SABATON Today Releases Much-Anticipated 11th New Studio Album ‘Legends’; 11 Tracks Based On 11 Historical Figures; Accompanied By Latest Single “I, Emperor” Based On Napoleon
DT: OCTOBER 17, 2025
FM: AMANDA CAGAN, MITCH SCHNEIDER / SRO PR
Download HERE; credit: Steve Bright
L to R: Chris Rörland (guitar), Thobbe Englund (guitar), Joakim Brodén (vocals), Pär Sundström (bass), Hannes Van Dahl (drums)
SABATON—
THE #1 GLOBAL POWER METAL BAND—
TODAY RELEASES MUCH-ANTICIPATED 11th NEW STUDIO ALBUM
‘LEGENDS’
VIA BETTER NOISE MUSIC
11 TRACKS BASED ON 11 HISTORICAL FIGURES
ACCOMPANIED BY LATEST SINGLE “I, EMPEROR”
BASED ON NAPOLEON
STREAM/DOWNLOAD ‘LEGENDS’ HERE
PURCHASE ‘LEGENDS’ HERE
STREAM/DOWNLOAD “I, EMPEROR” HERE
WATCH THE BOARDGAMER MEETS NAPOLEON-THEMED VIDEO HERE
MASSIVE WORLDWIDE TOUR INCLUDING
31-DATE NORTH AMERICA RUN
THROUGHOUT 2025 CONTINUING INTO 2026
Download ‘LEGENDS’ artwork HERE
Coming off the announcement of a massive 2025 worldwide tour including a 31-date North American run set for early 2026, SABATON (@sabatonofficial) today (October 17) release their much-anticipated 11th studio album LEGENDS via Better Noise Music (marking the band’s label debut). It features the latest single and accompanying video, “I, Emperor,” based on the complex and controversial Napoleon Bonaparte, by the #1 Global Power Metal Band and one of Sweden’s most successful bands.
Listen to “I, Emperor” HERE and watch the boardgamer meets Napoleon-themed video HERE.
Throughout the album, SABATON—Joakim Brodén (vocals), Pär Sundström (bass), Chris Rörland (guitar), Thobbe Englund (guitar), Hannes Van Dahl (drums)—delve into some of history’s greatest and most loved characters such as Jeanne D’arc (also known as Joan of Arc), Hannibal, Genghis Khan, Vlad the Impaler, Julius Caesar, the Knights Templar, and the legendary swordmaster Miyamoto Musashi.
TRACK LEGENDARY FIGURE
Templars – Knights Templar
Hordes of Khan – Genghis Khan
A Tiger Among Dragons – Lü Bu
Crossing the Rubicon – Julius Caesar
I, Emperor – Napoleon Bonaparte
Maid of Steel – Joan of Arc
Impaler – Vlad the Impaler
Lightning at the Gates – Hannibal
The Duelist – Miyamoto Musashi
The Cycle of Songs – Pharaoh Senusret III
Till Seger – King of Sweden Gustav II Adolf
This 11th studio album marks a bold evolution in the band’s sound and storytelling, plunging headfirst into the heart of history’s most formidable and enigmatic figures. These are not just rock songs; they are battle hymns carved from the blood and legacy of warriors, kings, strategists and revolutionaries.
For the album’s sixth single, “I, Emperor,” the band is setting their sights on the complex and controversial Napoleon Bonaparte, who rose to fame during the French Revolution and became a hero after his Italian campaign. He took power as First Consul, then crowned himself Emperor. Known for his brilliant military tactics, he beat major European powers in battles like Austerlitz and Rivoli. He also reformed laws with the Napoleonic Code, but his ambition caught up with him after a failed invasion of Russia and defeat at Waterloo, and he was exiled.
“Epic battles, bold moves and a rise from nothing to emperor,” explains frontman Joakim Brodén. “Napoleon is straight up legendary and his story is basically built for a SABATON song. Plus, this one was greatly—and I mean greatly—requested by fans. So here it is… you asked, we delivered!”
Continues bassist Pär Sundström: “I was excited about ‘I, Emperor,’ because I’ve seen countless requests for us to write a song about Napoleon, which is usually a sign that fans will get excited about a song. This one’s got that anthem energy, and we’ve got a feeling it’s gonna be a fan favorite.” He adds: “It’s punchy, powerful and seriously catchy, that’s something we all felt when Joakim was singing along to the music during the filming of the video for the song. I can’t wait to hear what everyone thinks. I’m curious to see if fans think this one should make it into the setlist for future shows!”
