CANDLEBOX Announces Final Album 'The Long Goodbye'

CANDLEBOX will release its final studio album, "The Long Goodbye", on August 25. The LP was produced by Don Miggs and will be made available via Round Hill Records.

"The Long Goodbye" was officially announced two days ahead of the launch of CANDLEBOX's 30th-anniversary celebration and farewell tour. "The Long Goodbye Tour 2023", which kicks off June 10 and runs through September 23, will feature a career retrospective of the band's extensive eight-studio album catalogue.

CANDLEBOX frontman Kevin Martin said in a statement: "Adam [Kury], BJ [Kerwin], Brian [Quinn], Island [Styles] and I are all super excited for everyone to hear this record. We pushed ourselves creatively as far as our hearts and souls would let us and created something that we're incredibly excited about and very proud of. We can't wait for the world to hear 'The Long Goodbye', the final chapter in a long and illustrious career for CANDLEBOX. One last album on one last tour to wrap up 30 years of rock 'n' roll with a nice little bow."

The farewell tour dates, alongside CANDLEBOX's support dates with 3 DOORS DOWN on their "Away From The Sun Anniversary Tour", will hit amphitheaters in major markets across the U.S.

To celebrate, CANDLEBOX will offer VIP meet-and-greet packages at each 3 DOORS DOWN date, including a ticket, early entry, photo with the band, and merchandise.

Tickets for "The Long Goodbye Tour 2023" are available at www.candleboxrocks.com/tickets.

Additionally, a feature-length documentary, "Far Behind: The Candlebox Story", is in the works for the group. Executive produced by Guy Oseary and Amy Decker and co-produced by Warner Music Entertainment (WME),the television and film division of Warner Music Group, and Highway West Entertainment, the film will explore the beginnings of what the world would come to know as the grunge scene, following CANDLEBOX on their rise to fame.

CANDLEBOX first formed in 1991 and helped lay the groundwork for the grunge genre, alongside notable bands such as PEARL JAM, SOUNDGARDEN, NIRVANA, and others.

CANDLEBOX has sold over seven million albums worldwide, scoring the megahits "Far Behind" and "You", which have garnered over 100 million streams, decades after their initial release. The band's latest album, "Wolves", had been in the top 10 on two Billboard charts (Hard Music Albums and Alternative Albums).

In May 2022, Martin announced plans to retire after the 30th anniversary of the release of the band's debut album in 2023. "I am retiring after next summer — yes, I am retiring," the CANDLEBOX frontman told the 94.3 The Shark radio station.

Noting that CANDLEBOX would celebrate its 31st birthday in October 2022, Martin said: "I don't know if I would have ever thought that CANDLEBOX would be around this long. I wanted it, of course; I think every kid wants to have that opportunity and a career that lasts decades, and I'm very grateful that it has. But there comes a time where my responsibilities as a husband and a father supersede my responsibilities to the music that I make. And that's kind of where I'm at. I enjoy it, but it's not the love of my life anymore. And that's, I think, when you as an artist you kind of have to recognize that and step away from it. And if it means that five years after that I decide that I wanna go out and do some shows, I'll do it; if two years after that I decide I'm going to do some shows… But I won't be doing the full-band tours for two, three, four months. I don't wanna do that. It's really, really hard. And I miss my family. And physically, it's very taxing. The way I sing, it's acrobatic, so it's not something that I wanna be performing and not have my voice work. So I'd rather go out on top, I think, is the term."

Although Martin plans on retiring from the road, he hasn't closed the door on making more music.

"I know that I've got another record I have to do," he told the 94.3 The Shark. "And people are saying, 'Well, if you do another record, you've gotta tour on it.' Well, that's not necessarily true. I would certainly want to and have people hear it, but I think that the case is that it's probably best for me to just accept that the mindset that I'm in and what I've decided for myself is what I need to do. As much as I may wanna keep singing and doing this and putting myself in the music the way I do, I have to recognize that I'm not in love with it the way I [once] was."

Kevin went on to say that "a lot of people" are telling him that he can't retire. "And a lot of those people are my bandmembers and my management," he revealed. "They're, like, 'You can't retire. People love you, and they love your music.' But like I said, man, I have got to put myself first emotionally in everything I do. And that's kind of where I'm at. I don't want to stop singing a song like 'Sometimes' that means the world to me, or 'It's Alright' or 'Far Behind' or 'You', because I love them, but I just know that it's the decision I have to make."

Photo credit: Denise Kovalevich / DMK Publicity