Holy Wars are back, and they’re not easing into 2026 quietly.
The LA rock outfit have just unveiled their haunting new single Ceremony, a track that feels cinematic from the first note and emotionally heavy in the best way. It’s dramatic, layered, and unafraid to sit in uncomfortable spaces. If you caught them debuting it live at Download Festival, Rock am Ring or Rock for People last summer, you’ll know it already had crowds locked in.
At its core, Ceremony wrestles with the fantasy and fear of non existence, blurring devotion and self erasure into something ritualistic. Vocalist Kat Leon describes it as a reflection on times she “did not want to exist anymore,” but the heart of the track is survival. “Ultimately I want to drive the point home of owning your power and your weakness,” she explains. It’s vulnerable, but it never feels defeated.
Alongside the single, Holy Wars have officially announced their sophomore album Shadow Work/Light Work, landing April 24th, 2026 via Rise Records and Pale Chord in partnership with BMG. And this isn’t just a follow up record. It’s a concept album rooted in grief, trauma, healing and duality.
The title says it all. Shadow Work/Light Work explores the darkness Leon faced after losing her parents a decade ago and, more recently, her sister in 2024. Instead of staying trapped in that shadow mindset, she channelled it into writing. The result is a record that confronts the heaviest parts of the human experience while still reaching for hope.
Produced by guitarist Nicholas Perez in Joshua Tree, the album promises their most ambitious sound yet. Expect the heaviest material of their career sitting alongside their most tender and melodically rich moments, all tied together with intention.
After a year that saw them play major European festivals, support Kittie and Evanescence, appear on ShipRocked and land on the 2026 Warped Tour lineup, Holy Wars feel like a band fully stepping into their moment.
Ceremony is the first real glimpse of that next chapter. It’s bold, reflective and emotionally charged. If this is what Shadow Work/Light Work has in store, April cannot come soon enough.
