![\"Triumph](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/BadBoy2.jpg\")
Triumph strike a pose in publicity shot from the band\u2019s heyday. Credit: Courtesy Photo \/ Triumph<\/p>\nTriumph strike a pose in publicity shot from the band\u2019s heyday. Credit: Courtesy Photo \/ Triumph<\/p>\n
If you\u2019ve lived in San Antonio long enough, the arrival of Triumph\u2019s long-awaited reunion tour at Frost Bank Center on Thursday, May 21, will feel like a homecoming.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The hard-rocking band behind hits including \u201cLay It on the Line,\u201d \u201cMagic Power\u201d and \u201cBlinding Light Show\u201d has been a local favorite since the era when Joe Anthony ruled SA\u2019s airwaves and Stone City Attractions packed bodies into local concert halls.\u00a0<\/p>\n
And that\u2019s because Triumph isn\u2019t just popular in the Alamo City \u2014 the band literally got its stateside foothold here a half century ago. Its debut performance here in 1977 marked its first U.S. auditorium date.<\/p>\n
How did the hit-making act go from a thrown-together spot replacing Sammy Hagar on a bill at Municipal Auditorium to an acrimonious breakup in the \u201990s to this year\u2019s ascendant reunion?\u00a0<\/p>\n
We talked to original guitarist-vocalist Rik Emmett and drummer-vocalist Gil Moore on Zoom to find out. In addition, we Zoomed with guitarist-vocalist Phil X, who \u2014\u00a0along with covering for Richie Sambora in Bon Jovi for roughly a decade \u2014\u00a0is one of three supporting musicians rounding out Triumph\u2019s touring lineup.\u00a0<\/p>\n
If that wasn\u2019t enough, the Current had a long talk with original bassist Mike Levine back in 2022 when the Triumph documentary Triumph: Rock & Roll Machine dropped. He was more than happy to reminisce how San Antonio contributed to the band\u2019s rise.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe did get a thing at the Alamo [in the \u201880s],\u201d Levine explained. \u201cThey presented us with an award called the Emissary of the Muses. It\u2019s like getting a key to the city. That was a special day for us. San Antonio was our second home, basically.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOzzy pissed on the Alamo, and we got an award there.\u201d<\/p>\n
At the time of the interviews, scheduled before the first dates of the tour, Levine\u2019s participation remained uncertain due to health issues. At press time, he hasn\u2019t made any live appearances and it seems unlikely that he will.<\/p>\n
![\"Rik](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Courtesy-Triumph-Pic.jpg\")
Rik Emmett flies into a guitar solo during one of the band\u2019s vintage performances. Credit: Courtesy Photo \/ Triumph<\/p>\n
Rock spectacle\u00a0<\/p>\n
For the uninitiated, Triumph is firmly grounded in staples of a rounded \u201970s and \u201980s hard rock diet: blues, folk rock and prog.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Moore and Emmett traded off songwriting and vocal duties, with Emmett leaning more toward reassuring, pastoral songs such as \u201cHold On,\u201d \u201cMagic Power\u201d and \u201cBlinding Light Show\u201d \u2014\u00a0tunes that crossed a sense of whimsy with dexterous guitar riffs and soloing. Meanwhile, Moore brought the swagger via \u201cRock & Roll Machine,\u201d \u201cAllied Forces\u201d and his crowd-pleasing cover of Joe Walsh\u2019s \u201cRocky Mountain Way.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
The band formed in Toronto in 1975, and released its debut, In The Beginning, in 1976. The album featured \u201cBlinding Light Show\/Moonchild,\u201d a nearly nine-minute epic that became arguably its most-beloved tune.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The second LP, Rock & Roll Machine, brought the title track into the repertoire and allowed Emmett to show off his impressive guitar chops. It would be used to anchor an unaccompanied guitar solo as the band ascended to arena god status in the \u201880s.<\/p>\n
Though Triumph hit the scene as punk and new wave dominated, it firmly embraced the more-is-more ethos, treating the crowd not just with beefy hard rock, but also as much pyro and lasers as it could cram onstage. A Triumph concert became a spectacle in every sense of the word. The band grew in the hearts of fans, even though it never resonated with rock critics.<\/p>\n
By the time the mid-to-late \u201880s rolled around, however, the edges began to fray. Emmett grew unhappy and looked for an exit.<\/p>\n
His departure from working with Moore and Levine sparked a court battle and acrimony that lasted for nearly 20 years. The remaining members hired Phil X for one more album \u2014 1992\u2019s largely forgotten Edge of Excess \u2014 before petering out completely.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Moore opened Metalworks Studios near Toronto, and went on to success in the non-performing part of the industry. Emmett pursued a solo career that wasn\u2019t unsuccessful, though it never reached Triumph\u2019s heights, particularly in the States.<\/p>\n
