Steve Hackett: Lalle Larsson and Felix Lehrmann join Steve’s live band

Steve Hackett announced today that Lalle Larsson and Felix Lehrmann will become permanent band members in 2026.

It has been known for several weeks that Steve Hackett’s long-time keyboardist Roger King will be leaving at the end of 2025. Now Steve Hackett has announced that Lalle Larsson will succeed him in the live band.

Lalle Larsson‘s real name is Lars-Egon Larsson and he was born in Malmö in 1974. He is also part of Karmakanic and The Flower Kings, so his selection is likely due to another recommendation from Jonas Reingold. Larsson will take over the keyboards in Steve’s live band from 2026.

There is another change on the drums. Craig Blundell was recently unable to be available on a full-time basis due to other commitments. Now, Felix Lehrmann will be the new standard live drummer in Steve’s band from 2026. However, Craig will remain in Steve’s team and will continue to be available for studio work. We interviewed Felix Lehrmann in June, which you can find here.

Steve also announced that new shows for 2026 will be announced soon. You can find his original statement on his website.

Next week, Steve will be touring Italy with his band (with Felix Lehrmann on drums), and an extensive North American tour is planned for the autumn (with Nick D’Virgilio on drums). All dates can be found on our tour dates page.