Louder Than Life 2026 stacks My Chemical Romance, Circa Survive and Alexisonfire

Louder Than Life returns to the Kentucky Expo Center in Louisville from Sept. 17-20, with more than 200 artists booked across seven stages. The lineup spans hardcore, metalcore, post-hardcore and emo, putting long-running acts and newer names on the same days.

Thursday opens with Alkaline Trio, Hot Mulligan, Rise Against, Vianova, Lit and GWAR. Friday carries one of the weekend's deepest runs: L.S. Dunes, Loathe, Coheed and Cambria, Koyo, Twitching Tongues, Angel Du$t, Haywire, the Used, Knocked Loose, Pierce the Veil and My Chemical Romance. Saturday features Many Eyes, Thursday, H2O, Tom Morello, Madball, Agnostic Front, a newly reunited Circa Survive and Limp Bizkit. Sunday closes things out with Ministry, Thrice, Alexisonfire, Jutes, End It, Sunami, Sleep Theory and Underoath.

Among the acts worth planning around is Haywire, who release their new album, I Don't Wanna Say Goodbye, next month. The band arrives off a punishing touring stretch that included 96 shows in 100 days in 2024, and plays Friday evening not long after their peers in Angel Du$t.

Alexisonfire hit Louisville while marking 20 years of Crisis, the third album many artists point to as a post-hardcore landmark, with staples like "This Could Be Anywhere in the World" and "Boiled Frogs" back in rotation. Circa Survive, meanwhile, launched their reunion run with three hometown shows at The Fillmore in Philadelphia, leaning on the post-hardcore and prog mix that built their following.

My Chemical Romance continue their 20th-anniversary Black Parade run, which has taken the record to stadiums worldwide, following Gerard Way's tease of a fifth album. Rounding out the picks, Vianova bring material from their 2024 debut, HIT IT!, which pulls from metalcore, hip-hop, R&B and '80s synths.