\u201cI wasn\u2019t happy with the way things had been going from about 1986 to 1988, you know, while I was still in it,\u201d Emmett told the Current. \u201cI had a lot of unhappiness there. I had a lot of unresolved kinds of things.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u00a0He added: \u201cSometimes I think the human condition is such that we end up in situations where the only solution is going to lie within ourselves. For me, it was a question of having to find forgiveness.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore had also reached the end.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI had no intention of going back out and touring, because when I came off the road, it was intentional to want to be there with my kids while they\u2019re being raised,\u201d he said. \u201cI wanted to look after my mother because my father had passed away, and I\u2019m an only child. I wasn\u2019t going to leave her alone and be in a hotel room halfway around the world.\u201d<\/p>\n
But fans never forgot.\u00a0<\/p>\n
![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Courtesy-Photo-Triumph-Star.jpg\")
The three original members of Triumph greet the audience during one of their more recent live appearances. Credit: Courtesy Photo \/ Triumph<\/p>\n
Reunion stops and starts<\/p>\n
Reunion requests followed the band members for years, and they finally worked things out for two 2008 gigs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, the shows at Rocklahoma and Sweden Rock Festival were under-hyped. While the band sounded great, many found it odd and disappointing that the DVD of the Swedish gig shows the members playing in the afternoon, sans pyro or lights, as if they were asked to fight with a hand tied behind their backs.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Wasn\u2019t a reunited Triumph worthy of headlining gigs? Surely, things couldn\u2019t end on this note.<\/p>\n
But the band insisted those performances were definitely, positively it.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The members appeared together once more for a three-song studio set played to an audience of \u201csuperfans\u201d for the documentary. But Triumph swore \u2014 swore! \u2014 any future shows were off the table due to age, physical limitations, costs and more.<\/p>\n
So, when a Triumph reunion hit the newswire in 2025 as part of the Stanley Cup playoffs, the excitement was palpable. But, in the end, that gig was a letdown for many fans. Levine couldn\u2019t attend for medical reasons, and Emmett and Moore, augmented by other musicians, at times felt like sidemen in their own band.<\/p>\n
Combine that with musings from the band about a hologram tour, hopes for a reunion tour were dashed. Again.<\/p>\n
And yet.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Triumph\u2019s social media lit up earlier this year with long-awaited news of a tour. Fans were excited but understandably skeptical. Would it be the original trio? Holograms? A bunch of backing guys?\u00a0<\/p>\n
We now know the answer. Emmett and Moore have been open about age-related challenges \u2014\u00a0they\u2019re both in their 70s \u2014\u00a0and the need for support from augmenting musicians. Even so, Even so, clips circulating online show the pair handling instrumental duties while handing off some of the sky-high vocal parts as needed.<\/p>\n
The backing musicians weave their parts into the songs as essential elements but don\u2019t overshadow the original members. And the usual pyro and spectacle got the invite this time.<\/p>\n
Phil X is fully in action, playing guitar and bolstering the upper-register vocals, while Brent Fitz on drums and Todd Kearns on bass round out the sound. This means some songs feature two drummers, while others feature Moore fronting the band \u2014 a career first.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cBeing onstage and being a fan, I have the best seat in the house,\u201d Phil X told the Current of his place in the touring band. \u201cIt\u2019s pretty amazing.\u201d<\/p>\n
There won\u2019t be any setlist spoilers here, but suffice to say anyone who saw Triumph during the golden era can make the song calls fairly easily. And for anyone even remotely curious, multiple videos of the entire show circulate online.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou learn stuff about yourself by kind of looking at your own history and going, yeah, you know, that was probably a mistake,\u201d Emmett told the Current of the reunion. \u201cAnd when you revisit the past, you\u2019re getting a chance to rewrite it.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u2018Where it all started was in San Antonio.\u2019<\/p>\n
