Swedish rock titans Europe have announced their first album in nine years, Come This Madness. The album, which will be released on September 25 via Silver Lining Music / Hell & Back Recordings, is the follow-up to 2017’s Walk The Earth, and is preceded by a new single, One On One.
“One On One is definitely one of my favourite tracks from the album,” says band frontman Joey Tempest. “The power and feel are fresh, but some of the melodies bring me back to where it all began. Lyrically, it’s perhaps not filled with as much escapism as early Europe. These lyrics automatically ended up being more of a reflection of the times we live in today.
“Ever since One On One was just a demo, we’ve stayed with it… never gave up on it, and elevated it to a place where it belongs: a high-flying, classic hard rock track.”
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The video for One On One stars Hollywood actor Peter Stormare, best known for his roles as Gaear Grimsrud in the film Fargo and John Abruzzi in the TV series Prison Break. He has also appeared in The Big Lebowski, Minority Report, 8MM, Armageddon, Bad Boys II and 22 Jump Street.
“We always knew Peter loved rock music, and when his name came up, it just felt right,” says Tempest. “We wanted to approach this from a different angle–something more stripped back and unexpected.”
Stormare released a solo album, Dallerpölsa & Småfåglar, in 2002, and has previously appeared in videos by Swedish power metal kings Sabaton (Uprising), Rammstein frontman Till Lindemann’s side project Lindemann (Steh Auf and Frau & Mann) and US death metallers Possessed (Graven).
Come This Madness was recorded at RMV Studio in Stockholm with Tom Dalgety, who has also worked with Ghost, Rammstein, Pixies, The Cult, Opeth, Killing Joke, The Damned and many more.
“It was a true pleasure working with Tom,” says Tempest. “He’s creative, musical and incredibly intuitive – he really became a sixth member of the band during the writing and recording of this album. We even invited him to co-write on some of the songs.”
The album was mixed by Mike Fraser, best known for his work with AC/DC, Van Halen and Metallica, and also features guest appearances by Europe’s fellow Swedes Tobias Forge (Ghost) and Michael Åkerfeldt (Opeth). Full tracklist below.
Europe kick off a tour celebrating the 40th anniversary of their breakthrough album and single The Final Countdown at the SEC in Glasgow, UK, on September 30, following a run of summer festival dates. Full dates below.
Come This Madness will be available on vinyl, CD and digital formats, and pre-orders are available now.
Europe: Come This Madness cover art
One On One
The Cult Of Ignorance
Come This Madness
This Time Of Year
In a Different World
Scandinavian Eyes
Takin’ It Back
In the Absence Of Grace
The Angels Must Have Flown
The Devil’s Back
Nothing Can Follow This
Europe: 2026 Tour Dates
Jun 06: Maia North Festival, Portugal
Jun 21: Dessel Graspop Metal Meeting, Belgium
Jun 25: Bela Nad Cirochou Rock Pod Kameňom Festival, Slovakia
Jun 28: Tilloloy Retro Trop C, France
Jul 05: Marostica Summer Festival Piazza Castello, Italy
Jul 07: Rome Cavea-Auditorium Parco della Musica, Italy
Jul 08: Brescia Arena Campo Marte, Italy
Jul 09: Forte Dei Marmi Villa Bertelli, Italy
Jul 25: Pontevedra Son Do Mar Festival, Spain
Jul 30: Wacken Open Air, Germany
Aug 29: Newark Stonedead Festival, UK
Sep 30: Glasgow SEC Armadill, UK
Oct 02: Wolverhampton Civic Hall, UK
Oct 04: London Eventim Apollo Hammersmith, UK
Oct 05: Arnhem Musis Arnhem, The Netherlands
Oct 06: Paris Olympia, France
Oct 08: Barcelona Poble Espanyol, Spain
Oct 09: Bilbao Arena Mirabilla, Spain
Oct 10: Madrid La Cubierta, Spain
Oct 12: Lausanne Salle Métropole, Switzerland
Oct 13: Zürich Volkshaus, Switzerland
Oct 14: Milan Alcatraz, Italy
Oct 16: Stuttgart Liederhalle, Germany
Oct 17: Wien Gasometer, Austria
Oct 19: Berlin Admiralspalast Theater, Germany
Oct 20: Warszawa COS Torwar, Poland
Oct 22: Frederiksberg Falkoner, Denmark
Oct 23: Gothenburg Film Studios, Sweden
Oct 24: Stockholm B-K, Sweden
Oct 26: Oslo Sentrum Scene, Norway
Nov 15: St. Julians Malta Metal Weekend, Malta
Nov 21: Ostrava Ostravar Aréna, Czechia
Nov 25: Helsinki Aalto Hall @ House of Culture, Finland
Nov 27: Jyväskylä John Smith Rock Frozen Paviljonki, Finland
Nov 28: Joensuu Unholy Winter Festival Joensuu Areena, Finland