The Sisters Of Mercy will return to Australia in late 2026 with a five date national tour, bringing Andrew Eldritch and the long-running dark rock outfit back to local stages for their first Australian shows in several years.
by Paul Cashmere
The Sisters Of Mercy have confirmed an Australian tour for November and December 2026, with the influential British band set to play Perth, Sydney, Hobart, Melbourne and Brisbane. The run marks a return for one of post punk’s most enduring acts and includes a rare Tasmanian date at Hobart’s Odeon Theatre. The shows arrive as the group continues its long-running existence as a live entity, more than four decades after first forming in Leeds in 1980.
For Australian audiences, the significance of a Sisters Of Mercy tour extends beyond nostalgia. Few bands from the early post punk era have maintained such a distinct identity while continuing to perform with largely evolving live line-ups and without releasing a new studio album in more than three decades. Their ongoing activity also reflects a broader trend in alternative music where legacy acts increasingly operate as touring institutions, maintaining relevance through performance rather than conventional release cycles.
While many contemporaries have returned to the studio for reunion projects or archival campaigns, The Sisters Of Mercy have largely resisted that path. Instead, the group has relied on a catalogue built around a relatively small body of recorded work and a live reputation that has sustained its audience across generations.
Promoters said the current touring line-up includes longtime guitarist Ben Christo, guitarist Kai, “Ravey” Dave Creffield and the ever present Doktor Avalanche, the drum machine concept that has become as central to the band’s identity as frontman Andrew Eldritch himself.
The group has indicated that its setlists continue to balance established songs with newer material that remains officially unreleased. Longtime fans can expect staples including Lucretia My Reflection, Temple Of Love and This Corrosion, songs that have become cornerstones of the band’s live performances.
The visual presentation remains part of the band’s live aesthetic. Organisers described the production as featuring the group’s familiar cinematic style of lighting and staging, an approach that has long been associated with their performances.
The Sisters Of Mercy emerged from Leeds in 1980, founded by Eldritch and guitarist Gary Marx. Their early work developed out of Britain’s post punk movement, although the band consistently rejected labels associated with goth culture despite becoming one of the most identifiable names linked to that scene.
Commercial success arrived during the mid 1980s with First And Last And Always, followed by Floodland in 1987 and Vision Thing in 1990. Each record represented a shift in personnel and musical direction, but Eldritch and Doktor Avalanche remained the constants.
Floodland delivered some of the band’s most enduring recordings including This Corrosion, Dominion and Lucretia My Reflection. The album expanded the band’s sound beyond its guitar driven roots into a larger scale production style that incorporated orchestral arrangements and keyboards. Vision Thing later moved back toward a harder rock approach.
The band’s history also became defined by industry disputes. Recording activity effectively ceased in the early 1990s during a long conflict with East West Records. Although the contractual issues were eventually resolved, The Sisters Of Mercy never signed another major recording agreement and have not released new original studio material since Vision Thing.
That absence of recorded work has produced two opposing views among followers. For some fans, the band’s refusal to release new albums has enhanced the mythology surrounding Eldritch and preserved the catalogue’s status. Others have spent years questioning why numerous songs performed live remain unavailable in studio form. Eldritch himself has repeatedly indicated in interviews that he sees little reason to release material under traditional industry structures.
Yet despite the absence of new records, the audience has remained intact. Younger listeners continue discovering the group through artists who have cited them as an influence, including Metallica, Nine Inch Nails and My Chemical Romance. Their influence can also be traced across industrial rock, alternative metal and later gothic and darkwave movements.
The Australian dates will again test that enduring appeal. More than forty years after the band first appeared, The Sisters Of Mercy remain an act whose recorded output is relatively compact, but whose live reputation continues to drive audiences back.
Tour Dates:
Wednesday, November 25, Perth, Astor Theatre
Friday, November 27, Sydney, Metro Theatre
Sunday, November 29, Hobart, Odeon Theatre
Wednesday, December 2, Melbourne, Forum
Thursday, December 3, Brisbane, The Tivoli
Ticketing Details:
Pre-sale starts Wednesday, May 27 at 10am AEST
General tickets on sale Thursday, May 28 at 10am AEST
sbmpresents.com
the-sisters-of-mercy.com
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