To understand what made Triumph\u2019s pending Frost Bank Center reunion show possible \u2014 and so special \u2014 we need to go back to the beginning.\u00a0<\/p>\n
As its career heated up in the mid \u201970s, the power trio enjoyed success in the Great White North, but the members wanted to get a foothold in the States.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cI think back to the earliest days when we were just, you know, three little greenhorn kids from Canada trying to get an audience,\u201d Moore told the Current. \u201cAnd that very first time that we came to San Antonio, we filled Municipal Auditorium right to the back seats.\u201d<\/p>\n
Back then, album rock stalwart KISS-FM and its star DJ and tastemaker Joe Anthony had Triumph\u2019s tunes in regular rotation, and that raised the band\u2019s profile in the Alamo City long before it was getting airplay nearly anywhere else Stateside.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The jolt of exposure here came from the track \u201cBlinding Light Show,\u201d Levine explained.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was like eight minutes long and (KISS) played the shit out of it,\u201d he said. \u201cNobody played eight-minutes songs on radio unless it was \u2018Stairway to Heaven.\u2019 Which wasn\u2019t even eight minutes!\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n
But that was just the beginning of San Antonio\u2019s love affair with the band.<\/p>\n
The next break came when the band got a surprise offer to replace Sammy Hagar after the Red Rocker was forced to cancel a show at Municipal Auditorium.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019ve got a gig in Buffalo a day or two before when we got the offer to replace Sammy,\u201d Levine said. \u201cThat was a big cash gig for us, because it was 2,500 or 3,000 people in a club. We go, \u2018Are we ready to play the Municipal Auditorium?\u2019 It was either 5,600 or 6,300 seats. They had sold half of \u2019em when we got the call. We\u2019re going, \u2018How will we get our gear there? How are we gonna get there? How will we get work visas?\u2019 We had a group meeting and said, \u2018You know what? Let\u2019s just go for it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Emmett told the Current, the group felt the difference in the air when it arrived for the gig.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWe were wearing winter coats and stuff and we stepped off the plane and the smell of the air in San Antonio is, to a Canadian, tropical,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was like, \u2018Oh, my God,\u2019 like it was this very warm, rich kind of air. We got a hotel downtown, and then got to go for a walk on the on the river. It was this crazy, magical, surreal thing that\u2019s happening in my life that I\u2019ve come here to play this gig.\u201d<\/p>\n
Behind the scenes, the KISS crew had to fight to get immigration papers for the band on short notice. DJ Lou Roney even pretended to be the band\u2019s immigration attorney as he met with federal officials to expedite the process.\u00a0<\/p>\n
While Levine wasn\u2019t familiar with the tale, he told the Current he doesn\u2019t doubt it\u2019s true \u2014\u00a0especially given the chaotic nature of KISS when Levine and the band paid their first visit to the station.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt looks worse than a bar band trying to plug things in,\u201d Levine recalled. \u201cThere\u2019s cords running all over the floor.\u201d<\/p>\n
He continued: \u201cWe\u2019re sitting there doing an interview and owned the station for the day, basically. And they bring in some album by some band I\u2019d never heard of. Joe puts it on, and he listens for maybe \u2014 and this is live on the radio \u2014 35 seconds and takes the arm of the turntable and scratches across the record, pulls it off and throws it against the wall. He goes, \u2018That\u2019s garbage. Next!\u2019 He didn\u2019t like it much. I was like, \u2018Wow, that\u2019s pretty serious stuff.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Then Municipal beckoned.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s three Canadian guys that were scared shitless,\u201d said Levine. \u201cBut when we walked onstage \u2014 the roar from the crowd \u2014 we just looked at each other like, \u2018Holy shit!\u2019 Everybody\u2019s standing up. The balcony looked like it was actually moving with the crowd. We looked at each other and went, \u2018Hmm, this might be pretty cool.\u2019 Away went the fear.\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore credits the radio exposure and gig for helping break the band in an era before homogenized radio programming and YouTube ubiquity. \u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cYou\u2019ve got to remember back then it was all regional,\u201d he said. \u201cThere\u2019s no Internet. There\u2019s no blowing up worldwide or blowing up across the country. You blow up regionally. That\u2019s how it worked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cWhere it all started was in San Antonio.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Rik](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Rik.jpg\")
