If you’re new here, you’re joining 19,000+ other people who are getting excited about new music again. Start here if you need to get oriented. You can also check out the playlist guide or the directory for way more.

🌟WHAT’S AHEAD🌟

-Best Albums of March 2026
-Monthly Playlist

Hopefully you didn’t notice, but I took a short break from posting last week. I needed a tiny breather.

While I was out, I finally relented and spent some time plugging the newsletter on (gulp) Facebook, the last remaining viable social medium I hadn’t already tapped, and also the least palatable.

Starting from scratch anywhere is humbling, but I had completely forgotten the kind of commentary that used to plague my videos when I first started New Bands for Old Heads on TikTok four years ago. Facebook reminded me. (And this time, people were using their real names to do it! Smart!1)

“This isn’t music, it’s noise.”

“Why would I listen to a band that sounds like another band? You’re literally saying they’re derivative.”

“How dare you compare this shit to [old untouchable rock band].”

Hot take, but people like this aren’t music lovers.

Tastes vary; you’re not required to like everything (or most things) that you hear. But loving music inherently requires an open mind. It presupposes an understanding that inspiration is intrinsic to the process of creation. It allows room for both imitation and experimentation. It is able to appreciate even when it can’t understand.

Music lovers are able to say “this isn’t for me, but that doesn’t make it fundamentally bad.”

Tell me what being a music lover means to you.

Leave a comment

Now that I’m off my soapbox, let’s cool down with the best of last month.

As usual, I’d like to mention that while March was packed with huge releases, you won’t see them here, no matter how much I may have loved them.

Looking for Courtney Barnett, The New Pornographers, Kim Gordon, Haute & Freddy, The Twilight Sad, Snail Mail, Robyn, or other mega-hyped indie rock and pop that came out in March? That’s lucky for you, because you can read about them pretty much anywhere else. I don’t need to tell you about them, no matter what I thought of them.2

Since we’re so inundated with incredible new albums, I (usually) try to focus on the ones I loved that are a bit less frequently discussed.

• All of the other month-by-month best of lists are here.

• ➡️ Best tracks of ALL of 2026 (so far) can be found here.
  

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The Best Albums of March 2026

9 albums. 1 Playlist. No rankings.

Legend:

🎯 = if you only have time for one…
📼 = most nostalgic/accessible
🧩 = most challenging

Keep scrolling for the March playlist, which features a standout track from 44 albums (eep!). Something for everyone.

Cat Clyde - Mud Blood Bone

This is a different sort of roots rock record, where Clyde explores her Métis (that is, mixed indigenous Canadian and European) heritage. The album’s pacing and stylistic ebbs and flows — from heavier blues to gentler folk rock and even garage rock — reflect the very literal, physical journey she was on while she wrote it. Somewhere between Robert Johnson and Big Thief, you’ll find her.

• Start with: “Man’s World”

Still to come — new adventures in post punk, a strange spin on slacker rock, jazz-forward hip hop, and three very different ways to get your groove on.

Paid subscribers also get access to the full band directory, exclusive playlists, vinyl and ticket giveaways, and the lively Discord community. Join in.

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Support NBfOH, not Substack

Read more

This year’s New Colossus festival is all wrapped up, but the music discovery is only just beginning. Good news for anyone feeling some FOMO after Tuesday’s post.

It’s only slightly less overwhelming to flip through a 200-band rolodex now that you’re not working on a deadline. Luckily for you, , and I are back with a quick weekend bonus post with a curated selection of some of our favorites from the 2026 New Colossus Lineup to take all the stress off.

A Curated New Colossus: 2026 Edition

Next year, maybe we’ll do this in advance?? A novel concept!

Gabbie’s Picks:

Lip Filler

The latter end of Britpop is an obvious influence for these UK indie rockers. What’s surprising is how much they are (probably unintentionally) taking from Our Lady Peace’s high-angst playbook. Maybe Silverchair, too. Three EPs into their career, and “Tricky” absolutely locked them in as a band to watch.

Shunk

This Montreal art-pop band brings their jazz and classical training to their distinctly chaotic sound. Like an unhinged Cocteau Twins, a cabaret Blondie, or dark B-52s… you’ll feel like you’re in a dingy Berlin or Paris nightclub.

Bonus:

• Midnight Rodeo (California’s paisley underground takes a detour through Nottingham)

• Alien Chicks (experimental/surrealist post-punk, with sax!)

Previously recommended:

• SHAGGO (Brooklyn-based; riot-grrrl inspired)

• TVOD (Post-punk/new-wave hybrid)

• BRNDA (Arty college rock)

• Talon (Queer, catchy ‘90s-inspired alt-rock)

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’s Picks:

cootie catcher

cootie catcher takes that distinctive twee, DIY sound of K Records in the late ‘80s and early ‘90s and makes it their own. Their eclectic mix of jangly guitars and twitchy/glitchy "twee-tronica” makes for a very satisfying unpredictability.

Adult Leisure

This Bristol band delivers Tears for Fears’ synths and Peter Gabriel’s vocals. ‘80s tinged melancholia and emotionally-charged lyrics with just enough energy for the dance floor.

Bonus:

• Wolfschmidt (Swedish “nu-gaze”)

• Honey I’m Home (Dutch 5-piece playing ‘90s alt)

’s Picks:

Sex Mask

Sometimes these Australian post-punks channel Gang of Four with their angularity and stream-of-consciousness, beat-poet lyrics. At other times they scratch an Interpol itch. At all times, they have something invitingly abrasive about them.

Ultra Lights

You’ve always wondered what would happen if Stephen Malkmus had been raised in Atlanta and used more CCR hooks. Wonder no more with these Southern college rockers.

Bonus:

• Midscale (Parisian shoegaze)

• Deady (high energy female-fronted punk)

We have so much more, so we made you a playlist.

Paid subscribers have access to the playlist on Apple, SoundCloud, Tidal, Qobuz, and YouTube. Just head to the Directory.

substack sucks, subscribe directly

Need EVEN more?

• offered up his own selections from this year’s festival before it happened. I’ll try to be more timely next year!

The Joyful Noise

The Undercard: New Colossus Festival 2026

In this feature, we’ll look at music festival lineups and highlight the lesser known, up-and-coming artists worth checking out…

Read more

a month ago · 5 likes · Joe Marvilli

• There’s also an official playlist featuring every band on the roster — be warned, it’s almost 11 hours long!

Next week — another non-definitive genre primer, but nothing like post-punk! Any guesses?

xo

Gabbie

Are you new here? Amazing. Welcome. You’re joining nearly 19,000 other old heads discovering new music together. If you want to get your bearings, start here. Or head straight to the band directory or playlist guide.

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Is This Thing On?

Have you heard the one about the band with millions of monthly listeners who could only sell 12 concert tickets?1 That’s because most of those listeners were background streamers — the artist was probably just featured on a café or chill-out playlist. They didn’t actually have any real fans.

Streaming has created an epidemic of passive listening.

