Triumph will hit the road in 2026 for a highly anticipated reunion tour that’s been nearly 20 years in the making. As it happens, the extra time may prove to be a benefit, thanks to a newly expanded band lineup.
The Canadian power trio first reunited in 2008, performing two concerts in Sweden and Oklahoma and planned to play additional dates after that. But reportedly, the recession and other economical concerns at the time put the planned trek on the shelf and the idea was eventually fully abandoned.
Who Will Be in the Band for These Triumph Reunion Concerts in 2026?
The shows, which begin April 22 and are presently set to run through June 6, will feature guitarist and vocalist Rik Emmett, drummer and vocalist Gil Moore and as his health permits, bassist Mike Levine will also be part of the shows as well. As Levine told UCR earlier this week during a conversation that also included Emmett and Moore, he’s excited about the upcoming run.
Listen to Triumph on the ‘UCR Podcast’
“I’m looking forward to it. When I can, I plan to be at shows,” he says. “When I can’t, I’ll be there virtually. So it’s not like I’m going to be down at Joe’s Bar playing trivia with my buddies or something. All of this is going to be an involvement that I’ll be very happy with.”
Helping to fill out the sound, Moore will share drumming duties with fellow drummer Brent Fitz — and they will both be on stage at the same time. Triumph alum Phil X will pair up similarly with Emmett for guitar and vocals, with bassist Todd Kerns adding additional musical and vocal support. As Moore quipped, they’re pioneering “the first six-man power trio of all time.”
‘We’re Going to Be Able to Realize These Songs in a Way That Maybe They Were Never Realized Fully Before, Live on Stage’
Emmett uses the band’s classic “Magic Power” as one example of the songs from the Triumph catalog that will benefit from the group’s expanded lineup. “What I was hearing in my head was a very Deep Purple kind of thing that I wanted,” he explained. “Jon Lord would just lean on the keys….and [so, I was like], ‘Mike, we’ve got to get a Hammond organ and we’ve got to get you to do it.’ He hated it. We were ruining his hands. But it was this session where he was playing these parts.”
“The organ, to me, is one of the things that makes ‘Magic Power’ really good [on the] record. When you go out on the road, well, who’s going to play the organ part? Because you’ve gotta have it and we didn’t have an organ,” he continues. “So that’s why I’m looking forward to the whole idea of Todd, Brent [and Phil, playing with us]. You know what I mean? We’re going to be able to realize these songs in a way that maybe they never were realized fully before, live on stage, which I find that really, really intriguing.”
Listen to Triumph’s ‘Magic Power’
The Extra Band Members are ‘More Honest Than Having Backing Tracks’
Phil X, Kerns and Fitz are all understandably excited about the chance to join up with the members of Triumph and Kerns took to social media to share his feelings and further outline why they’re being enlisted for these shows. “It’s been awesome seeing all the excitement about the upcoming Triumph tour,” he wrote. “It’s an ongoing work in progress. Rik and Gil will be on stage nightly. Mike will be there when he can. The fact that they’ve chosen to augment the group with Phil X, Brent Fitz and myself is simply because it’s more honest than having backing tracks etc. In this day and age it’s much more common than you know.”
“I will be doing my best to hold down what I can in Mike’s absence here and there while Phil will be building guitar orchestration with the mighty Rik Emmett,” he added. “Fitz’s presence is a big part of the gigantic vision of Gil Moore. He wants this to be an experience. Even Don Henley has a second drummer with the Eagles. All of the older groups have augmented their lineups with additional musicians. Even Bon Jovi has extra dudes up there. All I know is that Triumph 2026 is promising a state of the art show with a knock out set list that I can’t wait to dig into.”
READ MORE: Triumph Announces First Tour in Over 30 Years
Tickets for the Triumph reunion tour will go on sale Friday (Dec. 12). You can find complete tour information at the band’s official website.
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Gallery Credit: Matthew Wilkening
