Albany gets first crack at Pop Evil this fall. The Michigan hard rock band opens the North American leg of the What Remains Tour on Friday, September 18 at Empire Live — and if first-night energy is a factor in your decision, that should settle it.
About Pop Evil
Formed in North Muskegon, Michigan in 2001 by vocalist Leigh Kakaty, Pop Evil has spent two decades stacking nine No. 1 singles and six RIAA gold and platinum certifications across eight studio albums. Their latest, What Remains, arrived in March 2025 on MNRK Heavy — and it is their heaviest, most emotionally exposed record yet. Kakaty has described it as a reckoning with things buried across the band’s entire run. The expanded What Remains (Midnight Edition) followed in March 2026, adding new single “The Decay” (a SiriusXM Octane premiere) and a Pop Evil-filtered take on “Don’t You (Forget About Me).” This is a band that has been building toward this tour all year. Albany is where it starts.
About Empire Live
Empire Live is a two-floor, standing-room venue at 93 N. Pearl Street in downtown Albany. Capacity is 1,000 — close enough to feel every riff, large enough to sustain real crowd energy. The two-floor layout gives you options for how you want to plant yourself for a heavy show. Show time is 8:00 PM on a Friday night, so give yourself a little extra buffer for Pearl Street. Age policy: 16 and older, or under 16 with a parent or legal guardian who is 21 or older.
Tickets
VIP upgrade packages are available for the What Remains North America 2026 tour — worth a look if you want early access or a prime spot in the room. General tickets are linked below. Albany opens a long fall run for this band. First-night shows have a particular electricity. Don’t miss it.