Dimmu Borgir opened their North American tour in New York with three live debuts and “Reptile“, unplayed since 2009.
Dimmu Borgir had not played a full North American tour since 2018. They marked the return on Friday, August 7 at the Palladium Times Square in New York City by giving the continent four songs it had never heard the band play, or had not heard in seventeen years.
Three tracks from Grand Serpent Rising received their live debuts: “Ulvgjeld & Blodsodel“, which opened the set, plus “As Seen In The Unseen” and “Ascent“. The band also brought back “Reptile” for the first time since 2009.
Fan-filmed footage of the full concert has surfaced online and can be watched down below.
Dimmu Borgir Setlist, Palladium Times Square, New York City:
- “Ulvgjeld & Blodsodel“ (live debut)
- “Mourning Palace”
- “Kings Of The Carnival Creation”
- “Council Of Wolves And Snakes”
- “As Seen In The Unseen” (live debut)
- “Ascent” (live debut)
- “Stormblåst”
- “Reptile” (first performance since 2009)
- “The Insight And The Catharsis”
- “The Serpentine Offering”
- “Puritania”
- “Gateways”
- “Progenies Of The Great Apocalypse”
The support bill looks different from the one announced in April. Hypocrisy confirmed on August 3 that visa problems had forced them off the tour entirely. Suffocation, originally booked only for the New York and Worcester shows, now cover the full run alongside Hulder.
Dimmu Borgir August 2026 North American tour dates:
- Aug 10 – History, Toronto, ON
- Aug 11 – MTELUS, Montreal, QC
- Aug 13 – Agora Theater, Cleveland, OH
- Aug 14 – The Vic Theatre, Chicago, IL
- Aug 15 – The Fillmore, Minneapolis, MN
- Aug 18 – The Mission Ballroom, Denver, CO
- Aug 21 – The Warfield, San Francisco, CA
- Aug 23 – The Novo, Los Angeles, CA
Grand Serpent Rising arrived on May 22 through Nuclear Blast Records and runs to thirteen tracks. It is the band’s tenth studio album and their first in eight years, following 2018’s Eonian.
The record was made in Gothenburg at Studio Fredman with Fredrik Nordström, who previously worked on Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia and Death Cult Armageddon. Vocalist Shagrath described the sessions as a long process when the album was announced, saying the band had outdone itself and that the record carries traces of every period in their history.
“I truly feel we’ve outdone ourselves musically on this album. It’s been a long and demanding process, but seeing how it all came together makes it incredibly rewarding. Grand Serpent Rising reflects every era of Dimmu Borgir. This album carries echoes of every chapter of Dimmu Borgir‘s legacy. I believe our fans will recognize that, and find something within it that truly resonates,” he said at the time.
Guitarist Silenoz added insight into the album’s title and meaning: “It fits perfectly. Dimmu Borgir is a leviathan of a band on a grand scale and we are rising once again. While the serpent represents evil to some, for us it symbolizes something else: renewal, growth, knowledge, and liberation. Shedding our skin, so to speak. And let’s not forget that February 2026 marks the end of the Year of the Snake, roughly the same moment this album was completed.”
The New York setlist bears that out, drawing from For All Tid, Stormblåst, Puritanical Euphoric Misanthropia, Death Cult Armageddon, In Sorte Diaboli and Eonian alongside the new material.
Europe comes next. Dimmu Borgir will co-headline the “In League With Satan” tour with Behemoth across October, with Dark Funeral as special guests. That run opens on October 9 in Zurich and finishes on October 30 in Copenhagen.