In other words, it makes it very easy to treat music like background noise. No attention required.

Listening passively is what prevents listeners from forming real relationships with artists and the music they make. Without that relationship, there is no fandom — everything just gets distilled into metrics. Who owns the most records. Who went to the most shows. Who racked up the most minutes on Spotify Wrapped that year. Hollow badges of honor at best.

Much of the ✨discourse✨ around this problem focuses on what musicians and “the industry” can do to increase revenue and make the business of music more sustainable.

“The music industry has spent a decade obsessing over how to get a million people to listen to a song once. The next decade will be defined by artists figuring out how to get 1,000 people to care forever.” -

But listeners have a role to play, too.

“Caring forever” can’t be entirely incumbent on the artist. We’ve gotten used to media being perfectly curated and delivered to us on an algorithmic platter; the expectation now is that the music should find us. But when we put in some effort, the payoff is much bigger than anything an algorithm can serve up.

Put another way — if passive listening is the disease, active engagement has to be the cure.

A week ago, a handful of us in the New Bands for Old Heads Discord server found ourselves on a mini-meetup to the New Colossus Festival in New York City. It basically turned out to be anti-streaming exposure therapy — the exact opposite of algorithmic convenience.

Music Festivals Are Dead; Long Live The Music Festival

Before we explain what exactly New Colossus is, we have to explain what it isn’t.

Imagine your standard, open-air music mega-festival. What could be more emblematic of fandom? What could better epitomize active engagement with music than funneling into a field with thousands of your nearest and dearest to see your favorite headliner strutting across a jumbotron hundreds of feet away?

Well, it’s interesting you should ask.

Maybe streaming isn’t quite dead yet, but these are the kinds of music festivals that have been toppling like dominoes for years. Just last year, over 100 festivals were cancelled worldwide, including some that had been running for nearly two decades. And it’s probably because they’re borrowing from the streaming playbook.

Streaming has turned music consumption into an ATM transaction — money goes in, music comes out (if you’re lucky!) — and many of these festivals seem to be replicating that same passive, transactional experience.

What kind of community can you really experience at a mega-festival overrun with influencers and tech bros? And even outside of the Coachellas and SXSW’s of the world, you're still standing in a field surrounded by strangers, many of whom are more interested in talking through sets or taking selfies than the actual music. It’s no wonder many people would rather make a playlist and call it a day.

Well, there are music festivals, and then there’s New Colossus.

Your Tired, Your Poor, Your Huddled Masses: The New Colossus

At most festivals, you buy a ticket to see the headliner. At New Colossus, there are none.

The schedule is packed with nearly 200 emerging artists playing across a dozen Lower East Side bars and art galleries. You come confused and overwhelmed; you leave a fan.

Music discovery is the entire point.

So much of the thrill is that simply showing up isn’t enough.

As an attendee, you’re invited to create your own game plan every single day:

Pick one themed genre showcase and stick to it, or bounce from venue to venue? Catch all the international shows, or stay local? Follow a particular record label showcase? Stick around and have drinks with the band after a set?

This sense of discovery happens in real time. Show up early for a band you know, and you might find a new favorite. Hang around after a set, and you may discover another. There’s simply no way to be a passive consumer of this scene.

New Colossus makes curators of us all.

200 Bands Walk Into a Bar

We had been planning this trip to New Colossus for weeks. Months, maybe. Even as card-carrying music nerds and veteran festival goers, we were completely overwhelmed.2 Each of us made our own spreadsheet schedule with Talmudic annotations. We compared notes, listened to each others’ recommendations, and built playlists to map out our plan of attack.

One early evening, we trekked over (in pouring rain!) to a venue farthest off the beaten path from the cluster of other LES clubs. I wanted to see Talon, a band I’d tipped at the end of last year and didn’t want to miss. The room was completely empty when we walked in.

MK Charron, the lead singer, greeted us warmly. “Are you performers?”

No, just writers. New Bands for Old Heads. “Oh, I know you guys! Our music has a lot of ‘90s influences!” She had so much energy, it didn’t matter that her band might end up giving us a private performance.

By showtime, a dozen more damp patrons filtered in. MK announced they were going to give all of us a great show — and immediately dove into a backward handstand before the band absolutely demolished their set.

What sounds more enticing — a social media post of a band at an outdoor festival shot from miles away, or seeing someone shred a guitar on the floor of a dive bar, inches from your worn-in Converse?

We are witnessing the death of the “Mass Audience” and the birth of the “Micro-Community.” -Joel Gouveia

“Come see us again tomorrow — it’s my birthday!” MK belted over riotous applause. That’s when we knew all of our meticulous planning had been useless. We had to see them again.

Everyone Is With the Band

That feeling of connection we felt with Talon wasn’t unique. New Colossus is designed to make these connective moments happen. Unlike bigger festivals where there’s a literal barrier between artist and audience, at New Colossus, the artists are also fans. They become audience members the second their set is over.

There’s a kind of shared obligation among everyone who attends. Artists, industry members, fans, soon-to-be-fans — everyone is in it together. The playing field feels level in a way that just doesn’t happen at a massive festival… to say nothing of streaming auto-generated playlists!

What an event like New Colossus reveals is that the antidote to streaming’s anonymity isn’t bigger algorithms or better playlists. Instead, we need eye contact in small rooms and human connection to help us trade passive listening for active discovery.

Leave a comment

All You Really Need Is An Internet Connection

Events like New Colossus make active listening stupidly easy. The founders of the festival designed it with that premise in mind:

“It sucks going to festivals to feel like it’s a movie theater where people are running in and out. You want people to stay for the whole event, because that’s how music discovery happens.” -Lio Kanine

But it’s not the only option.

Going to more live shows is an obvious first step. Not skipping the opener is another. Opening bands are increasingly local, and often curated to fit the headliner you bought tickets for, so it’s a no brainer. And if you haven’t stuck around to meet the band at the merch table after, you’re missing out.

But you don’t even have to leave your house to be less of a passive consumer.

Online communities have fueled fandoms for decades. Forums and chat rooms that eventually became Reddit threads and Discord servers… all perfect places to swap recommendations, make gig buddies, or just yap.

You’re reading an article written by people who met in exactly one of those online communities. Even if you don’t join us in person next year, maybe you’ll come hang out online3 and swap music recs.

Remember, it’s community that turns listeners into fans. It doesn’t really matter if that community happens IRL.

Join the Discord

Later this week, we’ll share a curated list of the best bands we discovered at New Colossus this year and all of the others we were devastated to have missed. Stay tuned.

Mark your calendars…

• March 22nd at 5pm Eastern is the next NBfOH Radio Hour

• You have until March 27th to enter the Brigitte Calls Me Baby vinyl giveaway and Heavenly Concert Ticket giveaway

Jump around, jump around, jump up jump up and get down:
•Giveaways
•Events
•New Releases

Occasionally my cup runneth over with goodies that I don’t know how to artfully tuck into a normal weekly post, so I like to throw a quick weekend digest your way.

