Tune In, Turn On
Ask anyone who’s ever been in a band: It’s not easy to replace band members. That’s what happened to longtime hard rockers Godsmack, formed some three decades ago in Lawrence, Massachusetts.
Originally consisting of founding members Sully Erna (lead vocals, rhythm guitar), Robbie Merrill (bass), Lee Richards (guitar) and Tommy Stewart (drums), the group — which brings its “Rise of Rock” Tour to Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena this Friday night, Oct. 23 — exploded out of the proverbial gate with a flourish, first self-releasing its debut EP, All Wound Up, in 1997 before signing with major label Universal/Republic in 1998, which rereleased the album as the band’s self-titled major-label debut that same year.
Fast-forward to 2025: The band, now consisting of Erna, Merrill, Tony Rombola — lead guitarist with Godsmack from the mid-1990s to 2025 — and drummer Shannon Larkin, who joined in the early 2000s, faced another dilemma: the departure of both Rombola and Larkin.
The band decided to record a live album and concert film, Live at Mohegan Sun, released May 1, 2026, capturing the final live performance of what Godsmack referred to as its “classic” lineup. Rombola and Larkin were replaced in the lineup by Sam “Bam” Koltun and Mike Mangini. This is the lineup rock fans will get to see and hear at Hard Rock Live this Friday.
As for recording, despite previously hinting that 2023’s “Lighting Up the Sky” would be the band’s final full-length record, frontman Erna confirmed that Godsmack “still has gas in the tank.” The newly configured band is expected to begin writing a new album, with fresh music projected to arrive by next summer.
“You’re looking at four brothers that spent three decades together and went through life. They’ve been the biggest part of my life for so long. And you can see it in the show, especially when it comes toward the end. You can just see the emotion starting because I’m going, ‘Oh my God, the song’s about to end. This is the last one,’” Erna told Loudwire magazine in a 2026 interview.
“We have a whole new burst of energy, so we’re going to go hit it just as hard as we always do and take the thing to another level and just see what we can do,” Erna added. “This thing could taper off and fade, or this thing could go to stadium level. We’re just here for the ride, like we’ve always been.
“I don’t know everything. You can never say never,” Erna said. “But I do feel like we completed that part of our lives. We’re onto a new chapter. So there will definitely be new music coming at some point. It just won’t be with the original members. It’s going to be good. I’m even interested to hear where we go with the new music.”
Some of the songs Godsmack — whose musical style is straight-ahead, guitar-driven hard rock, which some label heavy alt-metal and post-grunge — is known for include “I Stand Alone,” “Voodoo,” “Awake” and “Whatever.”
Tickets and information: Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena
Tune-Ups
Mollyween Coming to Anchor Rock Club: We’ll always have a soft spot in this column for area pop-rockers Molly Ringworm. They were the subject of the first article I wrote for Shore Local, back in the fall of 2022, and we’re still enamored of the quartet fronted by vocalist-guitarist Sarah Holt.
The band will host its cleverly worded Mollyween event at Atlantic City’s Anchor Rock Club this Friday, Oct. 23, at 7 p.m., with special guests Later Bloom and No Buddy. WLFR Lake Fred Radio deejays will also liven up the evening with spooky music between sets.
Tickets and information: anchorrockclub.comanchorrockclub.com
Doug is the owner/operator of Doug Deutsch Publicity Services, which since 1995 has been servicing nationally touring acts, and working record release campaigns for clients. Doug can be reached at ShoreLocalDoug@gmail.com
