🎸💥 They might not have the millions of METALLICA, the stadiums of IRON MAIDEN or the private jets of rock’s biggest superstars, but Canadian heavy metal legends ANVIL have something money simply cannot buy: an absolutely unbreakable love of music! And now, following a remarkable interview with frontman Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow, the band are returning to Britain and Ireland for a special tour celebrating the three albums that helped establish their place in heavy metal history.
The 2026 Pounding The Past Tour features material from Hard ‘N’ Heavy (1981), Metal On Metal (1982) and Forged In Fire (1983), with 12 performances across Britain and Ireland, including TWO Welsh concerts in Buckley and Pontypridd! And nearly two decades after the documentary Anvil! The Story Of Anvil transformed their fortunes, Lips has made one thing perfectly clear: he’s still having the time of his bloody life!
Well, bloody hell, Riff Report crew!
If you ever need proof that heavy metal isn’t just about fame, fortune and enormous festival stages, look no further than a Canadian band called ANVIL.
They’ve survived changing musical fashions.
Record-label difficulties.
Financial struggles.
Disastrous tours.
Line-up changes.
And decades of wondering whether the success they deserved would ever arrive.
But through it all, one thing has remained constant.
Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow and Robb Reiner have never stopped believing in their music.
And now they’re back on the road again.
The Canadian veterans have launched their 2026 Pounding The Past Tour, bringing a collection of early heavy metal classics to intimate venues across Britain and Ireland.
And when we say early classics, we mean the proper old stuff!
The songs that helped establish ANVIL during the early 1980s.
The music that influenced a generation of heavy metal musicians.
And the material that plenty of younger fans may never have had an opportunity to experience live.
Speaking in a new interview with journalist Dave Ling for Classic Rock, published on 4 November 2026, Lips reflected on the band’s extraordinary journey, the documentary that changed their lives, their love of small venues and why he’s perfectly happy not opening for METALLICA.
And honestly, butt?
There’s something rather refreshing about a musician who knows exactly what makes him happy.
No stadium ego. No ridiculous demands. Just a guitar, a drum kit and enough heavy metal to rattle your fillings! 🤘
🎬 The Documentary That Changed Everything – Anvil! The Story Of Anvil
To understand ANVIL’s extraordinary survival story, we need to rewind to 2008.
The band had already spent decades recording and touring.
During the early 1980s, they’d developed a reputation as an exciting heavy metal act whose music helped influence the emerging thrash metal movement.
They’d shared festival bills with major names.
Released important albums.
And built a loyal following.
But while some of their contemporaries went on to sell millions of records, ANVIL never achieved the same commercial breakthrough.
By the 2000s, their circumstances were very different from those of the rock superstars they’d once performed alongside.
And that’s where filmmaker Sacha Gervasi entered the story.
Gervasi was no ordinary documentary director.
He’d been a young ANVIL fan and had previously worked as a roadie for the band during the 1980s.
Years later, he reconnected with Lips and drummer Robb Reiner.
What he discovered was a story that seemed almost impossible to believe.
Two musicians who’d been performing together for decades were still chasing the same dream.
Despite repeated setbacks, they refused to give up.
And Gervasi decided to document their journey.
🥁 A Real-Life Heavy Metal Story
Anvil! The Story Of Anvil premiered at the Sundance Film Festival in January 2008, before receiving wider theatrical distribution during 2009.
The film followed Lips and Robb as they attempted to keep their musical ambitions alive.
But rather than presenting a glamorous portrait of rock stardom, it showed the difficult reality of life in a struggling touring band.
There were poorly attended concerts.
Disorganised travel arrangements.
Financial problems.
Arguments.
Disappointments.
And moments when the whole operation seemed destined to collapse.
Meanwhile, away from the stage, Lips was working a regular job delivering school meals.
Yes, butt.
The guitarist whose music helped influence some of heavy metal’s biggest names was driving around delivering food to schools.
It’s a detail that perfectly illustrates the extraordinary difference between musical influence and financial success.
And perhaps that’s why the documentary connected with so many people.
It wasn’t really just a film about heavy metal.
It was about friendship.
Determination.
Ambition.
And refusing to abandon something you love, even when the world keeps telling you to give up.