Think of it as a little palate cleanser before next week’s colossal New Colossus rundown.

This digest also happens to be on Friday the 13th, so it’s inherently terrifying!

Boo?1

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Giveaways!

We’ve got two: one old, one new.

Vinyl!

The new Brigitte Calls Me Baby is out today. They sound like a mix of Roy Orbison and The Smiths, and they can be yours.

Paid subscribers can win a copy of the new record on vinyl. There will be TWO winners! (Ooo, ahhh.)

brigitte calls YOU baby

Live Music!

If you’re in the Philly area and you missed the window to grab a Heavenly ticket for April 17th, you’re in luck. I’ve got one left.

I wish I could come with you, but alas. You’ll have to tell me about it after. Enter below.

i'm jealous

I’ll keep both giveaways open until March 27 and announce them in the Best of March Albums Post at the end of the month.

Upcoming Events!

March is turning out to be an unusually bustling month over on the Discord server. Let’s formalize the invitations.

Radio Hour

Every month, I pull together a surprise mix of new and old songs for a themed hour of discovery and chat. It’s low key, low pressure, and it’s scheduled to work with most time zones (Sunday, 5pm Eastern). Come hang out!

Book Club

It’s not too late to join the March book club — we’re reading Wylding Hall (easily completed in just a few days) and discussing it together in the Discord. It’s mostly asynchronous; hop in when you like.

here there be discord access

New Music!

I admit I wasn’t particularly excited with the first batch of new March releases, but the rest of the month is about to redeem itself.

I’m highlighting some of my most anticipated picks for the remainder of March (including today!) below. You’ll add yours in the comments, won’t you?

Leave a comment

Read more

I’ve started asking some guests to help me tackle these topics from their perspectives. Today, please welcome , comic writer and author of 20th Century Ambient to New Bands for Old Heads.

xo
Gabbie

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I remember the first time I was called an “old head.” It wasn’t too long ago.

Early last year, I went with a couple of friends to see Brooklyn rapper MIKE play a show at The Crocodile in Seattle. My friend Martin showed me his stuff a few years prior. Since then, we’d followed his work religiously and were so excited to see him garnering more acclaim, especially with his most recent album, SHOWBIZ!. We stood at the back of the crowded venue as Martin’s friend Scarlett came over with some soda waters.

Moments later, a young guy spots us and walks over, eager to find out how we were able to sneak drinks from the bar at this all-ages show. We told him it was just soda water, which he didn’t believe. Again, he pressed us on our contraband technique. Again, we told him it was just soda water.

“Oh, so you guys are old heads,” he said with a smile, then walked away.

What a bomb to drop on someone. I don’t think any of us had ever been called “old heads” before. But then I looked around at the crowd. Almost everyone there was at least a decade younger than us. It was a mixed bag of feelings.

I’d spent most of my music-loving life trying to avoid getting stale and stagnant. Especially in recent years, I’ve found more and more people my age voicing that they “don’t have time for new music.” I didn’t want that fate. So it stung a bit.

It felt like that scene near the end of Saving Private Ryan where Matt Damon’s face morphs from a strapping young soldier to an old man. Was “old head” meant to be an insult? Or was it a sign of respect that “old heads like us” would come to a show like this?

By the time the show started, all of those feelings started to fall away. But I think about that moment every now and then. I’m 36, and I don’t feel old. But I see the temptation to identify as “old.”1 Even in my 20s, it wasn’t uncommon for my friends and me to comment about how we felt too old to be at certain music festivals. Like it was some badge of honor to prefer staying in rather than dancing the night away with reckless abandon.

I understand we’re all built differently. And look, I have a young kid and a full-time job. I’d say I’m tired roughly 110% of the time. Dancing at the club until the early AM is (probably) not going to happen anymore. But this isn’t a death knell for music discovery. If anything, it’s the time to double down.

Being an old head isn’t an inherently bad thing. It can even be really cool! The passage of time comes for us all. Getting older doesn’t mean you stop trying new things. In fact, I think it’s an advantage.

When you’re young, everything is new. When I was a teenager and found a new band I fell in love with, it was like I was discovering a whole new world. I didn’t have to think about Interpol sounding like Joy Division because I didn’t know who Joy Division was. Everything was fresh.

It actually used to irritate me when “old heads” would tell me that whatever I was listening to was derivative of something else. But I came to really look up to people who had vast music knowledge, who instead of berating a young kid like myself for not knowing The Modern Lovers would help guide me and take me deeper into these spheres of music.

The benefit of being an old head is that you’ve lived a life; you’ve discovered lots of great music and ideas already. There’s, of course, always going to be more to discover. But you’ve developed your taste to a point where you know better what you might like. Instead of letting age be your barrier, let it be your confidant. Instead of shrugging off a new band for being too much like something you heard years ago, take that perspective and lean in.

How are these new generations of artists building off the foundation you grew up on?

What new perspective are they bringing?

On the other end of things, music discovery is a great way to open yourself up and feed that fresh, young, wide-eyed person who still exists somewhere inside you. You may feel like you’ve seen it all and heard it all, but I can guarantee you haven’t. With billions of people in the world and new means of access all over the globe, I guarantee you there’s someone out there creating something you could have never imagined.

Art is our mirror to the world, and music is one of the most prevalent, easily accessible, and vital forms of art out there.

In an era of overconsumption, I understand the compulsion to stick with what you know. Trying to keep up is nearly impossible given the constant deluge of music, movies, shows, short videos, social posts, and a billion other things being thrown at us every day. Trying to take in everything made in the last year alone would take you a lifetime.

But just because we can’t take in everything doesn’t mean we shouldn’t try to seek out the good stuff in this digital pile-up.

Art is our mirror to the world, and music is one of the most prevalent, easily accessible, and vital forms of art out there.

You’re two clicks on your phone away from a whole new world of sounds and ideas. It can be overwhelming, but you don’t have to do it alone. Even in the busy fray of life, you can find curators or trusted voices to help you discover great music. Or you can take it a step further and build your own practice.

Most of us won’t have the same free time we had to seek out new music like we did when we were kids. But that doesn’t mean the party’s over.

Last year, I had the chance to talk with Kai Slater of the groups Sharp Pins and Lifeguard, and he said something to me that really reframed the whole idea of getting older and loving music.

At the time of the interview, Slater was just 20 years old. It’s weird how nervous that made me, wondering if I could keep up with someone so young and in the throes of a creative hot streak. But we talked about the nature of age and art, particularly through the lens of the Sharp Pins song “I Can’t Stop.” I asked him to break down what he meant when he sings, “I don’t wanna get older no more.”

“The way that you remain young is by staying in touch with your creative side,” he told me over the phone. “If I were to stop that, I would surely die.”

“The way that you remain young is by staying in touch with your creative side. If I were to stop that, I would surely die.” -Kai Slater (Sharp Pins, Lifeguard)

That moment reframed so much for me. I understood what he meant. Young artists have a lot to teach us old heads. Even if you’re not the one making the music, I find that even just listening to music activates a creative part of my brain. All the new sounds and ideas can be inspiring. That same elation I felt when I was a kid, finding a new band? It turns out it can still happen.

