It’s been since 2003 that Styx has put out new material. That’s about to change, however, as The band announced that their 16th studio album, The Mission, is coming on June 16th.
“The planets truly aligned for The Mission, and I couldn’t be prouder,” guitarist Tommy Shaw said in a press release. “It’s our boldest, most emblematic album since Pieces of Eight.” Keyboardist Lawrence Gowan added, ““The album feels simultaneously comfortable and new. It’s both entertaining and charming, and a natural progression of our sound.”

The album appears to be a concept album, taking place in 2033. The Mission deals with the first manned mission to Mars by a nuclear-powered spaceship, Khedive.  The three singing members of Styx — Shaw, James “JY” Young and Lawrence Gowan — play the roles of the Pilot, First Officer and the Engineer, and the other three — Chuck Panozzo, Todd Sucherman and Ricky Phillips — serves as the ship’s crew.
“The Mission is one of those once-in-a-lifetime opportunities to be a part of something unique and special that’s happening in real time right in front of you,” Evankovich said of working on the project, which took two years to record. “It is one of those albums that musically and cosmically showed you the next right thing to do every step of the way. I will forever be grateful and proud of what we did in this body of art.”
As Panozzo said, “The Mission is a sincere and honest representation of how Styx built upon where we were in the 20th century in order to go somewhere new in the 21st century.”

Styx The Mission Tracklist
1. “Overture”
2. “Gone Gone Gone”
3. “Hundred Million Miles”
4. “Trouble at the Big Show”
5. “Locomotive”
6. “Radio Silence”
7. “The Greater Good”
8. “Time May Bend”
9. “Ten Thousand Ways”
10. “The Red Storm”
11. “All Systems Stable”
12. “Khedive”
13. “The Outpost”
14. “Mission to Mars”