System of a Down and Queens of the Stone Age Announce 2026 European Tour with Acid Bath

The stadium trek begins in Sweden next June

System of a Down and Queens of the Stone Age are on quite a roll over the last two years. Recently, System of a Down just wrapped a massive run of shows throughout North and South America. The most recent North American performances took place at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, NJ with Korn; Soldier Field in Chicago, IL with Avenged Sevenfold; and Rogers Stadium in Toronto, ON with Deftones. Special guests Polyphia and Wisp will opened all the shows.

Revisit our review and live photos from the New Jersey show HERE.

Queens of the Stone Age have been touring relentlessly in support of their latest album, In Times New Roman, which arrived in 2023. A global tour was highlighted by a headlining performance at Download Festival last summer. In November, Foo Fighters and Queens of the Stone Age will performing together once again in Monterrey, Mexico on November 12, 2025 at Estadio Banorte. Support for the show will come from Jehnny Beth.

Over the last few years, we’ve seen some of the biggest acts in rock history like Slayer, KISS, and Aerosmith retire from the road. One of the biggest musical acts of all time – The Who – are in the midst of their final concert tour, while Black Sabbath recently performed together one last time before Ozzy’s passing. While their influences and contemporaries are hanging it up, there’s plenty of young and hungry acts doing big things. Shinedown are headlining major festivals and shattering chart records. In addition to announcing sold out arena tours, Ghost and Sleep Token both topped the Billboard 200 (U.S.) this month with new albums and scored No. 1 spots in other countries around the globe back in the spring. Greta Van Fleet, embarked on a massive global arena tour behind their hit album Starcatcher back in 2023. Gojira, who are set to tour with Metallica next year across Europe and the UK, performed during the Opening Ceremonies at the 2024 Olympics in Paris.

Rock music is going through another renaissance right now, especially in North America. Young bands are having success, and pushing the genre forward while storied acts like Metallica, Iron Maiden, Judas Priest, and more are still doing it big. A lot is coming full circle right now. Creed and Linkin Park are back selling out arenas, and Foo Fighters are gearing up for a return to the stage later this fall. And not to mention, the biblical reunion of Oasis that has been selling out stadiums around the globe. Along with them and Rammstein, rock music needs acts like System of a Down to keep this mainstream resurgence rolling at a stadium-sized rate, and joining forces with another monster act is a great way to increase the size of the venue.

UPDATED: 18 September 2025

Now, much like the model for their North American engagements, System of a Down have tapped Queens of the Stone Age to join them as their very special guests on a tour across Europe and the UK. The trek marks System of a Down’s first gigs in Europe since 2017. The trek begins on 29 June, 2026 in Stockholm, SE at Strawberry Arena and will see both bands perform in France, Italy, Germany, the United Kingdom, and more. Acid Bath will provide stellar support for the entire tour. Fans can register for the artist pre-sale now at the link below, which runs through Monday, 15 September. General tickets on sale next Friday, 19 September.

Due to overwhelming demand, second shows have been added in Paris, London, and Warsaw.

Check out the full tour itinerary below.

The limited run comes as no surprise, as System of a Down prefer more exclusive engagements now over extensive tours. Instead of doing the same show over a long run of dates, the band has focused on creating more interesting experiences for their fans at one-off concerts and limited runs. Frontman Serj Tankian addressed the band’s new approach to touring in an interview with actor Rainn Wilson on his podcast.

“I love performing, but especially the long [tours], I think when you do a long tour, it’s not just physically exhausting, but it’s artistically redundant after a while, repeating the same thing,” Serj stated. “That’s why we’re really enjoying doing these one-offs. They’re special events, special occasions. We can’t do them everywhere. We can’t do them all the time. But performing becomes fun again in a way. And I had kind of lost that. And not just because of that reason, but I also had some back problems, back surgery and things that were hindering me from performing. I’m much better now. I exercise better, all of that stuff, so a lot of that’s been worked out. As far as touring somewhere in the future? Possible, I would say. I mean, I’m open to looking at stuff, but not thrilled about doing long tours at all, anywhere. Just one-offs, or maybe a handful of one-offs with dates in between, personally.”