The only thing stopping us from that feeling is ourselves. The joy of discovery never has to end.

Another Thought

Infinite Queue: One Person's Practice for Listening to New Music

Of all the things to stress about in life, I stress too much about trying to listen to new music. The idea that so much music is constantly being made and released is both exciting and frightening to me. So many great new albums to check out. But also, so many masterpieces that will be missed or overlooked…

Read more

5 months ago · 31 likes · 2 comments · Dusty Henry

Another Thought

When You Were Young: On Rewriting and Rewiring Nostalgia

Since middle school, I’ve lugged around this bulging CD case—the kind you’d keep in your car or stuff in your backpack to keep a steady supply of tunes on the go. It’s hilarious to think of how convenient this was in 2003 and how cumbersome it feels today. Whenever I’ve flipped through it, its contents have made me cringe. Yet I can’t bear to let it go…

Read more

a month ago · 20 likes · 8 comments · Dusty Henry

If you’re new here, you’re joining 19,000 readers discovering new music that sounds like their old favorites. Start here if you need to get oriented. You can also check out the playlist guide or the directory for lots more.

🌟WHAT’S AHEAD🌟

-Best Albums of February 26
-Playlist
-Concert ticket giveaway

Now we’re starting to cook with some gas.

February’s slow start gave way to a deluge of phenomenal releases at the final hour. March promises much the same.

Predictably, the analysis paralysis in settling on just nine albums for each of these monthly roundups has been giving me heart palpitations. So I’m going to formalize a practice that up until now I could only categorize as a habit:

If you’ve already been oversaturated with hype about a new release, it’s likely we’ll be skipping it here.

I'm not averse to double-dipping, but I'd rather bring you music recs from real people than regurgitate whatever's making the rounds in the press.

So yes, you might not see some of the heavy hitters below (Mitski, Ratboys, Mandy Indiana, et al.).1 But why do you need me to reinforce opinions you already hold? Aren’t you here to learn about new music you haven’t heard yet?2

I thought so.

What were your February favorites?

Leave a comment

ICYMI…

The Best Albums of February 2026

All of the other month-by-month best of lists are here.

➡️ Best tracks of ALL of 2026 (so far) can be found here.

9 albums. 1 Playlist. No rankings.

Legend:

🎯 = if you only have time for one…
📼 = most nostalgic/accessible
🧩 = most challenging

Keep scrolling for the February playlist.

📼 Station Model Violence - S/T

I believe it was reader who turned me on this fantastic Australian group. If my post-punk primer left you wanting more, or maybe just left you more confused about the boundaries between post-punk and new wave, Station Model Violence is a great blend of those two styles. It certainly won’t help clarify anything, but it’s hard not to enjoy the grit of the Gun Club or Neu! mixed up with the dark danceability of New Order. Start with: “Leisure”

Voka Gentle - Domestic Bliss

What a breath of fresh air this record is. A patchwork of avant-pop styles and influences that pulse and thump together into something truly delightful and unexpected. I want to give you some kind of reference point to help get oriented, but it’s slippery; there are pieces of Kraftwerk and These New Puritans, all with a Mute Records production pedigree. Start with: “Torpedo Mike”

vegas water taxi - long time caller, first time listener

You were expecting Remember Sports to show up on this list. I don’t blame you! It’s a great record, but you’ve heard enough about it already. For more country-soaked indie rock, let’s venture across the pond, where Ben Hambro’s band is (curiously) crafting some earnest Americana with heavily sardonic lyricism. I do love a study in contrasts, and who could possibly resist a track with a name like “ozempic (celebrity weight loss anxiety blues)”? Start with: “chateau photo”

Still to come — a comeback 30 years in the making, even more Australian innovation, mind-bending avant-folk, and a Britpop revival you haven’t heard anywhere else. (Plus, a concert ticket giveaway!)

Paid subscribers also get access to the full band directory, exclusive playlists, vinyl and ticket giveaways (like the one below!), and the Discord community. Join in.

Prefer to subscribe without supporting Substack directly?

(It’s $5 cheaper!)

Support NBfOH, not Substack

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Pssst… don’t miss the⚡⏩Best Tracks of 2026! ⏪⚡

Not sure which playlist to start with? I made a playlist personality quiz1. It’s stupid. It’s fun. It’s free.

If you’re new, it’ll help orient you with a few playlists picked out just for you.

subscribe to take the quiz!

Navigate:

Genres + Eras | “Best Of”s | Mixtapes | Community Playlists

Most playlists available on: 🍎Apple, ☁️SoundCloud, 💿Qobuz,
🌊Tidal, ▶️YouTube. Find those links in the directory.

Directory!

The directory also includes every single band I’ve ever recommended in the newsletter. It’s pretty sweet.

Ok, on to the playlists —

Genres + Eras

New music that sounds generally like the older stuff listed here.

⭐ = core playlist

• ‘60s (Mod, Motown, Surf, Space Age Pop) - post | playlist

• ⭐ ‘70s (Soul, Disco, R&B) - playlist

• ⭐ ’80s (Synth, New Wave) - playlist

• ⭐ ‘90s (Alt, Riot Grrl, College Rock, Shoegaze) - playlist

• ⭐ Classic Rock - playlist

• Egg Punk2 - playlist

• Hip-Hop - playlist

• Indie Sleaze - post | playlist

• Pop - playlist

• Post-Punk3 - post | playlist

• Soul (reviving Daptone’s golden era) - post | playlist

• ⭐ Y2K (reviving 2000-era top 40) - post | playlist

• Yé-yé (French pop) - post

“Best Of”s:

Yearly

• 2026 - Best Tracks

• 20254 - Best Tracks | Midyear | EOY 1 | EOY 2 | EOY 3 | EOY 4

• 2024 - Best Tracks | Midyear | EOY 1 | EOY 2 | EOY 3 | EOY 4

• 2023 - Best Tracks

• 2022 - Best Tracks

Monthly

• January 2026 - post | playlist

• October 2025 - post | playlist

• September 2025 - post | playlist

• August 2025 - post | playlist

• July 2025 - post | playlist

• June 2025 - post | playlist

• May 2025 - post | playlist

• April 2025 - post | playlist

• March 2025 - post

• February 2025 - post

• January 2025 - post

Mixtapes:

Mostly “If You Like [X], Then You’ll Like [Y]” posts + companion playlists (new music that sounds like specific older artists).

🎤 = guest playlist

• If You Like [X] Then You’ll Like [Y]: The OG (Gang of Four, New Order, Veruca Salt, Smashing Pumpkins, Pavement, Radiohead, Lauryn Hill, Elliott Smith)

  • post | playlist

• ‘90s Counterculture (introducing to non-hit genres of the ‘90s: grunge, britpop, shoegaze, big beat, trip hop, twee)

  • post | playlist

• Album Scores Are Meaningless (great albums that only got an average 7/10 meta-rating)

  • post | playlist

• Experimental (a mixtape for Anja Huwe of X-mal Deutschland)

  • post | playlist

• Female-Fronted Bands (“won’t someone think of the men?”)

