAUNCHING JANUARY 27 IN SERBIA
THE SMASHING PUMPKINS have announced they will return to the U.K. and Europe for a major arena headlining tour launching January 27 at Arena in Belgrade, Serbia and encompassing shows in Hungary, the Czech Republic, Austria, Italy, Switzerland, France, Ireland, Scotland, England, the Netherlands, Belgium, Germany, Denmark, Norway, Sweden and Finland, where the trek wraps March 3 in Helsinki.
This will mark the band’s third round of overseas dates in connection with their critically acclaimed ZEITGEIST album (Martha’s Music/Reprise), which entered the album charts in July in the Top Five in the U.S. (#2), Canada (#1), New Zealand (#1), the U.K. (#4), Italy (#5) and Switzerland (#5), with more Top Ten debuts in Germany (#7), Holland (#7) and Australia (#8). In the U.S and Canada, a special configuration of ZEITGEIST—awarded a four-star rating by Rolling Stone—is now available at Best Buy stores with three bonus tracks from the album’s original sessions (“Death From Above,” “Ma Belle,” “Stellar”) and a bonus DVD with a 20-minute documentary, Inside the Zeitgeist, as well as the music videos for "Tarantula" and "That's the Way (My Love Is).”
THE SMASHING PUMPKINS’ extensive 2007 tour schedule commenced in Europe with an intimate sold-out show at the historic, elegantly appointed Grand Rex in Paris (May 22) and wrapped with another sold-out small venue gig at Sheperds Bush Empire in London (June 19). In between those shows, the band headlined the major summer European festivals. Next, they returned to the U.S. for a special performance at Live Earth on July 7 at Giants Stadium in East Rutherford NJ; residencies at the Orange Peel in Asheville, NC (nine shows between 6/23-7/5) and the historic Fillmore (11 shows between 7/15-8/1) in San Francisco, CA; as well as headlining slots at the two Virgin Festivals in North America: August 5 at Pimlico Park in Washington, D.C. and September 8 at Toronto Island Park in Canada.
Following the D.C. performance, the band returned overseas to headline festivals in Belgium, England, Greece and Turkey. The Pumpkins’ fall tour—their first full-scale North American tour since 2000—has been highlighted by multiple night engagements in Vancouver, Boston, Philadelphia and Atlanta plus headlining performances at the massive KROQ “L.A. Invasion” show at the Home Depot Center in Los Angeles on 9/15 and the Voodoo Music Experience in New Orleans on 10/27. The band wraps its North American tour November 18 in Dallas.
On the road, main singer-songwriter and guitarist Billy Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin—with Jeff Schroeder (guitar), Ginger Reyes (bass) and Lisa Harriton (keyboards)—have been performing wide-ranging sets with an “enveloping epic force,” as Richard Cromelin noted in the Los Angeles Times (7/17/07). Writing in the News and Record (Greensboro, NC) last week, Parke Puterbaugh noted: "Their noisy intensity, abetted by a stunning light show, made for an evening with some deliriously captivating peaks…The second half of the concert was the best hour of rock music I've witnessed all year, and among the most memorable ever” (11/10/07).
Here are more critical quotes from the road:
“The Smashing Pumpkins were bold and beautiful. Corgan, specifically, is at peak powers thanks to a renewed love affair with the electric guitar. A pulverizing one-two punch of “United States” and “Bullet with Butterfly Wings’’ opened the show. Corgan sang, “The end draws nigh” and “Revolution!” during “United States,” a standout selection from comeback album “Zeitgeist.”
"Corgan continues to evolve as a guitarist, and he treated the Phoenix crowd to impressive leads, starting with the show-opening United States, from the band's new album Zeitgeist. That included a twisted take on a passage from The Star-Spangled Banner. Corgan later traded screeching leads with [Jeff] Schroeder on both Starz and Zero. The duel continued on Glass and the Ghost Children, with Corgan stepping forward to fill the Dodge with piercing notes which morphed into an extended intro to 33."
"There was Billy Corgan…shooting sparks from his guitar and snarling and crooning…Drummer Jimmy Chamberlin proved still adept at anchoring a groove with both thunder and delicacy. Couple that with a sometimes blindingly inventive light show and a vaunted catalog of songs that careened from venomous invective to poetic abstraction played with energy and care…"
“Soon came knew songs from this year’s ‘Zeitgeist’—a brilliant ‘United States’ included Corgan’s warped, ironic riff on the ‘Star Spangled Banner.’ In the astounding ‘Heavy Metal Machine,’ Corgan’s ‘Trapped in the Closet’ style epic, angst and salvation were condensed into a thrill ride of blistering riffs and lyrical revelations that were insightful rather than indulgent. In the encore, the pretty pop balm of ‘Cherub Rock’ smoothed the edges of Corgan’s troubled psyche. Ours too. “
“…as powerful as ever.”
"It [the show] was a convincing statement of a band reclaiming its place after an extended time away."
THE SMASHING PUMPKINS complete current tour schedule is:
| DATE | CITY | VENUE | ||
| *Tue, 11/13 | Austin, TX | The Backyard | ||
| *Thu, 11/15 | Atlanta, GA | Fox Theater | ||
| *Fri, 11/16 | Atlanta, GA | Fox Theater | ||
| *Sun, 11/18 | Dallas, TX | Nokia Theater | ||
| Sun, 1/27 | Belgrade, Serbia | Arena | ||
| Tue, 1/29 | Budapest, Hungary | Arena | ||
| Wed, 1/30 | Prague, Czech Republic | T-Mobile | ||
| Thu, 1/31 | Vienna, Austria | Stadthalle | ||
| Sat, 2/2 | Milan, Italy | Forum | ||
| Sun, 2/3 | Bologna, Italy | PalaMalaguti | ||
| Tue, 2/5 | Zurich, Switzerland | Hallenstadion | ||
| Wed, 2/6 | Paris, France | Bercy | ||
| Sat, 2/9 | Dublin, Ireland | Royal Dublin Society (RDS) | ||
| Sun, 2/10 | Belfast, N. Ireland | Kings Hall | ||
| Tue, 2/12 | Glasgow, Scotland | SECC Hall | ||
| Thu, 2/14 | Nottingham, England | Nottingham Arena | ||
| Tue, 2/14 | Manchester, England | MEN Arena | ||
| Wed, 2/16 | London, England | O2 Arena | ||
| Mon, 2/18 | Den Bosch, Netherlands | Brabenthalle | ||
| Tue, 2/19 | Brussels, Belgium | Forest National | ||
| Thu, 2/21 | Munich, Germany | Olympiahalle | ||
| Tue, 2/22 | Frankfurt, Germany | Jahrhunderthalle | ||
| Wed, 2/23 | Berlin, Germany | Arena | ||
| Thu, 2/24 | Oberhausen, Germany | Koenig-Pilsener Arena | ||
| Sat, 2/26 | Hamburg, Germany | Colorline Arena | ||
| Wed, 2/27 | Copenhagen, Denmark | Valbyhallen | ||
| Fri, 2/29 | Oslo, Norway | Spektrum | ||
| Sat, 3/1 | Stockholm , Sweden | Hovet | ||
| Mon, 3/3 | Helsinki, Finland | Ice Hall |
*w/ Explosions in the Sky
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