Forbidden’s complete October 30, 2026 concert at Reggies rock club in Chicago is now available online as a professionally filmed video posted by the venue. The fifteen-song performance anchors the Bay Area thrash metal band’s fall U.S. trek supporting their self-titled album released via BLKIIBLK.
The Bottom Line
- The venue-posted video captures the entire 15-song set from the band’s Chicago stop during the “Chaos By Design” tour.
- Regular rhythm section members Matt Camacho and Chris Kontos are sitting out the run for personal reasons, with Avery Thurman and Eli Lucas filling in.
- The current tour runs through November 22, 2026, following the October 23 release of the band’s new album.
The Chicago Setlist and Tour Routing
According to Setlist.fm data, the Chicago performance leaned heavily into new material alongside foundational catalog entries. The fifteen-song set opened with “Infinite” and “Single Point Failure,” continuing through “March Into Fire,” “Psyclops,” “Step By Step,” and “Burning The Lungs Of Earth.” The mid-section featured “Twisted Into Form,” the title track from their 1988 debut “Forbidden Evil,” “Divided By Zero,” “Off The Edge,” and “Forsaken At The Gates.” The final stretch included “DCLXVI,” “Mutually Assured Dysfunction,” “Through Eyes Of Glass,” and closed with “Chalice Of Blood.”
See Pro-Shot Video Of FORBIDDEN's Entire Chicago Concert During Fall 2026 'Chaos By Design' U.S. Tour https://t.co/JIzliQHdzQ pic.twitter.com/rkl4Gc6O3E
The Chicago stop falls squarely within the “Chaos By Design” U.S. tour alongside Heathen and Void. The tour launched on October 23, 2026, as part of the Bay Area thrashers’ fall 2026 U.S. tour.
Lineup Adjustments on the Road
For the duration of the fall 2026 run, Forbidden is operating without two key long-standing members. Bassist Matt Camacho and drummer Chris Kontos are sitting out the dates due to personal reasons. Guitarist Craig Locicero addressed the lineup change in an interview with “Reckless” Rexx Ruger of Pod Scum, explaining that both members needed to handle personal commitments but are expected to return next year. They both have personal commitments that they have to handle as real adults in the real world that they can’t do this run, but we got them back for next year when we do other stuff,
Locicero said, adding that the guys we got are fucking phenomenal, and they’re younger and hungry — hungry, hungry — and great musicians.
To fill the vacancies, the band tapped Avery Thurman on bass and Eli Lucas on drums. Locicero noted that Camacho handpicked Thurman and Kontos suggested Lucas, who was runner-up in Forbidden’s 2011 drummer search. According to Locicero, the substitute musicians have energized the live set, allowing the group to perform more songs than they have ever played, including material they have not touched in decades.
Locicero also discussed the fan response to the temporary lineup changes: We put up the note, like, ‘Man, people are gonna be bummed,’ and then immediately people are, like, ‘Those two guys are amazing.’
He further noted regarding the substitutes that Eli Lucas on drums, who was the runner-up that should’ve probably got the FORBIDDEN gig in 2011, but he was too young,
and described Avery Thurman, who plays in Blind Illusion, as a 21-year-old… He’s been a prodigy, but now he’s 21, so now he’s just a fucking great bass player.
You’re a prodigy till you’re 21; now you’re just a great bass player.
But he’s great.
Album Release
The current tour coincides with the release of Forbidden’s self-titled studio album on October 23, 2026, through BLKIIBLK, the heavy metal imprint of Frontiers Label Group. Tracked at Sharkbite Studios in Oakland, California, with engineer and co-producer Zack Ohren, the record marks the band’s first full-length release since 2010’s “Omega Wave.”
| Tour Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Tour Name | Chaos By Design U.S. Tour |
| Tour Dates | October 23 – November 22, 2026 |
| Supporting Acts | Heathen, Void |
| Recent Release | Self-Titled Album (Released October 23, 2026, via BLKIIBLK) |
| Live Lineup Changes | Avery Thurman (Bass), Eli Lucas (Drums) substituting for Matt Camacho and Chris Kontos |
