The Sword Falls On North America

The Opeth shows are sandwiched in between recently announced headline dates Sept. 22-28, which are supported by Ruby the Hatchet, and Oct. 29- Nov. 1, which has C-Average opening. The first headline run is through the Southern states, and the second moves through Idaho, Utah, Colorado and finally New Mexico.

The Sword is often categorized as doom metal, which means it draws heavy inspiration from bands like Black Sabbath and Led Zeppelin, with slow, heavy riffs being at the center of the music. It’s most recent release, 2015’s High Country, began to move away from traditional “metal” sounds though, veering into alternative and even, occasionally country territory.

John Cronise, The Sword’s vocalist and guitarist acknowledged on the website that the new material is moving the band in a new direction. “With each of our albums, it’s become less about fury and bombast and more about trying to write good songs. We realized that our music can go wherever we want it to go. There’s no pre-determined course here now, and there never was.”

The band is set to release acoustic versions of the songs on High Country Sept. 23 on an album titled Low Country. Addressing any confusion which may have arisen among their head-banging faithful, The Sword announced via Twitter that the shows would be electric.

Here is what one of the tracks off their first album sounds like live:

Opeth is a progressive metal mainstay with over 25 years logged since its formation in Sweden, incorporating many influences into its music.

Here is the full routing for The Sword in North America, with the headline dates in bold:

Sept. 22 – New Orleans, La., Gasa Gasa
Sept. 23 – Birmingham, Ala., Saturn
Sept. 24 – Nashville, Tenn., Exit / In
Sept. 25 – Charlotte, N.C., Charlotte’s Underground
Sept. 26 – Raleigh, N.C., Lincoln Theatre
Sept. 28 – Richmond, Va., The Broadberry
Sept. 29 – Pittsburgh, Pa., Stage AE
Sept. 30 – Silver Spring, Md., The Fillmore Silver Spring
Oct. 1 – New York, N.Y., Radio City Music Hall
Oct. 2 – Boston, Mass., House Of Blues Boston
Oct. 4 – Montreal, Quebec, Metropolis
Oct. 5 – Toronto, Ontario, Massey Hall
Oct. 07 – Detroit, Mich., The Fillmore Detroit
Oct. 08 – Akron, Ohio, Goodyear Theater
Oct. 09 – Chicago, Ill., Riviera Theatre
Oct. 10 – Minneapolis, Minn., First Avenue
Oct. 12 – Oklahoma City, Okla., Diamond Ballroom
Oct. 13 – Houston, Texas, Warehouse Live
Oct. 14 – Austin, Texas, Emo’s
Oct. 15 – Dallas, Texas, Gas Monkey Live!
Oct. 18 – Las Vegas, Nev., Brooklyn Bowl Las Vegas
Oct. 19 – Tempe, Ariz., The Marquee
Oct. 21 – Sacramento, Calif., Ace Of Spades
Oct. 22 – San Francisco, Calif., Warfield Theatre
Oct. 24 – Portland, Ore., Roseland Theater
Oct. 25 – Seattle, Wash., Moore Theatre
Oct. 26 – Vancouver, British Columbia, Orpheum
Oct. 28 – Boise, Idaho, Neurolux
Oct. 29 – Salt Lake City, Utah, Urban Lounge
Oct. 30 – Denver, Colo., Bluebird Theater
Nov. 01 – Albuquerque, N.M., Launchpad

Tickets to the headline shows go on sale Aug. 12 and the Opeth onsale is already under way. Head over to TheSwordOfficial.com for the latest on the band.