Rik Emmett as he looks today. \u201cIf people are going to come expecting to see the Rik Emmett that pranced around in spandex pants in 1983, it\u2019s not going to happen,\u201d he told the Current. Credit: Trevon Marsh<\/p>\n
From hockey to a reunion<\/p>\n
The years between the San Antonio breakthrough and the eventual breakup treated Triumph well \u2014\u00a0even though the band didn\u2019t fit neatly into any box. The lyrics were uniformly positive, often focused on the value of community, self-actualization and uplifting takes on love and emotion. You didn\u2019t get the \u201cparty hard\u201d ethos of hair metal or the social commentary that marked the emerging thrash scene.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Albums such as Allied Forces, Never Surrender and Thunder Seven earned the band a massive fanbase, as did the accompanying tours. Triumph took part in the massive US Festival in 1983, arguably the band\u2019s high-water mark.<\/p>\n
But behind the scenes, things weren\u2019t so copacetic, and Emmett bailed in 1988. Phil X, a longtime fan who\u2019d grown up on the band, seemed like the ideal replacement and came onboard in 1992.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The reformulated trio played roughly 10 shows in support of the resulting album before calling it quits: an inglorious end for such a successful rock act.<\/p>\n
Until 2008.<\/p>\n
Levine told the Current that after Triumph\u2019s initial reunion shows at Rocklahoma and Sweden Rock Fest, the group lined up 50-plus gigs for a full tour. But a recession gripped the U.S., and financial concerns scuttled the matter.\u00a0<\/p>\n
After that, the members felt they were simply too old to do it right.<\/p>\n
But still the matter wouldn\u2019t die. The song \u201cLay It on the Line\u201d regularly featured in hockey commercials, and a Canadian broadcast company approached Moore about a Triumph reunion for a 2025 pregame performance.\u00a0<\/p>\n
By then, he was out of practice on his instrument, so he acknowledged the need for another player. That eventually led to the involvement of Phil X along with music-industry vets Fitz and Kearns.\u00a0<\/p>\n
The three-song gig hockey gig took place sans Levine, who had a medical appointment and separate media appearance already booked.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe had one rehearsal and jumped onstage,\u201d Moore said of the pre-show parking lot throwdown. \u201cIt was just like an electric thing that happened between the five musicians, where all of a sudden, we were like, \u2018Hey, this kind of really works.\u2019 And the audience lit up, everybody lit up, then [tour promoter] Live Nation lit up.\u201d<\/p>\n
The gig proved a turning point, especially for the still-reluctant Emmett, according to Phil X.<\/p>\n
\u201cI think that that kind of lit a little fire under his butt,\u201d he recalled.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Around this same time, Moore got interested in hologram tours after checking out the ABBA production and looked into the possibilities for Triumph.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Behind the scenes, wheels began to turn, albeit slowly. As they did, Moore became increasingly interested in putting a real reunion together.<\/p>\n
\u201cGil is kind of a genius-savant when it comes to anything Triumph,\u201d Phil X said. \u201cIt\u2019s insane. Just even talking to him about it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Finally, everything clicked.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOf course, my kids get involved,\u201d Moore said. \u201c\u2019Dad, you\u2019ve got to do it. You\u2019ve got to do it.\u2019 And my wife, to be honest, of course. I\u2019m like, \u2018Are you just trying to kick me out of the house? Is this an easy way?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
Moore began working out and rebuilding his chops. Then came rehearsals.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt was just that magic,\u201d Moore said. \u201cYou\u2019re just hanging and having a coffee and rehearsing some background vocals and talking about stuff, and all of a sudden there\u2019s this meeting of the minds where you realize, you know what, we\u2019ve got a brotherhood here that\u2019s just kind of coming together naturally, organically.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"Gil](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Trevon-Marsh-.jpg\")
Gil Moore and Brent Fitz show of the dual drum kits that will be used for some of the songs on the reunion tour. Credit: Trevon Marsh<\/p>\n
Collaboration and inspiration<\/p>\n
