Sonic Temple is a staple festival for Columbus, Ohio, returning for its 2026 edition on May 14-17 at Historic Crew Stadium. Spread across four days, 140 bands will perform across the event’s five stages — meaning there’s a lot to miss if you’re not paying attention.
Thursday sets the tone for the entire festival. L.S. Dunes — longtime friends of AP — and Hawthorne Heights take the stage in the early afternoon, and the day only gets better from there. The Used, Rise Against, and Pierce the Veil play in succession, but spread just enough apart to be able to catch them all. My Chemical Romance will cap the night, with what’s bound to be another potent, theatrical performance worthy of the Broadway stage.
Read more: In conversation with Claudio Sanchez and Brian Robert Jones
On Friday, Yellowcard, Atreyu, and a reconfigured Sublime have our attention locked — not to mention a headlining set from Simple Plan on the Citadel stage. Meanwhile, Saturday is stacked — featuring early performances from Amira Elfeky, Knuckle Puck, and Palaye Royale. The middle spotlights State Champs, Motion City Soundtrack, and Bush. Later on, Good Charlotte, the Story So Far, and Bring Me the Horizon will close out the night. Finally, Sunday brings everything home, going hard with sets from Senses Fail, From First to Last, and Thrice, to name a few.
All in all, there’s a lot to see and do. Lucky for you, we’ve pulled together a short list of Sonic Temple’s must-see acts, spanning genre and era. Dive in below.
Pierce the Veil
All last year, Pierce the Veil logged countless miles on the road — bringing their many different eras to major cities with their I Can’t Hear You tour. Night after night, it was a celebration and a testament to the time they’ve put into “playing small shows and building this community.” That makes them primed to give their Sonic Temple set everything they’ve got, whether they’re tearing through old favorites (“Caraphernelia,” “Bulls in the Bronx”) or giving love to their new songs (“Pass the Nirvana”) — maybe even bringing out a special guest for “King for a Day.”
The Used
At the tail end of March, the Used took over the Sydney Opera House, where they transformed their high-octane rock into a black-tie symphony. Their Sonic Temple performance will swing back to their traditional sets, featuring the incendiary, highly emotional chaos that lives at the very heart of their band. Having warmed up with an extensive anniversary tour last year, we expect them to nail the nostalgia hits (“A Box Full of Sharp Objects,” “The Taste of Ink”), but juxtaposed with their modern songs, it’s bound to be a memorable performance all the way through.
Coheed and Cambria
Whenever Coheed and Cambria hit the stage, they bring all of their lore with them. No matter which of their many albums you favor, frontman Claudio Sanchez has created an entire universe to get lost in. Live, that translates into ripping breakdowns and deft solos, where Sanchez plays the guitar behind his head — in a way that’s both musically impressive and emotionally immersive. They’ll carry that same energy into Sonic Temple, traveling through their diverse catalog and pulling out songs from last year’s satisfying The Father of Make Believe.
Good Charlotte
It’s been almost a year since Good Charlotte released Motel Du Cap, an album that honored their early 2000s pop-punk roots while reminding us who they are today. Since then, they’ve continued to tour hard, including a handful of overseas dates with Yellowcard, where they ran through hit after hit — and consistently opened with their Good Morning Revival powerhouse “The River.” However, their return to the U.S. includes an appearance at Sonic Temple, where they’ll play those songs and many other favorites on the Temple stage, just before their friends in Bring Me the Horizon finish up the night.
The Story So Far
Parker Cannon has been busy with his other band, No Pressure, supporting Drain’s recent tour, where they covered Fall Out Boy, blink-182, and Gorilla Biscuits classics. Now, though, he’s jumping back into TSSF mode — including an appearance at Sonic Temple. The Story So Far always bring huge energy whenever they play, rallying audience members to join the pit while their set transitions through their different eras — chugging pop punk, lovelorn balladry, snotty Britpop. Given that their debut album, Under Soil and Dirt, turns 15 this year, maybe they’ll show those songs extra love when they take the Citadel stage on Saturday night.