The accompanying music video is a tribute to one of Sundström’s favorite childhood hobbies, board games. The concept was to create a historical board game replay of the Battle of Waterloo, with the twist being that the band members are the ones deciding the fate of the battle without being aware of it. Joakim took on the role of the French, while Pär and guitarist Chris Rörland represented the British, and drummer Hannes Van Dahl and guitarist Thobbe Englund represented the Prussians.
It was set up to depict Joakim versus the rest of the band, since he had studied a book detailing how Napoleon should have fought the battle in order to achieve victory. In the video, he uses that knowledge to outplay his band members completely, and wins. But his victory doesn’t just end the game; it rewrites history. When they leave the gaming room, they discover that the British pub they started off in has transformed into a French café. The band ended up in an alternate reality where France actually won the Battle of Waterloo.
For the ‘I, Emperor’ music video shoot, Joakim brought along a stack of books, each one connected to Sabaton History Channel (that has over 364k subscribers) topics and songs the band have written about over the years, and Pär showed up with a collection of collectible board games to help set the scene. They even took a trip to a local second-hand market to pick up extra props and decorations to make the set look exciting. It was a proper mix of research, geekiness, and treasure hunting.
LEGENDS marks the very first time that every band member has come together to contribute to the songwriting process. This is SABATON as you’ve never heard them before—relentless and unbound. LEGENDS is a global journey through the annals of warfare, leadership and unbreakable will.
Five songs have already been released from LEGENDS including “Crossing The Rubicon” (featuring NOTHING MORE). This special collaborative version of the track was released to radio September 12 and the band is now making their first appearance on the Mediabase Active Rock chart at #33, while the original version will be available as part of the album release. Previously released were “The Duelist” and “Lightning at the Gates” (July 25), “Hordes of Khan” (June 6), and “Templars” (April 25):
- “The Duelist”: Listen HERE and watch the lyric video HERE. The track has been streamed over three million times, and the video has been viewed over one million times.
- “Lightning at the Gates”: Listen HERE and watch the lyric video HERE. The track has been streamed over 2.6 million times, and the video has been viewed over one million times.
- “Hordes of Khan”: Listen HERE and watch the video HERE. The track has been streamed over 6.3 million times, while the video has been viewed more than 1.4 million times.
- “Templars”: Listen HERE and watch the video HERE. The track has been streamed over 19.1 million times, while the official video and lyric video have been viewed more than 5.7 million times.
- “Crossing The Rubicon” (featuring NOTHING MORE): Listen HERE and watch the video HERE. The track has been streamed over 3.3 million times, while the official lyric video has been viewed more than one million times.
Building on the multi-Platinum-selling band’s intense blend of rock and world history for fans of all ages, LEGENDS is available worldwide HERE as a digital download, as well as in various physical formats and retailer exclusives including CD, 2 CD digibook, 2 CD earbook (both including the exclusive Storyteller Edition), 11 unique vinyl editions (including a special vinyl color and exclusive artwork with each), additional exclusive vinyl colors, and a limited box set (including another exclusive vinyl color, the 2 CD earbook, and a colored cassette as an exclusive format).
Among the 11 unique vinyl editions, each one portraying one legendary figure, LEGENDS will be available as the “Napoleon Edition” in connection with the release of “I, Emperor.”
Download “Napoleon Bonaparte Edition” artwork HERE
In the more than two decades since the band’s launch, SABATON has headlined major festivals, sold-out arena concerts worldwide, and gained a legion of loyal fans by carving out a reputation for being one of the hardest working bands in the business. Since their 2005 debut album, they’ve earned Gold, Platinum, and multi-Platinum certifications in territories around the world with their 10 studio albums. Eight of their albums scored Top 10 international chart status, and six claimed the Top 5. SABATON has earned eight Metal Hammer/Golden Gods Awards nominations, taking home the award for “Breakthrough Artist” in 2011 and “Best Live Band” in three different years, and a Grammis nomination (Swedish equivalent to the U.S. Grammy Award) as Best Heavy Metal band. They’ve accumulated more than three billion streams across all streaming platforms and two billion views on YouTube.
Known for their explosive stage presence and epic concert experience, SABATON is in the midst of a massive worldwide tour that kicked off October 6 in Istanbul, Turkey and continues November 14 in Cologne, Germany. The itinerary will take them through North America for a 32-date tour set kicking off February 9, 2026 in Ft. Lauderdale, FL. The trek will hit venues across the U.S. and Canada, including major stops in Los Angeles, Chicago, and Boston before wrapping April 20 in Vancouver, BC. Tickets are available now at LiveNation.com.
Here are SABATON’s 2025 and 2026 worldwide tour dates.