  • playlist

• 🎤 Folk (New Canadiana, by )

  • post | playlist

• Foreign Language (3 hours of new music, none in English)

  • post | playlist

• Gen X Nostalgia (a mixtape for )

  • post | playlist

• Guilty Pleasures - post | playlist

• 🎤 Lilith Fair (What New Bands Belong on the Lilith Fair Stage in 2025?, by )

  • post | playlist

• New Band/Old Band (the basics of how my brain works; new/old pairings)

  • post | playlist

• Pop-punk (Dragging out of his 2000s rut)

  • post | playlist

• Problematic Artists (Problematic older artists paired with modern non-problematic equivalents)

  • post | playlist

• Romance & Drama (A shimmery mixtape for )

  • post | playlist

• Slutty Summer (All your hot summer jamz)

  • post | playlist

• Teen Movies (reviving the sound of the late ‘90s teen romcom)

  • post | playlist

• “Uncool” Music (a mixtape for Justin McElroy of My Brother My Brother and Me)

  • post | playlist

• Witchy Disco (my take on the Fall playlist)

  • post | playlist

Community Playlists:

• Known Unknowns - Community-generated playlists featuring your favorite unknown & underrated artists.

  • Vol 0

  • Vol 1

  • Vol 2

  • Vol 3

  • Vol 4

  • Vol 5

  • Vol 6

  • Vol 7

• Directory-only extras:

  • The Disco - a multi-era dance party

  • Discord Community Music Recs - old heads share their favorite music of all time

The best way to support New Bands for Old Heads is to become a paid subscriber. If this newsletter ever turned you on to a band you wouldn’t have found otherwise, please consider upgrading. Support your friendly local (human!) music curator, and help keep the playlists bountiful across all platforms. Learn more here.

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If there’s one thing we’re obsessed with on the left, it’s being as ethical as possible.

If there are two things we’re obsessed with, it’s making sure everybody knows just how ethical we’re being.

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That leaves very little room for imperfection.

A year ago, I wrote about my failed attempt to quit Spotify. With every ICE ad and AI-generated track, using the behemoth streaming platform becomes less and less defensible. And yet even as I watch many others (very publicly) cancel their subscriptions, and even as my own guilt accumulates to a fever pitch, I’m still forking over my monthly fee.

How can I – how can anyone – possibly justify it?

Increasingly, the implication1 is that it’s not possible. Either you stop using Spotify (and probably all streaming), or you don’t care about artists, full stop. In other words, divesting has moved from the realm of “preferable” to “morally mandatory”.

I saw a TikTok (stay with me) a while back that questioned the familiar refrain: “I’d be vegan except for the cheese”.

@itsmekateveeI never talk about veganism very explicitly but I’m just saying if it’s one thing stopping you then just like don’t be stopped, do it except for the one thing

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The young woman in the video shruggingly implores us: “If that’s how you really feel, DO IT. Nobody’s stopping you. Go vegan except for the cheese.” Like, what’s the problem? Why are we so all or nothing? Isn’t perfect the enemy of the good?

“I don’t know when we all got consumed by the need to portray “goodness” but it sure is making everyone seem like performative bores. We know that our online personas are just shells of who we are; yet, we focus so much on how to present these shells. As if all the facets of a person can be summed up in one Instagram profile.“ -Carré Kwong Calloway

Personally, I’m sick of being told that using streaming is tantamount to not giving a shit about musicians.2 But I wanted to recruit somebody with a more finely calibrated moral compass to discuss that question with me.

Lavender Sound

I'm changing the way I listen to music

If 2025 was the year of music listeners and musicians alike removing their music from Spotify, 2026 needs to be 2025 Part Two (a phrase I will absolutely never say again). Some…

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3 months ago · 32 likes · 17 comments · Max Freedman

: I think the idea that using streaming means you don’t care about artists, or that you’re a bad person, completely lacks nuance and grace.

For as long as we’re forced to participate in capitalism, streaming is the most comprehensive way to access recorded digital music. None of the passionate music listeners I know have enough money to buy all the music they want to listen to. They can’t afford to be virtuous people who avoid Spotify.

It’s only through streaming that you can test-drive an album before buying it. The days of hearing a couple of singles on the radio and buying the CD before having heard the rest are gone.

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: I’m an outlier, but I’ll still use myself as another example. I pay for Spotify (and Apple, and Tidal, and Qobuz, and SoundCloud, and YouTube) because that’s where my audience is and I want to make music discovery accessible to the most people in the most places. I also only link out to Bandcamp on my actual posts whenever that’s possible to do (and hundreds of people buy albums and concert tickets because of my recommendations).

Because Spotify’s catalog is largest and their UI is easiest to navigate, especially for playlists, having my “curation headquarters” on Spotify is what makes sense for me right now, especially while I can’t quit my day job to do this. It sucks, but until I’m able to devote my life to music curation full time, I have to stick to what saves me the most time.

Convenience is often overlooked in these conversations, but it’s probably the biggest reason people stick with streaming even when they’re opposed to it in theory.3 We can talk about morals all day long, but there’s not much more to it than that. The average consumer puts their needs first. Introduce any kind of friction point, and you’ll lose.

This is why I balk at the “quit Spotify or you’re a monster” implications. Is literally everybody who chooses their real life convenience over a stranger’s theoretical livelihood, regardless of the context around it, morally bankrupt? A sizable portion of you currently reading think the answer is “yes,” even though we all do this every day.

But what I actually want to ask you —

Does opting out actually make a measurable difference in a world where artists are still reliant on this system?

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: Oh yeah, I’m under no illusion that if I alone canceled the one music streaming subscription I have (YouTube Music4) it would make a sizable, impactful difference. I do think that if a mass of other folks were to join me, then there would be an impact, but we’re talking tens of millions.

“Spotify won’t notice my individual absence from its platform any more than Amazon missed my online orders or Walmart has noticed I don’t ever step foot within its doors. The point is that I sleep better knowing my own small, everyday decisions are made with as much socially positive forethought as possible.” -Tony Fletcher

I feel that my actions are making a tangible difference because it puts me in a position to eventually be part of a mass movement to compel these platforms to listen to their users’ wants and needs, ranging from “stop being fascists” to “pay your artists.” That mass movement isn’t here yet, but maybe, just maybe, my example can encourage others.5

On a related note:

To what extent do you think it’s incumbent on us to educate our readers and the broader listening public?

I’m thinking of my one friend who’s as passionately far-left and up on the news and ~discourse~ as I am but didn’t know that Spotify was running ICE recruitment ads until they saw me post about it on my Instagram story.

: I think of fast fashion as an analogous example. I regularly see comments on social media brushing people off as annoying or even ableist/classist for pointing out how problematic it is to buy fast fashion. Plenty of people are perfectly aware that companies like Shein effectively employ slave labor, but the call of the $5 dress is just too strong to resist.

