Atheist and Cynic to Co-Headline the ‘Focus and Presence Tour’ This Summer
Fans of progressive metal are going to be so psyched for the following piece of news, as both Cynic and Atheist are going to be touring North America this Summer in what’s being called the “Focus and Presence Tour.”
Presented by Pull The Plug Patches, the tour will feature special 30th anniversary sets of some of the bands’ past releases. Cynic will perform Focus for its 30th anniversary, while Atheist will perform Piece of Time, Unquestionable Presence and Elements, which is also celebrating its 30th anniversary.
Atheist frontman Kelly Shaefer said he and his bandmates were excited to hit the road with Cynic to celebrate such huge milestones.
“This tour has been something that Paul (Cynic) and I have been talking about in some capacity since we were in our early 20s. It’s surreal to share a 30-year milestone together, and this tour will showcase for us a chance to play songs from our first 3 records as a special trilogy anniversary set, including songs not performed live in decades. Two titans of technical progressive metal coming together for a unicorn of a tour….one you will not want to miss!
“I’m also excited to announce that joining me on this tour and beyond will be an all-new lineup of Atheist! These four straight killers of musicians will be alongside me as Atheist heads out with Cynic to celebrate 30 years of our first three albums Piece of Time, Unquestionable Presence. and turning 30 this year 1993’s Elements!
“We’ll be playing tracks from those three albums exclusively in one of the longest sets we’ve ever done! The set will include several songs that have not been played live in three decades. I’ve just returned from rehearsals in San Diego with these beasts and joining returning bassist Yoav-Ruiz Feingold (Graviton) and myself to round out Atheist are Dylan Marks (Fermentor/Beekeeper) on drums, Alex Hadaad (Arkaik/Dessiderium) on guitar and Jerry Witunsky (Ancient Death) on guitar.
“I couldn’t be more excited to perform this special set with such talented players. They have shown tremendous respect for the music and the attention to detail needed to pull off these songs live. Talk is cheap, right? So be sure to secure your tickets early to the ‘Focus and Presence North American Tour 2023’ to see for yourself and help us celebrate alongside our brothers in Cynic who will be performing a special 30th Anniversary Set for their release Focus as well.”
See you on the road!!”
Tickets for the tour will be available this Friday, April 28 at 12 p.m. EST.
Confirmed dates for ATHEIST and CYNIC’s “FOCUS AND PRESENCE TOUR 2023” presented by Pull The Plug Patches are:
6/10/23: Austin, TX @ Come and Take it Live
6/11/23: Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
6/12/23: Albuquerque, NM @ Launchpad
6/13/23: Mesa, AZ @ Nile Theater
6/14/23: San Diego, CA @ Brick by Brick
6/16/23: Las Vegas, NV @ Backstage Bar
6/17/23: Los Angeles, CA @ Teragram Ballroom
6/19/23: Portland, OR @ Bossonova Ballroom
6/20/23: Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater
6/21/23: Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
6/23/23: Salt Lake City, UT @ Soundwell
6/24/23: Denver, CO @ Oriental Theater
6/25/23: Lawrence, KS @ The Bottleneck
6/26/23: Milwaukee, WI @ X-Ray Arcade
6/27/23: Chicago, IL @ Reggies
6/29/23: Ft. Wayne, IN @ Piere’s
6/30/23: Detroit, MI @ Sanctuary
7/01/23: Toronto, ON @ Lee’s Place
7/02/23: Quebec City, QC @ La Source de la Martinière
7/03/23: Montreal, QC @ Fairmount Theater
7/05/23: Boston, MA @ Middle-East Downstairs
7/06/23: New York, NY @ Le Poisson Rouge
7/07/23: Baltimore, MD @ Baltimore Soundstage
7/08/23: Richmond, VA @ Canal Club
7/09/23: Greensboro, NC @ Hangar 1819