Fri 11/14 Cologne, DE Lanxess Arena
Sat 11/15 Berlin, DE Mercedes Benz Arena
Sun 11/16 Ostrava, CZ Ostravar Arena
Tue 11/18 Zurich, CH Hallenstadion
Thu 11/20 Munich, DE Olympiahalle
Fri 11/21 Vienna, AT Stadthalle
Sat 11/22 Krakow, PL Tauron Arena
Mon 11/24 Stuttgart, DE Schleyerhalle
Tue 11/25 Frankfurt, DE Festhalle
Wed 11/26 Esch Sur Alzette, LU Rockhal
Fri 11/28 Paris, FR Accor Arena
Sat 11/29 Lyon, FR LDLC Arena
Mon 12/1 Amsterdam, NL Ziggo Dome
Tue 12/2 Antwerp, BE Sportpaleis
Thu 12/4 London, UK The O2 Arena
Fri 12/5 Manchester, UK Co-op Live
Sat 12/6 Nottingham, UK Motorpoint Arena
Mon 12/8 Hannover, DE ZAG Arena
Tue 12/9 Copenhagen, DK Royal Arena
Thu 12/11 Oslo, NO Unity Arena
Fri 12/12 Gothenburg, SE Scandinavium
Sat 12/13 Stockholm, SE 3Arena
Mon 2/9 Fort Lauderdale, FL War Memorial Auditorium
Tue 2/10 Tampa, FL Yuengling Center
Fri 2/13 Houston, TX 713 Music Hall
Sat 2/14 Dallas, TX South Side Ballroom
Sun 2/15 San Antonio, TX Boeing Center at Tech Port
Wed 2/18 Phoenix, AZ Arizona Financial Theatre
Fri 2/20 Los Angeles, CA The Kia Forum
Sat 2/21 Wheatland, CA Hard Rock Live
Tue 2/24 Salt Lake City, UT The Union Event Center
Thu 2/26 Loveland, CO Blue Arena
Fri 2/27 Omaha, NE Steelhouse Omaha
Sat 2/28 St. Louis, MO The Factory
Mon 3/2 Des Moines, IA Vibrant Music Hall
Tue 3/3 Minneapolis, MN The Armory
Wed 3/4 Chicago, IL The Salt Shed
Fri 3/6 Milwaukee, WI Landmark Credit Union Live
Sat 3/7 Cincinnati, OH The Andrew J Brady Music Center
Sun 3/8 Detroit, MI The Fillmore Detroit
Tue 3/10 Pittsburgh, PA UPMC Events Center
Wed 3/11 Philadelphia, PA The Met Philadelphia presented by Highmark
Thu 3/12 Boston, MA MGM Music Hall at Fenway
Sat 3/14 Virginia Beach, VA The Dome
Sun 3/15 Washington, DC The Theater at MGM National Harbor
Tue 3/17 Greensboro, NC Greensboro Special Events Center
Wed 3/18 Atlanta, GA Coca-Cola Roxy
Mon 4/6 Halifax, NS. Scotiabank Centre
Thu 4/9 Laval, QC. Place Bell
Sat 4/11 Toronto, ON. Great Canadian Toronto
Tue 4/14 Winnipeg, MB. Burton Cummings Theatre
Fri 4/17 Edmonton, AB. Edmonton Convention Centre
Sat 4/18 Calgary, AB. Grey Eagle Event Centre
Mon 4/20 Vancouver, BC. PNE Forum
Sat 6/6 Nürnberg, Germany Rock im Park
Sun 6/7 Nürburgring, Germany Rock am Ring
Sat 6/13 Nickelsdorf, Austria Nova Rock
Sun 7/5 Cartagena, Spain Rock Imperium Festival
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Watch a trailer for LEGENDS via THE NOISE Presents HERE
ABOUT BETTER NOISE MUSIC
BETTER NOISE MUSIC, the artist development company, is the premiere independent Record Label under BETTER NOISE ENTERTAINMENT, a content creation, and marketing company that produces music, books, films, documentaries, TV shows, theatrical productions, and tours. Better Noise Music founded in 2006 by music industry veteran and independent pioneer Allen Kovac, focuses on artist development and has grown into a music industry independent powerhouse, with a roster including Five Finger Death Punch, Yellowcard, Sabaton, The Red Jumpsuit Apparatus, Bad Wolves, Dirty Heads, The Rasmus, NOTHING MORE, The HU, From Ashes To New, Cory Marks, Eva Under Fire and The Funeral Portrait. The company operates a global marketing and distribution platform with offices in New York, Los Angeles, Nashville, Austin, Miami, London, Berlin, Toronto, and Sydney. The label was named Billboard’s #1 Mainstream Rock Airplay Label and #1 Mainstream Rock Airplay Imprint of 2024, after its history-making run of 5 consecutive years as the #1 Mainstream Rock Airplay Imprint (2018-2022).
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