NEEDTOBREATHE bring The Long Surrender Tour to Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park on Saturday, September 12 — and the booking itself is worth reading. A 5,000-capacity amphitheater for a band with three billion career streams and five No. 1 albums isn’t a statement of restraint. But Bear Rinehart has already told you what he’s going for: “It’s going to feel like a smaller venue.” On a tour built around their most stripped-down album in more than two decades, that intention is the story.
About NEEDTOBREATHE
Formed in Seneca, South Carolina in 1998, NEEDTOBREATHE have spent their career navigating the space between Christian rock and mainstream crossover — a dual citizenship that produced some of the more structurally honest rock albums of the 2010s. Hard Love (2016) opened at No. 2 on the Billboard 200. The Long Surrender — out March 27 on MCA Records — is a different kind of record. Produced by Dave Cobb and recorded at his Savannah studio, it’s the most minimal thing NEEDTOBREATHE has made: twelve tracks, roughly 45 minutes, almost no production noise to hide behind.
The subject matter isn’t easy. Rinehart has spoken openly about writing through sobriety and broken relationships. “I sort of took the filter off,” he told Glide Magazine. “This is what I’m leaning on. I’m going to write this.” Lead singles — “Momma Loves Me” (featuring The Red Clay Strays), “Highlands,” and the title track — have been in rotation long enough to prepare audiences for what the live show will ask of them.
There’s a productive tension in how Rinehart frames it: “We want a lot of joy. We have a high-energy kind of show, and you want to weave that throughout.” Stripped-down record, high-energy show. September 12 is where those two things resolve — or don’t.
About the Show
Drew & Ellie Holcomb open. The Nashville folk duo joins NEEDTOBREATHE for the full 25-date tour run — a pairing that makes sense: both acts work Americana-adjacent territory where plain-spoken storytelling and faith aren’t afterthoughts. Show starts at 7:00 PM.
Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park
Moody Amphitheater at Waterloo Park sits at 1401 Trinity Street inside an 11-acre revitalized green space in downtown Austin. The 5,000-capacity outdoor room draws on Waterloo Park’s long history of hosting live music and community events. The park setting — heritage trees, open grounds, wetland gardens — gives the venue a less industrial feel than most rooms at this scale. Worth arriving early.
Tickets
Tickets for NEEDTOBREATHE at Moody Amphitheater are available now. The Long Surrender Tour runs August 12 through September 20, 2026; the Austin date on September 12 falls near the end of the run.