Enter Shikari Announce Indefinite Hiatus Beginning in 2027

Enter Shikari have announced they will enter an indefinite hiatus at the end of 2027.

The announcement follows a video posted last month by frontman Rou Reynolds, who addressed the band’s inactivity in 2026. He cited burnout, OCD, and nervous system sensitisation, stating he had “been going through a lot of adversity which has brought my capacity to zero.”

Reynolds acknowledged that the band released their latest album, ‘Lose Your Self’, in the spring but then “did bugger all”. He explained that the break was “very much needed” and discussed the band’s future, promising to update fans “soon”.

The band recently posted a detailed letter to fans outlining their upcoming plans, following the announcement of intimate warm-up shows this month ahead of their largest UK and European tour in November.

In the statement, Enter Shikari confirmed they have no plans beyond the end of next year, when they will “fall dormant as a recording and performing entity.”

“This dormancy may eventually end with an eruption back into activity, or may end with extinction. We have no idea which,” the message continued. “As everyone keeps reminding us, 2027 marks 20 years since the release of our debut album [‘Take To The Skies’]. We’ve been playing music together since we were 15, and friends longer still, but there’s no doubt this is a huge milestone.”

They also noted the “obvious negative impact on one’s mental health” when remaining active in a touring band. “But we do this because we love it,” the statement read. “And we are lucky enough to have built an audience who understand that the less-trodden path is sometimes the more interesting journey.”

“However, it gets to the point where the often difficult terrain of that path starts to frazzle and drain the humble traveller.”

Enter Shikari admitted that their “priorities and capacities had changed” over the years, revealing they’d had “difficult conversations about what the next few years should hold” even before Reynolds’ health issues.

“While we don’t think we’re ‘splitting up’, we do not have a diary that extends beyond 2027,” they explained.

“We’re genuinely excited to make next year a celebration of what this band means to us. But after that, it’ll be time to go away for a good while and see what being Rou, Rob, Rory, and Chris—rather than ‘Enter Shikari’—feels like.”

“Maybe we’ll be like Fugazi and just get together to rehearse for fun, without feeling the need to make anyone else listen to it? All we really know is, after two decades of being a ‘professional’ band, not having plans three years in advance is liberating.”

Looking ahead to next month’s arena tour, Enter Shikari said they are focused on making the trek the “absolute best it can be.” They wrote: “If that ends up being the last time some people see us, we want to make it special.”

The band also teased that they’ve been “working on some bits of new music, which you should get to hear sooner rather than later, along with another thing we’ve just finished filming.”

As for 2027, Reynolds and co. have booked festival dates in mainland Europe and North America, and plan to announce some US shows for January. Enter Shikari will celebrate the 20th anniversary of ‘Take To The Skies’, while marking 10 years of ‘The Spark’ and 15 years of ‘A Flash Flood Of Colour’.

“If we were better at making the most of things and planning ahead, this whole message would be the precursor to announcing a ‘farewell’ world tour, but.. yeah.. there’s no world tour,” they explained.

“We’ll hopefully get to play some of our favourite places ‘one last time’, but we’re not sure how feasible that is yet.”

The band concluded: “We really hope we’ll be seeing you over the next fourteen months or so, somehow. But, if not, all that remains to be said is thank you for your support, your sweat, your passion, your energy.”

Speaking to NME in April, Reynolds teased a “new” live production for Enter Shikari’s huge UK tour. “We’ve been so focused on the album that we haven’t even dared to open that thought process yet!” he told us. “Luckily, when you have the opportunity to do two nights at Ally Pally, you know that you can bring a lot to the table.”

Around the same time, the band played a tiny gig in Manchester to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their first-ever show in the city.

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