Cascades of roaring applause are broken by the face-painted Billy Corgan with the ricocheting opening line: “you know I’m not dead.”

On September 9th, the Smashing Pumpkins performed the last show of their “The World is a Vampire Tour” at Noblesville’s Ruoff Music Center. The tour began mid-summer and featured openers Interpol, Stone Temple Pilots, and Rival Sons. 

The Smashing Pumpkins are an alternative rock band formed in the late 80s. They have since then become an extremely acclaimed and influential group; having toured several times, expectation and excitement for this run was high. 

A combination of powerful vocals and stunning strobe lights, the concert was like a beautiful hallucination, alive and erupting with energy. Simply put: it rocked.

Comprised of twenty-one total songs, the setlist dipped into the band’s many legendary albums, including a cover of the Talking Head’s “Once in a Lifetime.” Billy Corgan and James Iha, the band’s remaining original members, played an acoustic and chilling rendition of the beloved “Tonight, Tonight.” However, much to the dismay of the insistent audience, “Mayonaise” was not performed. 

This show made for a gorgeous epilogue to a spectacular tour.