SULLY ERNA: New GODSMACK Music To Arrive By Summer Of 2027

In an interview with Rock 100.5 The KATT FM's Cameron Buchholtz conducted at this weekend's Rocklahoma festival in Pryor, Oklahoma, GODSMACK frontman Sully Erna confirmed that there are plans for him and his bandmates to work on new music as a follow-up to 2023's "Lighting Up The Sky" album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Oh, yeah, yeah. It's gonna happen for sure. We're gonna finish this year out. We have a pretty busy schedule all the way up to New Year's Eve, and then I'm gonna take a minute off, and then we're gonna start writing a new record. And I'm sure you'll hear some new GODSMACK by the summer of '27."

Erna also talked about GODSMACK's current lineup, which consists of Sully on vocals and guitar, bassist Robbie Merrill, guitarist Sam Koltun and former DREAM THEATER drummer Mike Mangini. Mangini made his live debut with GODSMACK on June 12 at the Morton Amphitheater in Riverside, Missouri following the abrupt departure of Wade Murff. Wade stepped into GODSMACK in early May as the replacement for longtime GODSMACK drummer Shannon Larkin, who quit the band in late 2024, along with guitarist Tony Rombola, because they didn't want to tour anymore.

Asked about GODSMACK's recently released live album, "Live At Mohegan Sun", which served as a tribute to GODSMACK's classic lineup of Erna, Larkin, Rombola and Merrill, Erna said: "It was the perfect way to retire [Larkin and Rombola] as they wanted to and kind of close that chapter. But me and Robbie had a conversation. We were, like, 'We're not ready to give it up yet. We still feel young. We still feel good. We wanna play music. We love it.' We got two monsters in the band now — Mike Mangini and Sam Bam Koltun. And I gotta tell you, the band's just as strong now, if not stronger than ever. So I'm happy."

Regarding the fact that Mangini was recruited to replace Larkin, Erna said: "Well, that goes to show you how good Shannon was, and is, because you need someone at Mangini's level to be able to cover what Shannon does. There it is."

Sully also discussed "Battle Of The Drums", which has long been a defining moment of GODSMACK's live show, originating in the mid‑1990s when he was still behind the kit and evolving into a full‑scale rhythmic duel after Larkin joined the band. What began as Erna playing congas alongside early drummers grew into a high‑octane spectacle featuring two full drum kits, rotating risers, and a display of precision and power that earned admiration across the rock world. Asked what it has been like doing the "Battle Of The Drums" with Mangini, Erna said: "It's been great. I mean, he's still settling into it, and we're still finding each other. But it's going really well, man. And he's very fun to play with, very fun to watch. I'm learning things from him because he has a whole different angle on stuff sometimes, and I'm, like, 'Okay, nice one, dude.'"

Sully continued: "When we and Shannon built the solo, we built it so it has its foundation and the parts that we kind of stick to that are staple parts. But then we always left these big holes where you have the freedom to improvise. But we did it that way because we wanted to be off the leash once in a while and just create. And it's pretty cool 'cause once in a while you nail this amazing riff, and then once in a while you stumble or you drop a stick, and it's a mess. And watching Mangini come into the same thing — there's some nights where he does this brilliant fill, I'm, like, 'Wow, dude, that was amazing.' And then some nights, he chokes a little bit and knuckles up, and I'm, like, 'Welcome aboard, dude.'"

Asked if Mangini is a permanent member of GODSMACK at this point, Erna said: "I can never predict the future, but I can't see him going anywhere. We love him. He's an old friend of mine. He's doing great. He's a high-level player. I have no reason why I need to replace the guy."

Elsewhere in the interview, Sully weighed in on some artists' use of backing tracks to add extra instrumental or vocal tracks to a live performance, to enhance the sound or to replicate more closely the instrumentation heard on a recording. Asked if he and his GODSMACK bandmates have ever been tempted to incorporate some of that technology into their live performances, Erna said: "No, never. And we never will. I can't wrap my head around that. EDM, sure. But musicians who spend tens of thousands of hours practicing to get great, and then they record a record, and then they go out and play computers so they can fill up the sound? No. That doesn't fly with me. I'm sorry. It's never going to.

"I try to have a mutual respect for all artists, but when it comes to rock, comes to metal, those kind of things, I really feel like if you're layering your music that much, then you shouldn't be either performing the song or you shouldn't layer the album so much that you have to run track with you," Erna explained. "Especially if you're that good of a player.

"Listen, that's just my opinion. Everybody has their own opinion," Sully clarified. "I come from an older school, '70s, '80s background of music. We're just groomed a different way, and we're groomed to play our instruments and practice our ass off until you get it right. That's just where I come from. That's what it's supposed to be. And that's what it's always gonna be for us, and the FOO FIGHTERS, and METALLICA and the [RED HOT] CHILI PEPPERS, and all the people that come from that same era.

"There's still bands out there that they just — I don't know — they wanna sound perfect, or they wanna sound fuller, or they don't have enough musicians to fill up the extra layers they put on the album. So I understand it; I just don't agree with it. There's ways around that stuff."

GODSMACK recently announced newly added fall 2026 U.S. dates for its massive "The Rise Of Rock" world tour, with DOROTHY joining as direct support and special guest for the October dates. The newly announced October run kicks off Friday, October 9 in Airway Heights, Washington at Northern Quest Resort & Casino and continues through major markets including Idaho Falls, Lincoln, Minneapolis, Milwaukee, Cincinnati, Atlantic City, and Uncasville, where the band will return to Mohegan Sun Arena on Saturday, October 24.