❤️ Almost 20 Years Later, Lips Still Has No Regrets!
In his latest interview, Lips reflected on how quickly the years have passed since the documentary was released.
And it’s clear that the film remains enormously important to him.
The documentary captured moments he can never experience again.
His family when they were younger.
Friends and musicians who are no longer alive.
And an era of his life that now feels incredibly distant.
Among those remembered in the film are his mother and legendary MOTÖRHEAD frontman Lemmy Kilmister, who died in December 2015.
For Lips, the documentary has become more than an account of the band’s struggles.
It’s also a personal record of people, friendships and experiences.
And despite the emotional arguments and difficult situations captured on camera, he doesn’t regret allowing Gervasi such extensive access.
In fact, he wanted the film to show the truth.
Not a carefully polished promotional story.
Not an exaggerated portrait of glamorous rock stardom.
But the reality of what happens when musicians dedicate their lives to something without any guarantee of commercial success.
And that’s what makes the film so compelling.
It’s funny.
It’s sometimes uncomfortable.
It’s occasionally heartbreaking.
But above all, it’s genuine.
And in a music industry where everything can sometimes feel carefully manufactured, that honesty is bloody refreshing.
🤘 Did The Documentary Save ANVIL’s Career?
It’s a question that has followed the band for years.
Would ANVIL still be touring today without the documentary?
The answer isn’t something anyone can establish with certainty.
But there’s little doubt that the film transformed their visibility.
Before its release, ANVIL had a devoted but comparatively small audience.
Afterwards, millions of people became familiar with their remarkable story.
The documentary received widespread critical acclaim and introduced the musicians to listeners who had previously never heard their records.
And something particularly interesting happened.
People didn’t simply watch the film and forget about it.
They started attending concerts.
Buying music.
And following the band’s continuing adventures.
🎸 A New Generation Of Metalheads
In his conversation with Classic Rock, Lips described the remarkable number of people attending ANVIL concerts for the first time.
According to the frontman, roughly two-thirds of the audience at some shows consists of newcomers.
And many of them are considerably younger than the musicians themselves.
That’s an extraordinary situation for a band whose roots stretch back to the late 1970s.
Rather than relying entirely on ageing fans who remember buying their early albums, ANVIL have developed an audience spanning multiple generations.
Some discovered the band through the original recordings.
Others became fans after watching the documentary.
And younger listeners continue arriving through streaming, recommendations and live performances.
That’s the sort of musical longevity plenty of artists would love to achieve.
And it explains why the current tour is so interesting.
ANVIL are going back to the beginning, but they’re playing those old songs for an audience that includes plenty of new faces.
🔥 Pounding The Past 2026 – Three Classic Albums Take Centre Stage!
Most bands tour because they’ve got a new album to promote.
ANVIL have decided to do something a little different.
Their latest studio album, One And Only, arrived in June 2024.
And with the group preparing its next recording project, Lips wanted to create some breathing space between releases.
Rather than immediately launching another conventional album campaign, the band decided to revisit their earliest material.
The result is the Pounding The Past Tour.
And the concept is brilliantly straightforward.
Songs from ANVIL’s first three albums. Nothing from the later catalogue.
The albums being celebrated are:
- Hard ‘N’ Heavy (1981)
- Metal On Metal (1982)
- Forged In Fire (1983)
Now, here’s an important distinction.
The tour is being advertised as a set featuring songs drawn exclusively from those three records.
That doesn’t mean every album is being performed from beginning to end.
Instead, audiences can expect a selection of the band’s early material.
And judging by setlists from earlier 2026 performances, that’s going to mean plenty of proper old-school heavy metal.
💿 Hard ‘N’ Heavy (1981) – Where The ANVIL Story Began!
Released in 1981, Hard ‘N’ Heavy introduced ANVIL’s raw, uncompromising approach to heavy metal.
The album arrived at a fascinating moment in musical history.
Traditional hard rock was evolving.
The New Wave of British Heavy Metal was creating enormous excitement.
And bands were beginning to explore faster, more aggressive musical styles.
ANVIL emerged from Canada with a sound that combined heavy riffs, powerful drums and an enthusiastic disregard for subtlety.
