Posted: by The Alt Editing Staff
It’s 2026 and that means another year of new music is headed our way. To be honest: with ICE and Trump abusing and murdering people across the country, 2026 isn’t off to a great start. But there are a couple things we can rejoice in: the courage and love of ordinary people the world over standing up for their neighbors, and the promise of some excellent new tunes.
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Without further ado, here are our staff’s most anticipated releases of 2026, along with some photos of these artists taken by our staff over the years. (man we’ve been at this a long time, but I guess that’s all the more reason you should trust our recs!)
Basement (2019) – Taken by Kyle Musser
Basement – TBA
There are very few emo/pop punk bands from a decade ago that have had their discography hold up better than Basement. The UK emo darlings rose to prominence, disappeared, reappeared, and then stuck around, and I don’t hear anyone complaining. Another trick that very few artists from their wave have been able to successfully pull off. That’s probably why people are still so interested in them in 2026. If the social media videos I’ve seen from their tours are to be believed, they have new music on the way, and I’ll be tuning in without a doubt. – Henderson Cole
By Storm – My Ghosts Go Ghost (1/30)
In response to the tragic loss of Stepa J. Groggs in 2020, former Injury Reserve members RiTchie and Parker Corey have devoted themselves to making something beautiful. By Storm, born from the desire to preserve the music of Injury Reserve, has released a handful of singles since their 2023 conception (most recently “And I Dance”) and has now announced their first album My Ghosts Go Ghost, slated for release at the end of January. The last Injury Reserve record, By the Time I Get to Phoenix, was a spectacular feat: catchy music balanced with the intense grief of losing a friend, primarily featuring only Corey and RiTchie. Between Corey’s unbelievable production and RiTchie’s flow, a distinct mix of old-school hip-hop and a consciousness similar to billy woods (who features on the record), it’s safe to say this first album from the duo will be an emotional storm. – Jules Kelly
Charlotte Cornfield – Hurts Like Hell (3/27)
Every single Charlotte Cornfield release except 2021’s Highs in the Minuses has come out in March, April, or May—Hurts Like Hell is slated for release at the end of this March—and there’s something about the kind of warmhearted folk rock that Cornfield deals in that just feels perfect for the beginning of spring. Appropriately, the title track for her sixth album (and first on Merge) sounds like a rebirth, soaked in pedal steel and backed up with harmonies from Buck Meek. – Zac Djamoos
concealer. – TBA
On January 1st, concealer. dropped “…And the Sunlight Spoke,” their longest and most melodic song yet, and they promised more soon. With each release the Orlando post-hardcore band seems to get better, and if the new single is any indication their next project will be a game-changer. – Zac Djamoos
Death Grips – TBA
Death Grips is online. After an (extremely unbelievable) screenshot circulated the internet last February claiming the iconic experimental group was officially done, Death Grips confirmed that not only is the band still active, they have an album recorded and on the way. The announcement comes eight years after the band’s last full-length release, Year of the Snitch, and will feature Zach Hill and MC Ride continuing the group as a duo. Death Grips has always kept their lips tight about new releases, but there’s always been one constant expectation with their music: never pretend to know what to expect. – Jules Kelly
Frank Ocean – TBA
I’ll be honest, I don’t think Frank Ocean will ever release another album. But if he were to, this is the year to do it. A decade since Blonde and during a time when people are romanticizing the nostalgic vibes, tacky fashion, and iconic music of 2016, a surprise release from Frank Ocean, whether it be a new album or Blonde b-sides, would do amazing things for morale. I’m not convinced—but I’ll keep this dream on my vision board. – Ryleigh Wann
Harry Styles – Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally (3/6)
Almost three years since his last tour ended, Harry Styles is back from running marathons, being spotted at music festivals, and lounging around Europe with a single that feels as weird and lush as a new era of Harry Styles would expect to be. The deep beat-driven, LCD-soaked track “Aperture” is a flash of what one can expect out of his upcoming record Kiss All the Time. Disco, Occasionally out March 9th. Personally, I’m excited to see where he goes with this third LP as it comes off the back of his critically acclaimed Harry’s House (bringing home title of Album of the Year at the Grammys in 2023). He is in this perfect place to do, well, whatever the hell he wants to do in the mainstream music space since he doesn’t have to prove himself anymore to the machine. He’s broken the ceiling, reaching his industry pinnacle years ago with that last record. Now he can come back and give us whatever experimental pop tunes he’s been tinkering around with. I’m ready for him to take back his crown to remind everyone why he is always THE Pop Boy of this Generation. – Hope Ankney
Julien Baker (2017) – Taken by Rebecca Kavaler
Julien Baker – TBA
Its been years since the last Boygenius album pushed Julien Baker into the celebrity spotlight, and even longer since the last Julien Baker solo record (which was maybe her best yet). Sure we got that collab album with Torres, Send a Prayer My Way last April, but that always seemed like more of a side project. All this leads me to believe that a new Julien Baker album may not be too far away. It might not be this year, but when Julien does return, the record will be received by her largest audience yet. I’m confident that her talent will shine through no matter what she decides to do, but I’m hoping this next one rocks.