After headlining the inaugural Sick New World festival in Las Vegas in 2022, System of a Down returned to headline the sophomore installment in 2023. In November 0f 2020, System of a Down released new music for the first time in 15 years. The two tracks – “Protect The Land” and “Genocidal Humanoidz” – where written to create awareness of the on-going wars in the band members’ native Artsakh and Armenia. Prior to that, System of a Down’s last proper effort was 2005’s Mezmerize and Hyptnotize, companion LPs that came out in May and November respectively. Both albums hit No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200.

As the most inspired, impactful, and inimitable rock band of the 21st century, System of a Down have sold over 40 million records worldwide, earned a GRAMMY® Award, and headlined arenas, festivals, and stadiums on multiple continents, worldwide. Formed in Los Angeles, the group have soundtracked personal, political, sonic, and spiritual revolution since the 1998 release of their multi-platinum self-titled debut. The quartet have consistently sold out shows worldwide and regularly register over 23.4 million monthly listeners on Spotify, making them one of the most-listened to rock and alternative bands in the world.

Queens of the Stone Age’s In Times New Roman arrived in 2023 via Matador. It was recorded and mixed at frontman Josh Homme’s own Pink Duck, with additional recording at Shangri-La. The album was produced by the band and mixed by Mark Rankin. It is available across all digital platforms, as well as vinyl and CD. Artwork and double LP gatefold packaging was designed by long time collaborator Boneface. The LP vinyl is available globally in standard black, as well as limited edition green, red, silver and blue.

The band recently released their landmark concert film, Alive In the Catacombs. It was recorded last summer deep in the Les Catacombes de Paris [Catacombs of Paris] in France in July of 2024, capturing the band as you’ve never seen or heard them before. This utterly unique once in a lifetime experience features a carefully selected setlist spanning the QOTSA catalog, each song chosen and epically reimagined for the Catacombs. The result is an unprecedented incarnation of QOTSA at their most intimate, yet surrounded by literally millions of human remains — “the biggest audience we’ve ever played for,” says Joshua Homme. 

A very limited deluxe edition of Queens of the Stone Age: Alive in the Catacombs sold out in record time, so the band is releasing a standard vinyl edition on September 26. Additionally, Queens of the Stone Age are embarking on an intimate tour this fall celebrating the event.

Homme had dreamt of staging a QOTSA performance in the Catacombs since his first visit nearly 20 years ago. The city of Paris, however, had never granted permission to any artist to play within the sacred tunnels. QOTSA, being law-abiding citizens, waited until their vision was sanctioned. 

The Catacombs of Paris is a sprawling 320km (200 miles) ossuary beneath the surface of Paris. With a foundation of several million bodies buried in the 1700s, skeletal remains are largely exposed, with much of the walls built of skulls and bones. 

Hélène Furminieux (Les Catacombes de Paris) said, “The Catacombs of Paris are a fertile ground for the imagination. It is important to us that artists take hold of this universe and offer a sensitive interpretation of it. Going underground and confronting reflections on death can be a deeply intense experience. Josh seems to have felt in his body and soul the full potential of this place. The recordings resonate perfectly with the mystery, history, and a certain introspection, notably perceptible in the subtle use of the silence within the Catacombs.”

Every aesthetic decision, every choice of song, every configuration of instruments…  absolutely everything was planned and played with deference to the Catacombs—from the acoustics and ambient sounds — dripping water, echoes and natural resonance — to the darkly atmospheric lighting tones that enhance the music. Far from the sound-insulated confines of the studio or the comfort of onstage monitors, Alive in the Catacombs sees the band not only rise to this challenge, but embrace it. 

Homme recalls, “We’re so stripped down because that place is so stripped down, which makes the music so stripped down, which makes the words so stripped down… It would be ridiculous to try to rock there. All those decisions were made by that space. That space dictates everything, it’s in charge. You do what you’re told when you’re in there.”

29 June 2026 – Stockholm, SE – Strawberry Arena
2 July 2026 – Paris, FR – Stade de France
4 July 2026 – Paris, FR – Stade de France
6 July 2026 – Milan, IT – Ippodromo Snai La Maura
8 July 2026 – Berlin, DE – Olympiastadion
10 July 2026 – Düsseldorf, DE – Open Air Park Düsseldorf
13 July 2026 – London, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
15 July 2026 – London, UK – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium
18 July 2026 – Warsaw, PL – PGE Narodowy
19 July 2026 – Warsaw, PL – PGE Narodowy

New dates in BOLD

Tickets will be available HERE