Swedish doom metal pioneers CANDLEMASS have been announced as headliners for Wacken Open Air 2026, where they will perform a special 40th anniversary set on August 1. The announcement, made by Wacken organizers W:O:A on Saturday morning, confirms that the show will feature a career-spanning setlist including songs from every era of the band's four-decade catalog, from their 1986 debut "Epicus Doomicus Metallicus" through their acclaimed 2022 comeback album "Sweet Evil Sun."
Frontman Mats Levén — who has held the vocalist role since 2012 — confirmed that the anniversary show will feature a special visual production, including a full orchestral component, and that the band is working to reunite as many former members as possible on stage for the occasion. Most significantly, original vocalist Johan Längquist, who sang on "Epicus Doomicus Metallicus" and returned for the band's acclaimed 2018 album "The Door to Doom," has confirmed his participation for at least a portion of the set. The prospect of Längquist performing tracks from both those albums at Wacken has generated enormous excitement in the doom metal community.
CANDLEMASS are widely regarded as the inventors of epic doom metal, having codified the genre with their debut and followed it with a string of landmark records including "Nightfall" (1987), "Ancient Dreams" (1988), and "Tales of Creation" (1989). Their influence on subsequent generations of bands — from CATHEDRAL and PARADISE LOST to MY DYING BRIDE and PALLBEARER — cannot be overstated. Wacken 2026 runs August 1–3, with the full lineup expected to be revealed in the coming weeks.