Knocked Loose (2019) – Taken by Sarah Knoll
Knocked Loose – TBA
After You Won’t Go Before You’re Supposed To released in 2024, I could not get Knocked Loose out of my listening rotation. The band has absolutely blown up, making appearances on late night shows and demolishing tours left and right. Although there have been no announcements yet, I’m really hoping for some new music from the Knocked Loose team. Their sound has only gotten gnarlier, more grotesque, and near-nihilistic. I believe that they are only going to push their sound further into something so diabolical, that this next release is going to be an ear and soul crusher. – Sarah Knoll
Lana Del Rey – Stove (1/30)
Lana has been flirting with the release of her 10th studio album, a country-inspired record, since 2024. Since then, it’s had a rolodex of identities—first Lasso, then The Right Person Will Stay, and now, allegedly, Stove is forthcoming on January 30th. This speculation started online when a popular German music blog posted the date, but to love Lana is to know her. Will she change the release date and name yet again? I’ll eagerly wait to find out. – Ryleigh Wann
The Maine (2022) – Taken by Lindsy Carr
The Maine – Joy Next Door (4/10)
The Maine is back, back, back again. The Maine is back, tell all your friends. The Arizona alt-rockers’ tenth studio record Joy Next Door arrives April 10th. Last year’s Dyed (2008-2023) had the band releasing, essentially, certain vault tracks from each of their album cycles over the years, making that record the perfect primer to hear The Maine’s evolution over their illustrious career before their newest project drops. If their history is anything to go by, Joy Next Door will present everyone with another seamless record different from their previous but just similar enough that it will always be, quintessentially, The Maine. And I cannot wait. – Hope Ankney
Mitski in Central Park (2019) – Taken by Sarah Knoll
Mitski – Nothing’s About to Happen to Me (2/27)
The past few Mitski albums have been great and all, but real Mitskiheads—the ones who have been here since before she got canceled on Tumblr that one time—know her heart is really in the indie rock strain of “angry, complex, sex-deprived woman.” For the Bury Me at Makeout Creek and Be the Cowboy yearners, Mitski’s upcoming Nothing’s About to Happen to Me may be the answer. The first single “Where’s My Phone?” sees Mitski realizing she is a girlfailure with no one able to save her from herself over a blown-out, jangly guitar riff—and it’s awesome. Come February 27th, all true girl losers will have their day. – Jules Kelly
Noah Kahan (2023) – Taken by Lindsy Carr
Noah Kahan – TBA
Noah Kahan took his New England folk rock to unprecedented levels with Stick Season in 2022, which built upon the foundation he laid with his earlier (underrated) LP, Busyhead in 2019. But this time around no one is letting Noah take them by surprise. His new album which is planned to come out this year, and which he has been posting about for months, is going to be an album of the year contender from the moment it drops. Can this younger-than-he-seems songwriter keep the good times rolling with another album full to the brim with emotional singalong jams? I guess we will find out soon, but my money is on yes. – Henderson Cole
Nothing (2019) – Taken by Kyle Musser
Nothing – A Short History of Decay (2/27)
Nothing continue to prove that their songwriting abilities only strengthen with time. Their catalog of albums and EPs chronicle their sound growing and developing into a shoegazey, post-rock signature that can fit into many different genre circles. Their 2024 release Auditory Trauma is full of earworms and, with its third single “toothless coal” proving the same, there’s a lot of promise for their upcoming LP A Short History of Decay. – Sarah Knoll
Poison the Well – Peace in Place (3/20)