I’d go so far as to say that streaming is the fast fashion of the music world.

It’s cheap, it’s easy, it’s constantly being churned out in mass quantities, it’s delivered to us instantaneously, and we are prone to consuming it without regard to the artist/designer. Maybe we haven’t reached peak educational saturation yet, but I don’t think the reaction will be different. Shein isn’t going to suffer and neither will Spotify.6

I’m not trying to say that it’s pointless to educate people. Just that awareness doesn’t automatically change behavior, and even when it does, it usually impacts us more than it impacts “the system.” And if awareness doesn’t reliably change behavior, it’s hard to argue that divestment is morally mandatory rather than morally admirable.7

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: I do think there’s something to be said when folks using Spotify or other platforms don’t know about their ethical problems. The bliss of that kind of ignorance is pretty American, like real “living in the core of empire” vibes, to be communist about it, It feels icky that anyone could consume things without knowing about the awful actions and beliefs of the companies whose products and services they’re buying. No matter how well-meaning that person is.

But I get that the effect of my withdrawal from streaming has been more on me than on anyone or anything else. I wouldn’t say being off streaming has done me harm, but it does mean that I haven’t listened to, say, a full U.S. Girls album in a while, since they’re among the handful of artists who only allow a few songs per album to be streamed on Bandcamp. It’s a big-time change to my relationship to music consumption.

That’s a problem I don’t yet know how to solve without buying every album that I’m at least a little bit interested in. My budget is limited, which means that I’m not as able to invest time in releases I’m enjoying at first blush but might come to absolutely love with further listens.

What’s inarguable is that streaming platforms offer unparalleled music access.

Do you think that being against streaming also equates to being against widespread music access?

: I’ve written before about intentional listening or putting parameters around listening, so it’s not inherently bad to set limits. However, limitation doesn’t mean lack of access.

If we want new artists to succeed, we should also want it to be easy to access their art. This is the anti-gatekeeping ethos, after all.

It’s noble to want to dismantle a system that inherently devalues that art, but realistically it’s also impossible. Once Pandora’s box is opened, the monsters don’t go back inside.

It’s worth noting that the growing desire for “old tech” - the children yearn for analog, I’m told, and there’s a growing interest in things like modding iPods with bluetooth and modern storage capacity.

But with the odd exception, this generally happens alongside streaming, not as a total replacement.

In any case, I don’t want to give up just because I refuse to take a purely black and white position on this. Quitting is admirable, but is it a requirement?

How can people “go vegan except for the cheese” when it comes to getting rid of streaming?

What are some things we can do if we actually do care about artists, but aren’t ready to divest from streaming completely just yet?8

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: My gut response is that the streaming equivalent of going vegan except the cheese is just to use the free version of Spotify. I can’t think of another option even though I don’t necessarily like it for myself.

The free version of a streaming service will break up the albums I’m listening to with ads, and that interferes with my listening experience. I’m always listening to music when I write or edit. For example, before I bought CMAT’s EURO-COUNTRY, I tried streaming it on YouTube while writing. The ads were completely disruptive to my work, but they wouldn’t be if I were cooking, walking, or exercising.

I think it’s worth bearing the ads to not have a cap on the number of times I can listen to a release before buying it, which will continue to be my ultimate goal for releases I truly love. And of course it’s worth it to increase the chances of the artist gaining a fan, even if they aren’t getting paid.

Hold me accountable — this will take me a while to start doing.

It does feel like admitting some amount of defeat in my quest to quit streaming.

After all, these platforms still make money off ads. As a passionate music listener who also writes about music, I need to stand in this unfortunate middle ground.

: The world is one big gray area, and that’s a great place to start.

I have a few other ideas, though, mostly leaning in to the idea that things don’t have to be all or nothing. Hopefully readers can add their own.

1. Pause your subscription every once in a while. If you can’t go free completely, fine. Pause for a month now and then. Use the extra money to buy an actual album.

2. Don’t subtract; add. If money isn’t the main concern, then make this an additive exercise. If you’ve listened to an album more than X number of times (two, three, ten) then it’s time to buy it. Test out a few less problematic streaming services and see if you prefer them, then make the switch.

3. Go to more concerts. Go early and see the opener. Buy merch.

4. Stop listening passively. Don’t use AI-generated playlists. Sign up for bands’ mailing lists. Read their newsletters. Donate to their Patreons. Whatever! Just be more engaged.

5. Promote and participate. Write about music if you like writing. Share bands on your social media if you’re on social media. Tell your friends IRL if you’re not.

What’s your version of “vegan except the cheese” when it comes to Spotify?

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This evening, I’m channeling my inner as I prepare for you a short but satisfying musical meal.

Mustard's Diner

There's nothing finer than a meal at Mustard's diner!

By JustSomeMustard

In between new music music Fridays, I’ve been taking more time to sit with less immediate records, old and new. There are infinite options to choose from, but after extensive consultation and constant reminders to myself that quality is more important than quantity, I find that curating a small listening menu works best.

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This particular menu is prix fixe, and no substitutions will be accepted. But I’ll take your dietary restrictions and other suggestions under advisement for future meals.

< Appetizer ~ Hank >

alt/shoegaze

We’ll be starting off your evening with a light but impactful snack. Hank’s debut EP is dreamy and dark, grungy and ethereal. It’s a quintessentially English flavor: imagine a blend of Bush with Ride or Slowdive, perhaps. Contributors include Sorry’s Asha Lorenz and Warmduscher’s Ben Romans-Hopcraft.

If this EP appeals, come back for the follow-up, Spiralic. The two EPs together are a mini-album, after all.

< Entree ~ Ffa Coffi Pawb >

grunge/power-pop fusion

Keep your appetite for grunge but relax into something less mournful. Our main course is a 19921 Welsh vintage. Ffa Coffi Pawb (which means “Coffee Beans for Everybody,” but phonetically sounds like “Fuck Off, Everybody”) never managed to break out as a Welsh-language band. Hei Vidal! is their final album, and generally considered their best. I’m pleased to be able to serve it to you today, as it’s a seamless mix of sunny power-pop with the far more jagged edges of both shoegaze and grunge. You’ll even taste some krautrock influences.

Keen observers will notice that the Bandcamp link below points to Gruff Rhys’ site. That’s because Ffa Coffi Pawb was the band that several eventual Super Furry Animals formed when they were still teenagers.

< Dessert ~ jan Usawi >

electropop

I know you were in the mood for chocolate cake, but will something with a bit more Peaches do? I’m not much for heavy desserts, myself, so you’ll be having this tangy electropop treat. That way you’ll still have some energy to burn before bed. Notes of Khaela Maricich and Tegan & Sara permeate the sound as well.

If you’re not convinced, there’s some fascinating lore to jan Usawi that may grab you even if the music isn’t for you.

Toki Pona is a fully developed language system that you can learn for yourself, if you’ve still got energy to burn after your meal.

