Human Voices Remain: A 2026 Tier 5 Album Roundup

Closing up my Summer playlist reviews with:

Count Basie - Lil Ol Groovemaker...Basie! (1963) Cake - Pressure Chief (2004) Kalia Mandever - Mala (2026) Work Money Death - A Portal to Here (2026) Kim Deal - Nobody Loves You More (2026) Urban Dance Squad - Mental Floss for the Globe (1989)

Maps Become Larger: A 2026 Summer Album Roundup

More albums that were in play last summer, including:

The Claypool Lennon Delirium - The Great Parrot-Ox and the Golden Egg of Empathy (2026) Ed O'Brien - Blue Morpho (2026) Jolly - The Audio Guide to Happiness pt 1 (2011) Agent Fresco - Destrier (2015) Elder - Through Zero (2026) Alewya - Zero (2026)

Beyond Known Horizons: A 2026 Summer Album Roundup

Another round of music from this Summer:

Shye Ben Tzur, Johnny Greenwood, and the Rajasthan Express - Ranja (2026) Boards of Canada - Inferno (2026) The Comet is Coming - Trust in the Lifeforce of the Deep Mystery (2019) Crown Lands - Apocalypse (2026) Yes - Aurora (2026) Van Der Graaf Generator - Godbluff (1974)

And the playlist:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5dbNCMfM1Ddi9X1GgApPT3?si=7c0b493da3b942e9

New Currents Gather: 2026 Tier 5 Summer Albums

Here's what was in play this summer, and what it might have meant.

The Lemon Twigs - Look For Your Mind! (2026) Tara Clerkin Trio - Somewhere Good (2026) Spencer Cullum - Spencer Cullum's Coin Collection V. 3 (2026) West Virginia Snake Handlers Revival - They Shall Take Up Serpents (2025) Twelfth Night - Fact and Fiction (1982) Squarepusher - Kammerkonzert - (2026)

and the updated Dr. Spin Radio list

The Mid-Year Top 12: Favorite Albums From 2026

Rounding up the results of the Disc Course for the first half of 2026, including discussion on:

Angine de Poitrine - Vol. 1 (2024) The Beths - Straight Line Was a Lie (2026) Craven Faults - Sidings (2026) Crowded House - Woodface (1991) Dakhabrakha - Alambari (2020) Fishbone - Stockholm Syndrome (2025) IQ - Dominion (2025) Luxury - Like Unto Lambs (2024) Thundercat - Distracted (2026) Titanic - Hagen (2025) Turnstile - Never Enough (2025) Scott Walker Scott 4 (1969)

Ways Through It: Albums Moving Toward Clarity

Wrapping up Tier 2 albums this time, with music from:

Maruja: Pain to Power (2025) Mastodon: Leviathan (2004) Stop.Drop.Rewind: Stop.Drop.Rewind (2024) Friko: Something Worth Waiting For (2025) Thundercat: Distracted (2025) Talk Talk - The Colour of Spring (1986)

And the playlist...

The Way In: Different Avenues of Listening

Another Tier 2 post! Including:

James K - Friend (2025) Ulrika Spacek - EXPO (2026) House of All - Inklings (2026) Gorillaz - The Mountain (2026) Dhakabrakha - Alambari (2020) Elvis Presley - Elvis is Back! (1960)

And the playlist: