Scissor Sisters are reuniting after more than a decade of not touring together for an arena tour of the UK and Ireland.
The flamboyant US pop rock group, known for the songs I Can’t Decide, I Don’t Feel Like Dancin’ and Take Your Mama, have been on an indefinite hiatus since 2012 after they told a London audience at Camden Roundhouse the band was going on a pause.
Originally fronted by former go-go dancer Jake Shears and Ana Matronic, whose real name is Ana Lynch, the New York group is marking the 20th anniversary of their 2004 chart-topping self-titled record Scissor Sisters, one of the UK’s biggest-selling debut albums, this year.
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Vocalist Shears, multi-instrumentalist Scott ‘Babydaddy’ Hoffman and guitarist Del Marquis have been confirmed in the new line-up that will be touring the UK and Ireland next May for 10 dates.
Matronic has “decided not to join the tour as she has other projects she is focusing on right now”, the group said, and another singer will be announced at a later stage.
“We’ve spent a lot of time collectively thinking about what we can add to our show that isn’t a ‘replacement’ for Ana in any way,” Marquis says. “She’s part of the spirit of this band and we want to honour that.”
Shears said: “It’s the 20th anniversary of our debut album, so it really feels like the right time to revisit all the intense excitement of that moment. I think the impetus for this reunion was really a YouTube screening of Scissor Sisters: Live at The O2 that happened during lockdown.
“I don’t think I’d seen that show since it was filmed in 2007, but we were all kind of surprised by how great it was. And chatting with fans during the screening really brought back what a special moment it was for all of us.”
Known for their high-octane performances, in 2005 they won three Brit Awards including Best International Group, Best International Breakthrough Act and Best International Album for Scissor Sisters.
Jake Shears, pictured, will return for the tour (Ian West/PA)
The Scissor Sisters 2025 live experience begins in the UK on May 16 at Motorpoint Arena Nottingham, before heading to OVO Hydro in Glasgow on May 17, Bournemouth International Centre on May 19, Utilita Arena Cardiff on May 20, and Manchester’s Co-op Live on May 21.
Other stops include London’s The O2 on May 23, First Direct Arena in Leeds on May 24, Utilita Arena Birmingham on May 25, and SSE Arena Belfast on May 27.
They will also have a date in Ireland at Dublin’s 3Arena on May 28.
Babydaddy said: “There’s something really special about us being a gay band, a queer band, who really pushed into the mainstream with that album. We want to revisit that because there weren’t as many queer acts breaking through in that way 20 years ago.
“We do acknowledge that we did something pretty unique back then just by putting ourselves out there as queer people. We put queer culture in the mainstream at a time when there wasn’t much of it there.”
Tickets will go on sale on November 8 at 9am.