Dermot Kennedy’s third studio album, The Weight of the Woods, debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart this spring, making him the first Irish solo artist to open all three of his studio albums at the top of that chart. His previous two records, Without Fear (2019) and Sonder (2022), each did the same, but the third carries a different register: this is the album where Kennedy went home. Fourteen tracks written and recorded primarily near his rural Ireland house, with Irish instruments woven throughout, it is the most deliberately rooted thing he has made. “The album is a beautiful homegrown thing with Irish instruments and an Irish story,” Kennedy said during the album cycle. “It’s where I’m the most comfortable. I wanted that element to be front-and-center.” The fall North American tour behind it, 32 dates running September 4 through October 29, 2026, arrives at Place Bell in Laval on September 16.
About the Show
Kennedy is on the North American leg of The Weight of the Woods Tour, promoted by Live Nation. The routing says something about where his career has arrived: Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado, the Greek Theatre in Los Angeles, Forest Hills Stadium in Queens, Vancouver’s Rogers Arena for the close. The Laval date falls a night after Toronto’s RBC Amphitheatre, the second of three Canadian stops on the run. Jonah Kagen opens throughout most of the tour. The album was produced by Gabe Simon, known also for work with Noah Kahan and Lana Del Rey, over six weeks in rural Ireland with finishing sessions at Simon’s Nashville studio; lead single “Funeral” sets the tone, exploring heartache with a cinematic video directed by Charlie Sarsfield. GQ described Kennedy as possessing “a rich, reverberant voice, with epically emotive songwriting skills (think Ed Sheeran, but darker, more melancholy),” a characterization that has held up across three records and two continents of touring. Earlier in 2026, Kennedy played six UK arena shows and headlined a pair of dates at Dublin’s Aviva Stadium; he sold out Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium in 2025. This show marks his return to the Montreal area after approximately three years away.
Venue & Logistics
Place Bell is an arena in Laval, a Quebec city accessible from the north-country. The September 16 show is all ages. Doors open at 7:00 p.m.; Kennedy performs at 8:00 p.m.
Tickets
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