Godsmack names Wade Murff new touring drummer for 2026 run

Wade Murff is now the name that matters most behind Godsmack’s kit as the band reshapes its 2026 touring identity. Sully Erna confirmed in a TalkShopLive appearance that Murff has joined as the new touring drummer, with Sam Koltun on guitar, a switch that arrives after Tony Rombola and Shannon Larkin stepped away in 2025.

For a band built on punishing low-end swing and huge chorus payoffs, the drummer seat is not cosmetic. Murff comes in with a resume that already crosses Daughtry, Prong, Orgy, Doyle and Sebastian Bach, the kind of mixed rock-and-metal mileage that suggests he can lock into a hard groove without flattening the song. His public Paiste bio says he has been drumming since age 4 and points to power, showmanship, focus and consistency. A public YouTube profile describes him as a Los Angeles professional fluent in multiple styles and able to read sheet music. That is the profile of a player who can keep the pocket steady while still throwing weight at the downbeats.

That matters because Godsmack’s live set has always leaned on physical force as much as melody. With Murff in place, fans should expect a different kind of push under songs that depend on a thick backbeat and precise accents. The grooves may feel a little tighter, the accents a little sharper, and the transitions between radio anthems and heavier catalog cuts could land with a slightly different swing. In a room that size, that difference is not subtle.

The lineup change also lands beside Live at Mohegan Sun, due May 1, 2026. The live album and Blu-ray were recorded on October 26, 2024 at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, and the band’s store describes the show as an end-of-an-era performance that included the classic lineup and the “Battle Of The Drums.” Godsmack’s March 13 messaging framed the release as the close of an important chapter and added that “the best is still yet to come.”

The numbers around the band underline how far this machine has traveled since the beginning. Godsmack’s official site says the self-titled debut was first recorded in 1996 for $2,500, while the store says the band has sold 20 million records, scored 25 Top 10 hits and earned 6 Platinum records. That makes the 2026 reset feel less like a stopgap than a new test of how much of that catalog can still hit with a different engine behind it.

Murff gets that test quickly. Godsmack’s 2026 run opens at Welcome to Rockville in Daytona Beach, Florida, on May 7, followed by MMR*B*Q in Camden, New Jersey, on May 9, then dates with Stone Temple Pilots and Dorothy beginning May 10. For a drummer stepping into a high-visibility slot, the next count-in could define the next chapter fast.