Songs including School Love, Ooh Baby and Bedroom Game helped establish the group’s early identity.
The recording featured the original classic line-up of:
Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow – Vocals and Guitar
Dave Allison – Guitar
Ian Dickson – Bass
Robb Reiner – Drums
The album wasn’t a massive commercial breakthrough.
But it helped establish the musical foundations that would lead to the band’s most influential recordings.
And for newer fans, hearing this material live provides an opportunity to experience the beginning of ANVIL’s journey.
🤘 Metal On Metal (1982) – The Album That Helped Influence Thrash!
If there’s one ANVIL album every serious heavy metal fan should know, it’s Metal On Metal.
Released in 1982, it remains the band’s most celebrated early recording.
And with good reason.
The album captured a group pushing heavy metal towards a faster, more aggressive sound.
Tracks including Metal On Metal, Mothra, 666, March Of The Crabs and Jackhammer helped establish the band’s reputation.
The riffs were fierce.
The rhythms were powerful.
And Robb Reiner’s drumming demonstrated an intensity that would become increasingly important to the emerging thrash metal movement.
The record earned admiration from musicians associated with bands including METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX.
And while ANVIL didn’t go on to achieve the same commercial success as those groups, their influence remains an important part of heavy metal history.
🎸 Metal On Metal – The Ultimate ANVIL Anthem!
The title track remains one of the band’s most recognisable songs.
It’s gloriously direct.
Heavy guitars.
Thunderous drums.
And a chorus designed to be shouted by an entire room full of metalheads.
There’s nothing complicated about the message.
Heavy metal is brilliant, and ANVIL are bloody proud to play it!
And frankly, butt, we can’t argue with that.
🔥 Forged In Fire (1983) – ANVIL Turn Up The Heat!
The third record being celebrated on the tour is Forged In Fire.
Released in 1983, it continued developing the heavy sound established on Metal On Metal.
The album included songs such as Forged In Fire, Free As The Wind, Motormount and Winged Assassins.
And the recording remains a favourite among dedicated followers of traditional heavy metal.
It’s also an important part of the band’s history because it represents the culmination of their influential early run.
Those three albums helped establish ANVIL as musicians whose work would leave a lasting impression on the developing metal scene.
And now, more than four decades later, the band are bringing those songs back to the stage.
Not simply because they’re old.
But because younger listeners are discovering them for the first time.
That’s what makes the Pounding The Past Tour such an interesting idea.
It’s not just a nostalgia trip.
It’s a musical introduction to the records that helped define ANVIL.
🎶 What Songs Are ANVIL Playing On Their 2026 Tour?
Recent performances on the Pounding The Past Tour have featured a substantial selection of early classics.
A typical reported setlist includes:
- March Of The Crabs
- 666
- School Love
- Ooh Baby
- Bedroom Game
- Mad Dog
- Motormount
- Winged Assassins
- Free As The Wind
- Forged In Fire
- Mothra
- Swing Thing
- Jackhammer
- Metal On Metal
Some concerts have also included a drum solo from Robb Reiner.
Setlists can change between performances, so this should be treated as an example rather than a guaranteed running order.
But it’s a pretty impressive collection of songs for anyone who enjoys traditional heavy metal.
And with ANVIL performing in smaller venues, fans will have an opportunity to experience the music in a considerably more intimate atmosphere than an arena show.
😂 Lips Has Made Peace With Never Opening For METALLICA!
One of the most entertaining parts of the new interview concerns the relationship between ANVIL and the enormous metal bands who followed them.
METALLICA are among the musicians who have acknowledged the influence of ANVIL’s early work.
And drummer Lars Ulrich appeared in the documentary discussing the band.
That naturally raises an interesting question.
Could ANVIL ever find themselves opening for METALLICA?
Well, according to Lips, he’s not expecting that opportunity to arrive.
In the interview, he explained:
“I know that I will never open for Metallica.”
And rather than sounding particularly bitter, he appears to have accepted that reality.
Lips discussed the financial complexities of major international tours and the enormous costs involved in supporting an operation of that scale.
Large arena and stadium tours are expensive businesses.
There’s transport.
Production.
Crew.
Accommodation.
Equipment.
And numerous commercial considerations.
