As it turns out, you can go home again, but in the case of the Smashing Pumpkins, it might just take 32 years to do it. The Chicago-bred indie rock heroes are gearing up to celebrate their first headlining slot at Lollapalooza in more than three decades with a rare underplay show, pop-ups and other events leading up to Friday night’s (July 31) main stage performance on the Bud Light stage at the festival that’s been held on the lakefront of their beloved hometown since 2005.
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The Pumpkins last played Lolla back in its original touring iteration in 1994 — in year four of the OG alt rock festival — during which they shared the stage with the Beastie Boys, George Clinton and the P-Funk All Stars, The Breeders, A Tribe Called Quest, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, L7, Green Day and many more.
To celebrate, the band is rolling out “Pumpkinpalooza,” a multiday celebration of their return to the Lolla stage that will include a sold-out underplay show at the 2,500-capacity Riviera Theatre in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood on Wednesday (July 29). Then, from Wednesday through Friday, they will host a merch pop-up just a few blocks from Lolla’s Grant Park home — at 900 S. Wabash Ave. — from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. daily.
In addition, all weekend long, fans can dip into Madame Zuzu’s Celestial Lounge, a roving version of the Highland Park teahouse owned and operated by Corgan and wife Chloé Mendel. The Lounge will offer matcha, vinyl, exclusive merchandise and other specials, while Chicago cocktail lounge the Aviary will be serve the limited-edition Infinite Mellons specialty cocktail, made up of shochu, litchi blossom, honeydew melon and cantaloupe.
“As a Chicagoan, born and raised, I take great pride in contributing to our city’s immense and colorful cultural fabric,” said singer/guitarist Billy Corgan in a statement. “And so this year’s already historic Lollapalooza is that chance to make new memories, new friends, and have a bit of Midwest fun, too as only we might.”
The Pumpkins will play a 90-minute set at the far North end of the park on Friday as Charli xcx takes the stage around the same time, more than a mile South on the T-Mobile stage; other acts on the bill that day include Major Lazer, Lil Uzi Vert, Yungblud, Zara Larsson, Suki Waterhouse and Freddie Gibbs, among others.
Following the Lolla slot, the Pumpkins will gear up for one of their most ambitious outings to date, this fall’s The Rats in the Cage tour, which will be split into two sets: one celebrating the 30th anniversary of their Diamond-certified 1995 classic Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and a second, career-spanning set of hits, deep cuts and fan-favorites. The tour is slated to kick off on Sept. 30 at the Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio.
