Sugar – the iconic alternative rock trio led by Bob Mould alongside bassist David Barbe and drummer Malcolm Travis – announce today a second brand new single, following the bombshell news of the band’s return last year, as well as news of the Love You Even Still 2026 World Tour following the quickfire sell-out of the band’s forthcoming New York and London residencies.
“Long Live Love” follows October’s widely acclaimed “House Of Dead Memories” single and comes densely layered with grinding guitar riffs, resplendent synth textures and Mould’s impassioned vocals. First penned by Mould in the mid 2000s, it could almost be a lost gem from an alternative future where the trio carried on recording beyond their 1994 swansong File Under: Easy Listening: its lush electronic edge bringing to mind Mould’s DJ work while sharing similar DNA with the production nous of Garbage’s Butch Vig, a key influence on Mould at the time.
Of the single, Mould offers: “I wrote ‘Long Live Love’ in 2007 while living in Washington DC. It was the George W. Bush era, I was deep in my DJ world with Blowoff, yet still writing pop songs on guitars. Garbage 2.0 is one of my desert island albums, so it’s not surprising that ‘Long Live Love’ reminds me of a long lost Garbage song!”
The single comes accompanied by a punchy new visual, created and directed by Lee Gregory of ILoveMotion. “Long Live Love” will be released alongside “House of Dead Memories” on 7″ black vinyl on May 1 via BMG; pre-orders are available now, here.
Listen to “Long Live Love” here, and watch the official music video below:
Following the runaway reaction to the news of “House of Dead Memories” and Sugar’s May New York and London dates – all of which sold out in quick time – the band now announce the Love You Even Still 2026 World Tour. The European leg, which follows directly after sold-out London shows at the O2 Forum Kentish Town on May 23 and 24, includes seven further UK dates as well as visits to Ireland, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Germany, France, Belgium, The Netherlands, Switzerland and ending with Spain’s Azkena Festival. The North American dates, taking place across August, September and October see the band heading across the continent including multiple nights at First Avenue in Minneapolis MN and Union Transfer in Philadelphia PA, while also hitting Los Angeles, San Francisco, Washington D.C, Boston and a return to New York.
All shows go on pre-sale on Tuesday, January 27 at 10 AM, local time with general sale beginning Friday, January 30 at 10 AM, local time. In the US, $2 per ticket will be donated to The Trevor Project, while in the UK/EU Sugar have partnered with PLUS1, with £2/€2 per ticket going to help organisations working to support and empower the health and wellbeing of LGBTQ+ communities.
In October 2025, speaking to Rolling Stone’s David Browne around Sugar’s reunion, Mould earnestly noted how with the reunion he wanted “to see if people are still interested.” His query has since been emphatically answered.
Speaking of the reaction to the band’s return and their live plans for 2026, he offers: “Sugar was dormant for decades and sounds and styles are always changing. Nothing is certain and we had no idea there would be such a positive reaction to the first song. We were heartened to see the excitement for the NYC and London shows. It’s been wonderful to hear people talking so fondly about how much the band meant to them – the strength of the songs, the energy of the shows (and the decibel levels of them!). It was a super special time for all of us. Now that we’re back in business, we’re laser-focused on getting in shape for an exciting year of loud rock shows around the world!”
Find Sugar’s complete tour itinerary here.
Revisit the video for “House Of Dead Memories”:
About Sugar:
Having already placed his indelible mark on modern music with Hüsker Dü and solo album Workbook, Bob Mould enlisted bassist David Barbe and drummer Malcolm Travis leading to the formation of Sugar, who made their live debut in early 1992 at Athens, GA’s famed 40 Watt Club. Named by NME as its 1992 Album of the Year, Sugar’s now-classic debut album, Copper Blue, immediately proved a sensation, earning worldwide acclaim and landmark status for the melodic strength and intensely cathartic popcraft of songs like “A Good Idea”, “Helpless”, and the alternative rock radio hit and MTV favourite, “If I Can’t Change Your Mind”. The trio quickly found themselves performing on increasingly larger stages, including a legendary show-stealing set at London’s Great X-pectations Festival in Finsbury Park.
With the wind at their back, Sugar unleashed Beaster in 1993, making a momentous debut at #3 on the UK’s Official Albums Chart as well as at #4 on Billboard’s Heatseekers chart in the US. Though recorded during the same sessions that yielded Copper Blue, the six-song mini-album evinced a more visceral energy and dark melancholy than its predecessor, highlighted by such pulverising expressions of sacrilegious fury as “Judas Cradle” and “JC Auto”. 1994’s second full-length LP, File Under: Easy Listening once again made an explosive arrival among the top 10 on the UK Official Albums Chart, this time landing in the upper reaches of the overall Billboard 200. The album saw Sugar pushing boundaries yet again on songs like the Americana-tinged “Believe What You’re Saying” and the incendiary “Gee Angel”, tackling a wider range of musical approaches without sacrificing their signature intensity and unrestrained power. Despite their successes, Sugar called it a day following a Japanese tour in early 1995. A series of live recordings, reissues, and anthologies served to magnify the band’s legacy over the three decades since, confirming SUGAR as incontrovertible masters of high-volume guitar-fuelled rock for the ages. The original members of Sugar reconvened in June 2025 to record “House Of Dead Memories”& “Long Live Love,” the first new Sugar songs in over three decades.
(Photo – Beau Sorenson)
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