The wait for new music from Symphony X is not over, but there’s a good reason for it

Russell Allen of Symphony X discussed the status of the composition sessions for the band’s much anticipated follow-up to 2015’s “Underworld” album in a recent interview with Uruguay’s The Dark Melody, as per Blabbermouth.

Well, the gaps [between albums] have always been there [with Symphony X]. They got worse and worse over the years. I think as we’ve started to be sort of self-produced in a way — I mean, look, I just built all this [home studio setup]. I’ve been working on everything. So, obviously, I’m in the studio right now. And Mike’s [Symphony X guitarist Michael Romeo] been working on this stuff for years, and the guys, I guess. The problem is that when we stop, it really messes up with Mike’s creative process, and he’s obviously the guy who’s really the true musical director, I guess… How can I say that? The composer of the band, really, It’s still a band, but he’s the main guy, obviously, with the musical side of things, and the singing stuff, that’s my thing. And so, the gaps have been worse, I think, as we start to just get lost in what we’re doing. And then we have to stop and then start again. And we’re just not that kind of band. Mike’s not wired like that. He’s a real kind of a mad scientist, genius guy. He just needs to be locked in his world and not be — ’cause he’ll start something, stop, then go back after the tour. ‘Ah, I don’t remember any of that stuff. That stuff all was shit. Let me start again.’

We’ve got about — I don’t know — [Michael] sent me 10 hours of stuff for a 55-minute record. It becomes a monumental task just to weed through all the stuff. And that’s kind of where we’re at. But he’s honed a lot of it in, so we’re getting close. And that’s where the new album is at now. But this has been a while. People have gotta believe us when we say, ‘Hey, we’ve been working on it.’ ‘Cause that’s his process, and I’m not one to argue with that. It’s not the best business model [laughs] if you’re gonna try and make it make a bigger thing in this business, but who cares about that shit when you guys are there? It’s all about the quality of what the fans are gonna hear, and that’s our legacy, and that’s what we leave behind. And so, obviously, at this tenure in our career, that’s what we’re more concerned about than a quick ‘hey’, whatever.

But we are gonna try and use the time that Mike put in on this one. There’s so much good material. We both feel that there’s a lot to pull on for the next one. So there shouldn’t be as much of a gap. The material’s just too good. So it’s, like, ‘Okay, let’s just pick out what this story or what this album’s theme is gonna be, and then we’ve got all this other stuff that’s great.’ And it’s in that Symphony X realm. And we could definitely use that as a starting point for the next one. So there shouldn’t be — I’m not gonna make any promises, ’cause every time you say shit like this, something always happens. But in the point that we’re at now, that’s where we’re at.

I’m not gonna apologize to you guys for taking the time. It’s nothing that we’re sorry for. It’s just how we create this stuff… [But] we don’t wanna make you guys wait forever. It’s nothing against you, the fan, or something to slight you guys. It’s just our process, and it’s just what it takes to get it done and make it on a level that we’re proud of to put out. At the end of the day, we’ve gotta live with it. So that’s kind of what we think about these things. So that’s kind of where it’s at. But it’s coming along. It’s really sounding good. It’s really awesome.

Russell made reference to Symphony X’s impending 30th anniversary Latin American tour, which is set to begin later this month.

We wanna get down there and have a good time and celebrate this sort of milestone in our lives and in our careers with you guys and then get right back into it here. ‘Cause we’re not really booking anything else after this for the rest of the year, unless something amazing comes along, another opportunity. But again, that causes problems for this process. So, we’re weighing all those things out. I mean, there’s really nothing, I think, that can get in our way in terms of shows and stuff at this point, beyond what we’re doing with you guys, and so that gives us the entire summer, fall to get the songs completely finished in terms of what they’re gonna be, and then the recording process is what it is and the time it takes to do that. But I feel like it’s pretty strong that the album will be pretty much in the can by, hopefully, the end of the year, if not in the fall. If we get lucky and something just really takes off, maybe a little sooner release time. So that’s all label stuff and management, and they’ve gotta figure out their windows.

Upcoming shows:

• Wednesday, March 11, 2026 – Guadalajara, Mexico – C3 Stage
• Thursday, March 12, 2026 – Monterrey, Mexico – Nandas 78 Bar Barrio Antiguo
• Friday, March 13, 2026 – Ciudad de México, Mexico – Circo Volador
• Sunday, March 15, 2026 – Santiago, Chile – Teatro Teletón
• Tuesday, March 17, 2026 – Buenos Aires, Argentina – El Teatro Flores
• Wednesday, March 18, 2026 – Montevideo, Uruguay – Montevideo Music Box
• Friday, March 20, 2026 – São Paulo, Brazil – Tokio Marine Hall
• Saturday, March 21, 2026 – Curitiba, Brazil – Tork n’ Roll
• Sunday, March 22, 2026 – Rio de Janeiro, Brazil – Sacadura 154
• Wednesday, March 25, 2026 – Bogotá, Colombia – Royal Center
• Saturday, March 28, 2026 – Heredia, Costa Rica – Nebula Center Aurora