You can also listen to jan Usawi’s most recent full album below (though I could unfortunately only find it on Spotify).

Bon appetit!

And don’t be shy — tell me what 3-course album menu you would put together.

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Some say January isn’t a strong month for albums writ large, but that hasn’t been my usual experience.

In fact, I can’t remember a year that didn’t start out with an album that would eventually end up somewhere high up on my Best Of list at the end of that same year.

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• 2021 had shame’s Drunk Tank Pink and Goat Girl’s On All Fours

• 2022 had The Weeknd’s Dawn FM

• 2023 had The Murder Capital’s Gigi’s Recovery and Lil Yachty’s Let’s Start Here

• 2024 had SPRINTS’ Letter to Self and The Smile’s Wall of Eyes

Last year wasn’t too shabby, either.

I admit this year feels different.

Blame the first snowy winter since 2016. Blame turning 42 (today, if you’re keeping track — I’m obviously not! Psh!). Blame the systematic and unrelenting erosion of civil liberties just pummeling our newsfeeds and neighborhoods at every. Fucking. Turn.

I can’t honestly say whether I’m failing to find joy in recent releases because the music is lacking, or because the walls of the pit I have to crawl out of to actually reach that joy are so high right now.

But never mind all that.

On the one hand, nothing immediately stands out to me as an obvious end of year contender. I also struggled to fill out my monthly playlist with as many exciting picks as I usually do, which is a shame.

On the other hand, having less that (immediately) excited me meant I had more time with everything else. This is a rare treat.

Why is quantity always the goal?

Unwittingly, I’d been sticking to the spirit of listening with more purpose. I veered into a few genres I wouldn’t normally explore. I poked and prodded around more music submissions and reader recommendations. More time meant more indepth engagement. It was rewarding. In retrospect, I wish more months were like this.

I hope the albums in this roundup reflect the care that went into their selection. But first…

What were your favorites this month?

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The Best Albums of January 2026

All of the other month-by-month best of lists are here.

The playlist of the month is at the very bottom of the post.

By next month, the Best Tracks of 2026 playlist will be ready to go (and free for all). It just needs a little more time to brew.

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9 albums.

First 3 free.
No rankings.
Not even alphabetical order anymore! Gasp!

Legend:

🎯 = if you only have time for one…
📼 = most nostalgic/accessible
🧩 = most challenging

📼 Home Star - A Binding Life

The first record to truly charm me this month, perhaps unsurprisingly, is a hidden Philadelphia gem. Marietta’s frontman debuts a solo act of sunny, high-octane nostalgia to relieve us from our agonizing winter doldrums. To channel our beloved - “Is it power pop?” Yes, oh yes. ‘90s power pop specifically, like Weezer and Fountains of Wayne, will come rushing back to you as you listen. It’s sometimes difficult for straightforward albums like this one to draw me in, because their simplicity has to be overcome with pristine pacing and well-crafted hooks. This one delivers. Start with: “Beam”

Sargent Baker - Loose Ends

Some of the best new music is coming out of Australia, and my most recent discovery absolutely rips. I try to keep a small arsenal of music to convert the die-hard classic rock aficionados who refuse to give new music a chance, and this is my latest weapon. If you’re a fan of arena rock, AC/DC, Iggy Pop, and the oft-neglected guitar solo, get ready to rumble. Start with: “On The Burn”

Annabelle Chairlegs - Waking Up

Ty Segall’s production makes perfect sense for this fuzzy, psychedelia-infused album. I can feel a bit of Velvet Underground and Janis Joplin creeping in, but in the end it’s far more of a nod to the ‘90s reviving the ‘60s than straight up Haight-Ashbury. With vocals more akin to Juliana Hatfield and desert swagger that Beck could get on board with, there’s whole eras to sink your teeth into. Start with: “Patty Get Your Gun”

Still to come — dark pop, proto-punk revival, soulful hip-hop, genre-defying anti-fascism, and much more.

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Within, I explained in brief what post-punk was, what it sounded like, and what new artists to check out who are reviving that sound now.

Today, I’ll dig deeper into those recommendations and hand over a playlist of everything we’ve discussed and much more.

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First, a few announcements

Both of these take place in the New Bands for Old Heads Discord Server. If you need an invite, become a paid subscriber the usual way above, or subscribe outside of Substack.

1. Radio Hour - Every month I host a radio hour. The next one is on February 15th. The theme is a surprise (last month’s was post-punk, which gave birth to the playlist below!). Treat it as background music, treat is as a chat, treat it is a dance party, whatever you want. 5pm Eastern/2pm Pacific.

2. Book Club - I threatened to start a book club, and now we’re actually doing it. Our first book is Roddy Doyle’s “The Commitments”. This is going to be very chill, low pressure, and at your pace. Pop in to chat any time in February as your schedule permits.

An Extra Taste of Post-Punk’s New Wave

To recap, last week you learned about Italia 90, Sweeping Promises, The Cool Greenhouse, Drahla, La Sécurité, and Gustaf.

I feel like there’s almost an infinite repository of excellent post-punk revival to get through. Shall we dip into the surplus? Shall we dive into the playlist?

It Thing - Spirit Level (Marthouse Records, 2024)

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What type of music do you default to listening to when you’re not sure what you’re in the mood for?

For me, it’s post-punk. But you knew that already. Maybe you’re one of the people who’s been clamoring for a genre deep dive about it. I’ve got bad news for you.

I love post-punk, but I also can’t do it justice. It keeps sucking me down into its gaping maw. It’s the quicksand we were all so terrified of falling into when we watched Saturday morning cartoons as children.

I fear if I speak its name three times, the Real Music Critics will emerge from their lairs (from under my floorboards, I have to imagine?) and start tearing me limb from limb for my failures:

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For miscategorizing a seminal post-punk1 album as new wave. For not tracing influences properly. For… not mentioning Pere Ubu, maybe? It’s a minefield, and I’d rather not play in it at all.

The problem (and it’s a good one to have) is that

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If you used any social media in recent weeks, you’ve probably noticed that a whole lot of people have time traveled back to 2016.

2016 is trending. A calendar year. Is trending. I didn’t think that a specific year in the relatively recent past was a creative enough meme prompt, but perhaps I’ve lost some whimsy in my grumpy dotage.

In any event, this mostly means we’re seeing a surfeit of quirky selfies dipped in the Valencia filter, massive plaid scarves and block eyebrows, and a lot of wistful reminiscing.1

Again, perhaps odd to romanticize so much when it’s only been ten years, but it allows the youths to participate. Setting aside all the overbearing thinkpieces with titles like “IS NOSTALGIA GEN Z’S COPING MECHANISM?!,” I’m all for it. In theory.

Normally, I’d even join in. But it so happens that 2016 was one of the worst years of my life. I lost two jobs and two relationships in quick succes…

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Earlier this week, we talked about all the different ways that we tackle the question of how to separate art from artist.