For a smaller band, joining that sort of touring operation isn’t necessarily as straightforward as receiving an invitation.
And Lips seems perfectly happy concentrating on something much simpler.
Playing heavy metal for people who genuinely want to hear it.
🤘 Small Venues Are Where Heavy Metal Comes Alive!
This is perhaps our favourite part of the entire conversation.
Lips made it clear that he genuinely enjoys playing smaller British venues.
The cramped stages.
The sweat.
The noise.
The audience standing right in front of the band.
For him, that’s where heavy metal feels most authentic.
And honestly, we know exactly what he means.
There’s something special about watching a band in an intimate club.
You can see every guitar solo.
Hear every drum fill.
Feel the amplifiers pushing air across the room.
And if you’re standing close enough, you might even need to move backwards when the guitarist starts swinging the headstock around!
Those gigs can create memories every bit as powerful as enormous stadium productions.
Sometimes even more powerful.
And here at The Riff Report, we spend plenty of time championing exactly those kinds of performances.
Because grassroots music venues are the backbone of live rock and metal.
Without them, the industry would be a considerably quieter place.
🥁 Robb Reiner – The Drummer Who Refused To Quit!
While Lips is undoubtedly the band’s most recognisable personality, the ANVIL story wouldn’t be complete without Robb Reiner.
The drummer has been part of the group’s journey since its earliest days.
And his friendship with Lips is one of the emotional foundations of the documentary.
The two musicians have experienced extraordinary highs and lows together.
They’ve celebrated successful concerts.
Endured disappointing tours.
Argued.
Made up.
And continued making music when plenty of other people might have walked away.
Reiner’s drumming was also an essential part of ANVIL’s influence on heavy metal.
His speed, power and technical ability helped make the band’s early recordings stand out.
And more than four decades later, he remains behind the drum kit.
That’s an extraordinary musical partnership.
🎸 ANVIL’s Current Line-Up
The band’s current three-piece configuration consists of:
🎤 Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow – Lead Vocals and Guitar
The band’s unmistakable frontman, songwriter and founding member.
🥁 Robb Reiner – Drums
Founding member, longtime friend of Lips and one of the musicians responsible for ANVIL’s influential early sound.
🎸 Chris Robertson – Bass and Vocals
A member of ANVIL since 2014, Robertson provides the low-end foundation for the band’s current live performances and recordings.
And despite having fewer musicians onstage than the original four-piece line-up, the current trio continue delivering the music with plenty of power.
🇬🇧 ANVIL 2026 UK And Ireland Tour Dates – Including TWO Welsh Shows!
Right then, here’s the information we’ve been waiting for.
The Pounding The Past Tour brings ANVIL to Britain and Ireland throughout November 2026.
The itinerary includes intimate venues across England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
And there’s particularly good news for Welsh metalheads.
ANVIL ARE PLAYING TWO SHOWS IN CYMRU! 🐉🤘
🎟️ Confirmed UK And Ireland Concert Dates
Date
City
Venue
Wednesday 4 November
Southampton
The Joiners
Thursday 5 November
Bedford
Esquires
Friday 6 November
Hastings
The Carlisle
Saturday 7 November
London
The Underworld
Sunday 8 November
Buckley, Wales 🐉
The Tivoli
Tuesday 10 November
Dublin
Lost Lane
Wednesday 11 November
Belfast
The Deer’s Head
Thursday 12 November
Glasgow
Slay
Monday 16 November
Manchester
Gorilla
Tuesday 17 November
Hull
The Welly Club
Friday 20 November
Newcastle
Anarchy Brew Co
Saturday 21 November
Pontypridd, Wales 🐉
Y Muni
The Bedford concert was added following the cancellation of Hard Rock Hell, which had originally been part of the tour plans.
The itinerary also includes an appearance at Malta Metal Weekend on 14 November, outside the UK and Ireland leg.
Support comes from Belgian heavy metal veterans KILLER, with additional local acts appearing at selected venues.
Ticket availability and age restrictions vary by location.
🐉 ANVIL Are Coming To Pontypridd – And We Absolutely Love It!
Now then, South Wales metalheads!
Here’s something worth getting excited about.
ANVIL will perform at Y Muni in Pontypridd on Saturday 21 November 2026!
And what a cracking venue for a band like this.
Y Muni is a historic performance venue in the heart of Pontypridd.
The building has played an important role in the town’s cultural life, and following its redevelopment, it provides a home for live music, arts and entertainment.
It’s exactly the sort of place where a band like ANVIL should feel at home.
A proper venue.
A crowd of enthusiastic music fans.
And musicians who genuinely enjoy performing.
🎟️ Pontypridd Concert Details
Band: ANVIL
Special Guests: KILLER
Date: Saturday 21 November 2026
Venue: Y Muni, Pontypridd
Advertised time: 7:15pm to 10:15pm
Standard standing ticket: £20
Age guidance: 14+, with under-16s accompanied by an adult
🎟️ Official Y Muni Ticket Booking
And here’s another lovely detail.
Y Muni is offering accessible booking information, including arrangements for wheelchair spaces and essential companions.
Anyone requiring those facilities should contact the venue’s box office.
🤘 ANVIL Also Play Buckley!
For fans in North Wales, there’s another opportunity.
Sunday 8 November 2026 – The Tivoli, Buckley.
The advertised standard ticket is £20 face value, with additional booking charges bringing the listed price to approximately £22 before any optional extras.
🎟️ ANVIL At The Tivoli, Buckley – Tickets
Two Welsh concerts from one of heavy metal’s most determined bands?
That’s what we call a bloody tidy result, butt!
🎸 Special Guests KILLER – Belgian Heavy Metal Veterans Join The Madness!
ANVIL won’t be travelling alone.
The tour also features KILLER, the Belgian heavy metal band whose history stretches back to the early 1980s.
And their involvement makes perfect sense.
Like ANVIL, KILLER emerged during an exciting period for traditional heavy metal.
The band’s music draws on powerful riffs, energetic performances and the classic heavy metal sound that helped shape the genre.
For fans attending the tour, their appearance adds another opportunity to celebrate the music of that era.
And that’s something we particularly enjoy about a touring package like this.
Rather than focusing exclusively on the biggest commercial names, it brings together musicians who have dedicated decades of their lives to heavy music.
Artists who genuinely understand the culture.
The audiences.
And the importance of keeping those traditional sounds alive.
Expect plenty of guitar riffs, pounding drums and old-school metal attitude!
💿 ANVIL Are Already Looking Towards Their 21st Studio Album!
Although the current tour focuses on early material, ANVIL haven’t abandoned the idea of making new music.
Far from it.
Their most recent studio album, One And Only, was released on 28 June 2024 through AFM Records.
It marked the band’s 20th studio release.
And according to their recent statements, preparations have been underway for album number 21.
The band previously indicated plans to record new material in Germany during September 2026.
Meanwhile, Lips has discussed wanting to allow more time between the two albums rather than rushing straight into another release campaign.
At the time of writing, a confirmed title and release date for the next album haven’t been announced.
But the important point is that the musicians are still thinking creatively.
Still working on songs.
Still making plans.
And still approaching their career with remarkable enthusiasm.
For a band that began its journey during the late 1970s, that’s an extraordinary achievement.
And it reinforces something the documentary made clear.
ANVIL aren’t interested in stopping simply because they’ve reached a certain age.
They love making music.
And as long as they’re able to do it, they intend to continue.
❤️ The Real Legacy Of ANVIL – Never Give Up On Your Dreams!
There’s something genuinely inspiring about the ANVIL story.
Not because every musician who works hard will eventually become famous.
That’s simply not how the music industry operates.
Plenty of incredibly talented artists never achieve major commercial success.
And sometimes the difference between international recognition and relative obscurity comes down to timing, business decisions, promotion and circumstances beyond a musician’s control.
But ANVIL demonstrate that success doesn’t have to mean the same thing for everybody.
They might not have METALLICA’s record sales.
They might not be headlining enormous stadium tours.
And they might never have the financial resources enjoyed by rock’s biggest names.
But they’ve spent decades doing something they genuinely love.
They’ve recorded 20 studio albums.
They’ve toured internationally.
They’ve inspired younger musicians.
They’ve appeared in an acclaimed documentary.
And they’re still attracting new fans.
That’s not failure.
That’s a remarkable career.
And if you ask us, butt, there’s something worth celebrating about musicians who have managed to keep their enthusiasm alive for so long.
🎸 A Lesson For Grassroots Bands Across Wales
This is a story that feels particularly relevant to the independent music community here in Cymru.
Because we’ve got countless talented musicians performing in smaller venues across Wales.
Bands who finish their day jobs and head straight to rehearsals.
Artists who spend their own money recording music.
Musicians travelling around the country in vans packed with equipment.
And performers who continue doing it because they genuinely love the experience.
For every enormous international success story, there are thousands of people keeping rock music alive at grassroots level.
Those musicians matter.
Those venues matter.
And those audiences matter.
The ANVIL documentary might have introduced people to the struggles of one Canadian band, but the broader story is familiar throughout the music industry.
It’s about perseverance.
Friendship.
Hard work.
And the sheer joy of making music.
And here at The Riff Report, that’s exactly the sort of attitude we want to celebrate.
🔥 The Riff Report Verdict – ANVIL Might Not Be Millionaires, But They’re Heavy Metal Royalty!
Well then, butt.
What an extraordinary story.
A Canadian band that helped influence some of the biggest names in heavy metal.
A career that never quite followed the path many people expected.
Decades of difficult tours and financial struggles.
And a documentary that introduced their music to a completely new audience.
Yet here they are in 2026.
Still playing.
Still recording.
Still travelling.
And still getting excited about walking onto a stage and making a glorious racket.
There’s something wonderfully reassuring about that.
Especially in a music industry where success is often measured almost entirely through streaming figures, ticket sales and social media followers.
ANVIL remind us that music can mean something far more personal.
It’s about connection.
It’s about community.
And sometimes it’s simply about standing in front of a room full of people and playing the songs you love.
The new Pounding The Past Tour is particularly exciting because it celebrates the material that helped establish the band’s early reputation.
Hard ‘N’ Heavy.
Metal On Metal.
Forged In Fire.
Three albums that helped define their place in heavy metal history.
And for fans who’ve only recently discovered ANVIL through the documentary, there’s now an opportunity to experience those songs in the environment where the band seem happiest.
Small venues, loud amplifiers and a crowd standing right in front of the stage.
No enormous production.
No ridiculous spectacle.
Just proper heavy metal.
And personally, we reckon there’s something rather beautiful about that.
As for Steve ‘Lips’ Kudlow?
He’s spent decades being told, directly or indirectly, that the dream might be over.
And he’s spent just as long proving that he isn’t interested in giving up.
That deserves a huge amount of respect.
So whether you’re attending the London show, heading to Manchester, travelling to Dublin or joining the madness in Buckley or Pontypridd, you’re not simply watching another veteran metal band.
You’re witnessing a story of extraordinary persistence.
A musical friendship that has survived nearly half a century.
And a group of musicians who still believe that heavy metal is worth dedicating their lives to.
Long live ANVIL!
Long live Lips and Robb!
And long live every musician who’s ever refused to put down their guitar just because the world told them to grow up! 🐉🔥🤘
💬 Have Your Say, Riff Report Crew!
Right then, you wonderful bunch of metalheads!
Have YOU watched Anvil! The Story Of Anvil?
Did the documentary introduce you to the band, or were you already listening to their music during the early 1980s?
And here’s another question.
Are you planning to catch ANVIL on their 2026 Pounding The Past Tour?
Will you be joining them in Buckley or Pontypridd?
Or are you travelling to one of the other British and Irish dates?
We’d also love to hear your favourite ANVIL songs.
Are you a Metal On Metal fan?
Does Mothra remain one of their greatest tracks?
Or do you reckon Forged In Fire deserves more recognition?
And finally, what do you think makes a successful music career?
Is it selling millions of albums and playing stadiums?
Or is there something equally important about spending decades doing what you love?
Get involved in the comments and share your thoughts.
Because here at The Riff Report, we believe every musician who works hard to keep rock and metal alive deserves respect.
Whether you’re playing Wembley Stadium or a tiny venue in the Welsh Valleys, the music matters.
Keep those riffs loud, support your local venues and never give up on the music, butt! 🐉🎸🤘