Now that metalcore is en vogue again, it only seems right that Poison the Well comes back full force to show the kids how it’s done. Peace in Place, their sixth album and first since 2009, arrives near March’s end, and the ferocious lead single “Thoroughbreds” should quell any doubts. They’ve still got it. – Zac Djamoos
Prince Daddy (2019) – Taken by Sarah Knoll
Prince Daddy & the Hyena – TBA
I’ve personally been a longtime stan of Prince Daddy & the Hyena since their 2016 debut LP. In those ten years since, they have only continued to build on their sound and gotten even more vivid in their lyricism. 2022’s Prince Daddy & the Hyena debuted an expansion of their pop-punk and emo riffs, using different instrumentation while still keeping the pace and the lyrics connected. Whatever they are writing next I’m sure will be an exponential growth on a decade’s worth of music. – Sarah Knoll
Ratboys (2018) – Taken by Chelsea Pineda
Ratboys – Singin’ to an Empty Chair (2/6)
Chicago’s Ratboys are set to release Singin’ to an Empty Chair on February 6th from New West Records, and it comes after their beloved 2023 album, The Window. A few singles have been released so far, including “The World, So Madly” and “Anywhere,” both of which maintain the twangy appeal, but show the band as confident as they’ve ever been. – Ryleigh Wann
Slayyyter (2023) – Taken by Kyle Musser
Slayyyter – WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA (3/27)
Poor Slayyyter has never been able to do her big one. In 2019, the Missouri popstar independently released Slayyyter, a candy-coated, over-the-top hyperpop mixtape dripping in estrogen. She blew the minds (and the car speakers) of every gay Charli xcx-listening, Drag Race-watching teenager in America that year—and then it never happened again. Her last two releases, 2021’s Troubled Paradise and 2023’s Starfucker, saw her lose the absurdly sensual edge that made her stand out and had seemingly left Slayyyter doomed to obscurity in the Khia Asylum. Slayyyter is now on a mission to prove she was—and still is—that girl. The singles off her upcoming WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA have all been electric, loud, and unbelievably slutty. It’s a fun side of Slayyyter the listener hasn’t been able to connect with since 2019, exponentially improved by stronger, bouncier production and a fuller understanding of sex as self-empowerment. Signed to a new label and with Khia Asylum escapees Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan dominating the pop scene, 2026 may be Slayyyter’s time. – Jules Kelly
Snail Mail (2022) – Taken by Emily Gardner
Snail Mail – Ricochet (3/27)
Snail Mail (Lindsey Jordan) hasn’t released new music in five years, but that all changes on March 27th when her third album Ricochet drops. Releasing via Matador Records, the lead single “Dead End” is a grungy precursor to the themes of mortality and time that fill the new record. Jordan has mentioned the shift to a more introspective, evolved writing style here as Ricochet came about during what she considers an “intense” year-long writing era after her vocal surgery in 2021. Her presence in the indie rock space has been sorely missed, and I’m highly anticipating this project being one of the soundtracks that follow my dive into the warmer blooms of spring in a couple months. – Hope Ankney
stella – TBA
Following last year’s incredible split with The Ritornello Form, stella’s got a lot of momentum going into 2026. Their take on emo is a bit more raggedy than most of their peers, and they have hinted that whatever comes next is going to get even heavier. That’s a very, very exciting prospect. – Zac Djamoos
Wild Pink (2018) – Taken by Kyle Musser
Wild Pink – TBA
Since their formation over a decade ago, 2023 was the only year that saw the release of zero new Wild Pink songs. It’s a safe bet, then, that we’ll get something from John Ross’s heartland rock project and an even safer bet that it’ll be another masterpiece. – Zac Djamoos
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