Gene are coming back to North America — First shows in 24 years

It’s been 24 years. Let that sink in. Britpop legends Gene are finally making their way back to North America this November, and honestly, the wait has made this one feel even sweeter.

The London four-piece — Martin Rossiter (vocals), Matt James (drums), Steve Mason (guitars), and Kevin Miles (bass) — reunited last year to celebrate the 30th anniversary of their beloved debut album, ‘Olympian’. What started as a milestone celebration quickly turned into something much bigger. After a run of sold-out UK shows and a triumphant headline set at a packed Hammersmith Apollo, the band is now bringing that energy stateside. Dates include a stop at the Darker Waves Festival on November 14th in Huntington Beach, CA.

Martin Rossiter sums up the vibe perfectly: “In this increasingly bleak world, come and throw your arms in the air, and your legs if you must, for an evening of vim and vigour.” Honestly, we needed that.

From The Pub Table to the Stage Again

The reunion came together after Creation Records founder Alan McGee and Toura Toura’s Kevin Fitzgerald reached out to the band at the end of 2024. The four members hadn’t all been in the same room since their farewell show at the London Astoria on December 16th, 2004 — and yet, according to Matt James, it felt like no time had passed at all.

“We were always very self-depreciating as a group and the banter quickly kicked back in. After a few quips barked across the pub table we relaxed and we all laughed a lot. Straightaway it felt like we were a band again.”

‘Apollo’ — The Live Album Is Out Now

To mark the occasion, Gene have released ‘Apollo’, a live album recorded at that monumental Hammersmith Apollo show in London last October. More than 5,000 fans packed the venue, their voices becoming part of the record itself. Recorded and mixed by the band’s long-time sound engineer Snake Newton, the LP captures everything from the big hits to deep cuts and B-sides that longtime fans have been waiting decades to hear live again.

The tracklist pulls from across the band’s entire catalogue — ‘We Could Be Kings,’ ‘Haunted By You,’ ‘Fighting Fit,’ ‘Olympian,’ ‘For The Dead,’ and plenty more. It’s a document of a band that never really lost it — they just took an extended break.

‘Apollo’ track listing

1. London, Can You Wait?
2. Be My Light, Be My Guide
3. We Could Be Kings
4. Where Are They Now?
5. Truth Rest Your Head
6. Your Love It Lies
7. Longsleeves For The Summer
8. Sleep Well Tonight
9. Save Me I’m Yours
10. O Lover
11. Speak To Me Someone
12. A Car That Sped
13. Walking In The Shallows
14. Haunted By You
15. Olympian
16. For The Dead
17. Sick, Sober & Sorry
18. Fighting Fit
19. I Can’t Help Myself
20. Who Said This Was The End?

North American Tour Dates

Nov 12 — San Francisco, CA — The Fillmore
Nov 14 — Huntington Beach, CA — Darker Waves Festival
Nov 16 — Chicago, IL — Bottom Lounge
Nov 17 — Toronto, ON — Danforth Music Hall
Nov 19 — Washington, D.C. — Howard Theatre
Nov 20 — New York, NY — Sony Hall

Tickets are available through all venues and at geneofficial.com. Don’t sleep on this one — the UK shows sold out fast, and these dates are limited.