During the collaborative process, the Canadians did one of the things they do best: be polite. The musicians began insisting that someone else take this or that solo or vocal because they liked what the other person was doing.<\/p>\n
The approach resulted in some radical rearrangements of Triumph\u2019s material \u2014\u00a0something one might expect with the core musicians returning to the songs after decades away and now augmented by new players.\u00a0<\/p>\n
For his part, Moore is excited for his family to experience Triumph\u2019s return.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cOn this tour, my son-in-law, Craig, and my daughter-in-law, my eldest daughter and my granddaughter, they\u2019re literally going to drive about two-thirds of the tour, if you can imagine it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Emmett resisted the idea that the reunion was about any one thing, though.\u00a0<\/p>\n
He agreed that surviving prostate cancer was a factor, as was being the final surviving member of his nuclear family. After all, the death of his brother inspired him to make up with Moore and Levine prior to the 2008 reunion.\u00a0<\/p>\n
However, Emmett emphasized that the songs remain his North Star.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s things you can say like, \u2018Oh, you know, I lost my brothers.\u2019 But when I joined Triumph, I got my brothers back,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cMore than that, I will say that it\u2019s more fun to kind of be going back and revisiting the songs. The songs are the things that kind of keep dragging you back.\u201d<\/p>\n
The availability of the strong supporting cast was also a consideration.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\u201cNow, anything that I can\u2019t sing, I\u2019ll just go, \u2018Todd, Phil, you guys that can sing really high,\u2019\u201d Emmett said. \u201cSo, you know, if people are going to come expecting to see the Rik Emmett that pranced around in spandex pants in 1983, it\u2019s not going to happen.\u201d<\/p>\n
No one likes assumptions, but it\u2019s fair to say a 72-year-old in spandex is probably a hard pass \u2014\u00a0even for die-hard fans.<\/p>\n
For his part, Phil X isn\u2019t revisiting or rewriting anything, particularly his time in Triumph in the \u201890s for Edge of Excess. Emmett was a huge influence on him as a youngster, and he relished the chance to revisit the guitar parts.<\/p>\n
\u201cRik Emmett was always like Jimmy Page on steroids, you know?\u201d Phil X said. \u201cAnd he grew to have more of his own style as he went down the line. I was getting ready, exploring and learning songs and arrangements. It took me to watching the US Festival in \u201883 on YouTube and it\u2019s mind-blowing the way he played.\u201d<\/p>\n
But for all the memories the reunion tour evokes, San Antonio will always be a part of the band\u2019s past and present.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019ve come back to San Antonio several times and played on my own,\u201d Emmett said. \u201cI played at [Sunken Garden Theater]. And I had told the guys, the sidemen in my band, that they\u2019re going to want to learn \u2018Blinding Light Show.\u2019 We have to learn it, we have to play it.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n
The rest of the band dutifully learned the song, but didn\u2019t quite grasp the significance. But, in the dressing room, as they waited to go on, they heard the chant rise from the crowd and understood: \u201cThe Blinding Light Show! The Blinding Light Show!\u201d<\/p>\n
Emmett turned to the band with a knowing look. \u201cLike, I\u2019m not an idiot. I knew what was what.\u201d<\/p>\n
Sign Up for SA Current newsletters.<\/a><\/p>\n Follow us:\u00a0Apple News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Google News<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0NewsBreak<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Reddit<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Instagram<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0Facebook\u00a0<\/a>| Twitter<\/a>\u00a0| Or sign up for our\u00a0RSS Feed<\/a><\/p>\n Related Stories<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tThe Canadian hard rock act who enjoyed early success in San Antonio is hitting the city next May on its first tour in 30 years. \t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \n\t\t\t\t\tThe band is the subject of the forthcoming documentary Triumph: Rock And Roll Machine, which will receive its U.S. debut on May 13.\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n \t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t \t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t![\"San](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-tx\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/Triumph.jpg\")
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