Devin Townsend releases orchestral “War Beyond Words” live video ahead of November release

Devin Townsend has unveiled a live performance video for “War Beyond Words”, offering another preview of “The Moth (The War – Live in Groningen).” The recording documents the ambitious orchestral presentation of his rock opera in the Netherlands in March 2025.

The standalone live release arrives on November 6, 2026, on CD and Blu-ray as well as digitally. The performance was originally available as part of the deluxe edition of “The Moth,” Townsend’s expansive studio project released in May after more than a decade of development.

The Groningen performances took place on March 27 and 28, 2025, with the North Netherlands Orchestra and Choir joining Townsend and his band. Finnish conductor Jukka Iisakkila led the orchestral forces. The project brought the album’s blend of progressive metal, theatrical arrangements and choral writing onto the stage.

The new official live video moves from a restrained string introduction into heavier passages and full orchestral textures. The upcoming release is available to pre-order.

Watch the performance of “War Beyond Words” below.

Townsend is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, and visionary artist with a background in orchestral rock, ambient music, and extreme metal. Townsend‘s work is renowned for its grandeur, humour, and emotional intensity, from his early days as the leader of Strapping Young Lad to his extensive solo career. His ability to alternate between terrible brutality and ethereal beauty is demonstrated by albums such as “Ocean Machine” (1997), “Empath” (2019), and “Lightwork” (2022). Townsend has established himself as one of progressive metal’s most distinctive voices thanks to his passionate fan base and potent live performances.

His progenitors possess Irish and British heritage, with his father employed in the culinary sector. He commenced playing the banjo at the age of five and transitioned to the guitar at twelve.

During his early adolescence, he formed a friendship with Brian “Beav” Waddell, who subsequently contributed guitar and bass to the Devin Townsend Band and the Devin Townsend Project, respectively. Throughout his secondary education, he engaged with multiple metal bands and established Grey Skies at the age of nineteen.

Simultaneously, he became a member of a prominent local ensemble known as Caustic Thought, assuming the role of guitarist and succeeding Jed Simon, while collaborating with bassist Byron Stroud. Both individuals would later join Townsend‘s principal band, Strapping Young Lad.

In 1993, Townsend initiated the composition of music under the moniker Noisescapes, a venture he later characterized as “equally as aggressive as Strapping Young Lad.”