[Cover photo credit to Magdalena Wosinska]
Blackwater Holylight operate out of the Los Angeles underground, following their origin in Portland, Oregon. The Hard Rock trio have announced the full-length album, Not Here Not Gone, out January 30, 2026 via Suicide Squeeze Records.
The album has been shaped by their location change, and leans into Heavy Doom and Shoegaze. Lead single “Heavy, Why?” is out now, and reflects on “the experience of being disembodied.”
On the track, singer Sunny Faris shares:
‘Heavy, Why?’ Is a lyrically light and instrumentally heavy arrangement that cryptically but intentionally speaks to the experience of being disembodied and poses the question, simply, of: ‘Why? Why is it such a hard, lonely, agonizing and heavy experience to be turned away from Self.’
The band have also announced a headline tour throughout North America and Europe / UK starting in February through May of 2026.
When the women of Blackwater Holylight left their hometown of Portland, Oregon three years ago, the band found themselves not only in a warmer environment, but in a new landscape “without jobs, longtime friend groups, and the easy retreat of old habits.” It was into that environment that they brought their new album.
As with their previous work, Not Here Not Gone explores “the duality of light and dark.”
As drummer Eliese Dorsay describes it:
…some songs we’re the predator, and some songs we’re the prey.
Jumping from confidence to uncertainty by making their own “life changing decision” added to the album and intensified the themes of Not Here Not Gone.
UPCOMING 2026 LIVE DATES
2/13 – San Diego, CA @ Casbah
2/14 – Phoenix, AZ @ Last Exit
2/15 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sister
2/17- Austin, TX @ Radio/East
2/18 – Houston, TX @ White Oak
2/19- New Orleans, LA @ No Dice
2/20 – Pensacola, FL @ Handlebar
2/21 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn
2/22 – Asheville, NC @ Eulogy
2/24- Charlottesville, VA @ Southern Cafe
2/25 – Baltimore, MD @ Metro
2/26 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brenda’s
2/27 – Brooklyn, NY @ Meadows
2/28 – Braintree, MA @ Widowmaker Brewing
3/02 – Youngstown, OH @ Westside Bowl
3/03 – Indianapolis, IN @ Black Circle
3/04 – Chicago, IL @ Sleeping Village
3/06- Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive
3/07 – Denver, CO @ Hi-Dive
3/08 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Aces High
3/10 – Seattle, WA @ Nuemos
3/11 – Portland, OR @ Aladdin Theater
3/12 – Sacremento, CA @ Starlet
3/13 – San Francisco, CA @ The Chapel
3/14 – Santa Cruz, CA @ Moe’s Alley
3/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Pacific Electric
4/18 – Tilburg, NL @ Roadburn Fest
5/06 – Brussels, BE @ Ancienne Belgique
5/07 – Hamburdg, DE @ MS Stubnitz
5/08 – Copenhagen, DK @ A Colossal Weekend Fest
5/09 – Oslo, NO @ Desertfest
5/10 – Gothenburg, SE @ Monument
5/12 – Poznań, PL @ Pod Minoga
5/13 – Leipzig, DE @ UT Connewitz
5/14 – Berlin, DE @ Desterfest
5/15 – Nuenkirchen, DE @ Stummsche Reithalle
5/16 – Brussel, BE @ Obsidian Dust Fest
5/17 – London, UK @ Desterfest
5/18 – Newcastle, UK @ The Cluny
5/19 – Glasgow, UK @ Stereo
5/20 – Manchester, UK @ The Deaf Institute
5/22 – Helsinki, FIN @ Sonic Rites Fest
