Devin Townsend recently admitted that he returned to touring because he needs money, addressing his decision in an interview with Sixty Scales And The Truth.
Townsend explained the financial difficulties that led to his return to the stage, specifically pointing to losses incurred from his ambitious project, “The Moth.”
“Financial Armageddon,” Townsend said. “Yeah, we lost a ton of money off of ‘The Moth’ show, for a number of reasons, which we’re still trying to remedy it, but it’s been over a year. But the company I did a lot of the work for it went bankrupt, and so we lost what our projected revenue was for that year.”
He went on to describe how this situation limited his options and forced him to reconsider his plans.
“So I just found myself in a situation where the options for me to do other things for money just seemed limited,” he continued. “So I know it’s not a particularly romantic notion, but it’s the truth. But also, I will say that by coming out here again and having to do it in this shattered frame of mind, which I have been, it’s forced me into a perspective on the back catalog and on my work just by having to sort of show up every night.”
Townsend also shared how performing in this state has impacted him emotionally and forced him to reflect on his past work.
“Like, if you see the show tonight, you’ll see that there’s no place to hide,” he added. “It’s just a shattered human and an acoustic guitar. But it’s, like, to go back into the catalog and say, ‘Okay, so where are these patterns? Where were these emotional arcs and peaks and troughs that repeat?’ So that moving forward into the next phase of my life, I’m not just repeating those same things. And, yeah, as a result of that, it has been an emotionally very difficult run.”
He further opened up about personal hardships he has faced recently, including the loss of his dog and a relationship split.
“My dog passed away,” Townsend said. “I split up with a partner of 36 years. I mean, it’s like all these things have been fucking devastating. And you’re up on stage. So I think that the one thing that I’ve recognized through this is it’s, like, well, I have to do this, just on a practical level. But on another level, it’s funny how these things force you into a position where you have to contend with yourself.”
He described the physical and emotional toll of the current tour, which has been dubbed the “Metamorphosis” tour.
“And the fatigue of this run as well — we’re in a van, and I’m constantly at my capacity in terms of my emotional thresholds,” he explained. “And then the dog dying, and hearing about it secondhand and not being able to be there, and all these things. So every time you’re fatigued, you’re fatigued, you’re mental, and then you’re just on stage, and it’s naked. And I think that there’s the benefit of that, in a real practical way. We call this a ‘Metamorphosis’ tour, and it really seems to be because I think that just as a result of having to do this, I’m different — good or bad, I don’t necessarily know if that distinction even matters. It’s just different.”
Finally, Townsend noted how his vulnerability has resonated with his audience, despite the practical reasons for the tour.
“And I found that by putting myself into this, the fringe benefit of it is it seems to carry over to the audience to a certain degree,” he concluded. “There’s a certain amount of — I don’t know if it’s vulnerability or just the raw nature of where I find myself as an entity right now. But you see a tangible reaction from the audience where it seems to be, like, ‘Okay, well that’s…’ I don’t know if it’s gratitude or if it’s just, like, ‘Okay, well, at least he’s not full of shit,’ or whatever it is. And again, it’s, like, I need a job, and if I’m gonna have a job, I want it to help rather than hinder. And it seems to do that, so I’m grateful.”
This tour marks a shift for Townsend, who had previously announced an indefinite break from touring.
Townsend’s return to the road follows a turbulent stretch in his career, both financially and personally. Some background helps put his comments into context.
Townsend announced he had stepped back from live performance in 2025, describing it as an “indefinite” hiatus after a North American tour. The outlet tied that decision to burnout and the pressures of life on the road, and noted that his comeback comes roughly a year and a half after that announcement.
The project at the center of his financial losses was years in the making. The Moth was an orchestral-metal opus conceived around 2017 and revised over the following decade before premiering at De Oosterpoort in Groningen, Netherlands, on March 27 and 28, 2025. The performances featured the Noord Nederlands Orkest, a choir, and a band of new and longtime collaborators.
Writing about the scale of the undertaking, Blabbermouth reported that Townsend said: “This show is exclusive and will only be performed in Groningen; it will not be staged anywhere else in the world.” He also stated plainly how much the project cost him personally, saying: “I’ve invested everything I have into making The Moth.”
The work was later released in three connected parts, including a live document of the premiere. The finished release spans the main album, The Moth – The Afterlife, and The Moth – The War, a live recording captured during the March 2025 Netherlands performances.
As for the current run, the 23-date UK and Europe “Metamorphosis” solo tour began on September 1 in Birmingham and continued through early October. The shows were staged in intimate rooms such as Union Chapel and the Bataclan rather than full-band arenas, matching the stripped-back, acoustic format Townsend described.