In that post, I also gave you a list of new artists that correspond to some problematic old favorites. That list was a little buried, and also a little incomplete.

Hopefully you’ve had some time to dig into the modern analogues for Kanye West, Morrissey, Arcade Fire, Prince, M.I.A., and John Lydon.

Now, it’s time to add David Bowie, Michael Jackson, Gwen Stefani, and Thurston Moore to the list.

I’ve also made a playlist of all of the new music picks I’ve matched to them, for your enjoyment and convenience.

10 questionable old artists. 25 new bands to check out. 1.5 hours of music to dig into.

David Bowie

Maybe not surprising, but definitely a tough pill to swallow that our very own Thin White Duke allegedly had sex with minors. Plenty are fine leaving this fact alone as just a product of the times he lived in. Maybe you’re not one of them.

If what you’re looking for is strutting, confident glam, try:

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In 1606, Caravaggio killed a man over a tennis bet. Or maybe it was over a prostitute. Regardless, he killed a man by trying to castrate him, lived on to achieve even greater fame for his art and notoriety for his violence, and earned a place in art history’s canon.

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I’ll take a shot in the dark and say that you’re probably against murder.1 I also have a feeling you’re not in any sudden rush to call up the Uffizi and demand that they rethink their 17th century installations.

When we are far removed from an artist, we have no problem separating them from their art.

But Caravaggio can’t disappoint us anymore. Many other artists can and do.

My dee…

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A more measured approach to music consumption in 2026;
a teaser for some upcoming content at NBfOH,
and a very humane new release calendar.

What Good Is Abundance Without Attention?

It’s a new year, and we have to start being more deliberate about how we listen to music.

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After another overstimulating end-of-year season, I’m tearing my hair out a little bit. I may have largely opted out of the mentality that every halfway listenable album deserves a spot on someone’s list, but in the end I still left you with 58 albums to sift through.

“Which almost-best albums will be cut and left on the version history floor? When the blogs were finally published, these listers, these individuals, included ONE HUNDRED records.” -

I’m overwhelmed, aren’t you? Do you have time to listen to 58 albums in one sitting1? You don’t, and you aren’t going to2, and it’s beside the point anyway.

The point is to get a sense of what the critics you trust most recommend.

The point is to figure out what you missed t…

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Last year I started keeping a spreadsheet of every new band I’ve ever recommended in the newsletter.

It’s an extremely unaesthetic Google Sheet that acts as an index, an archive, and a reference. It includes

• the name of the new band

• the old band (or general vibe) that they sound like, and

• a link to the post where I talked about them.

Did you ever miss a few weeks of my posts and felt too lazy to read through them? Or you’re just having a tip of the tongue moment? This is an easy way to catch up.1

It also has a tab for every single playlist I’ve ever shared both in this newsletter and elsewhere in the New Bands for Old Heads ecosystem (Tik Tok; I’m talking about Tik Tok).

Obviously, this directory is ugly as hell. But that doesn’t stop it from being — in my humble opinion — extremely useful.

Because the directory is a paid subscriber benefit, I need to regenerate the link to it regularly. I don’t know why I didn’t think to park that link in an easily referenced Substack post instead of constantly updating all of my emails, but some of us are a bit slow. I got there eventually.

Anyway, the directory link is below. Please enjoy responsibly.

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The New Bands for Old Heads Directory

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There were a LOT of albums I left off my EOY lists, but that doesn’t mean they aren’t worth a mention or your attention.

I thought I’d throw them all together in a quick, messy post now that my official lists are all wrapped up.

Below you’ll find those albums. All 36 of them.

You get a genre tag, a record label, and NOTHING. Because, quite frankly, I’m wiped out.1

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I’ll be back sometime in January with lots of updates and (positive!) changes for the new year.

In the meantime, don’t forget:

• I have all kinds of playlists on Spotify, Apple, YouTube, and SoundCloud (and next year I’ll add them to Qobuz!!)

  • Best Tracks of 2025 are probably want you want most right now… on Apple, SoundCloud, and YouTube, too.

• You can catch up on all the monthly and yearly best of posts right here (including monthly playlists).

Ready?2

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36 More Albums to Catch Up On Before the End of 2025

Bandcamp linked wherever possible.

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1. Anika - Abyss (post-punk, grunge) Read more here.
   Sacred Bones

2. Bartees Strange - Horror (alt/indie) Read more here.
   4AD

3. Belair Lip Bombs - Again (indie rock) Read more here.
   Third Man

4. The Beths - Straight Line Was A Lie (power pop/guitar pop)
   Anti-

5. Brian Damage - All Hell Broke Loose (synth rock)
   Anyway

6. BRKN LOVE - The Program (hard rock/prog) Read more here.
   Spinefarm

Pay what you can for a subscription.

REMINDER: I’m phasing out the deepest discount tiers of my pay-what-you-can model (which is NOT going anywhere) on 12/31, so if you’ve been meaning to subscribe at a stupidly cheap price, now’s the time.

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20% off // 30% off // 40% off // 50% off* // 60% off*

*gone soon, but not forgotten :’)

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Quick note before we get to the music:

If this newsletter has ever led you to fall in love with a record you wouldn’t have found otherwise, this is me gently reminding you that paid subscriptions are what keep it going.

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Is There Always an Obvious #1?

Most years, I know exactly what my top record is.

This year, I know what it should be.

2025 was an exceptionally strong year for new music, but I found it very difficult to pick anything that stood out as a really obvious #1.

I’ve listened to more records this year than any other. It’s partially for this reason that I’ve introduced so many constraints to my selection process. If I weren’t restricting myself in such a manner, I think I’d be throwing Rosalía, Dijon, Geese, and Viagra Boys into the ring along with everything you’ll be reading below.

But I enjoy the extra challenge I’ve given myself, because it’s freed me from a lot of expectations.

After all that work, did my list actually end up being any different from every other EOY list?

You’ll have to let me know. Honestly, I’m not sure it has! All the more reason to get even more serious about music discovery in 2026.

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How NBfOH End-of-Year Lists Work

Week of November 24th: Noteworthy Releases
Week of December 1st: Albums Worthy of a Top 50 List
Week of December 8th: Albums Worthy of a Top 10 List
📍Week of December 15th: Albums Worthy of a #1 Slot

📍You are here

MORE BEST OF LISTS!!!

My not so hard and fast rules (a.k.a, why some of your favorites are missing):

• In every one of these “tiers,” I gave strong preference to newer artists rather than established ones, and artists with under 1 million monthly listeners (and especially those under 100,000).

• I sometimes leave out overly hyped artists, even if I loved the record.

• I do not rank! Everyone is listed in alphabetical order.

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Speaking of albums that should have been part of my end of year pantheon…

I said I would keep all of these lists manageable and less overwhelming than the typical year-end list. Regardless, some of you are gluttons for punishment.

Scroll to the end for a quick rundown of the albums I axed because of these weird little rules.

The Best Albums of 2025, Pt. 4 - Eight Albums Worth a #1 Slot

Reminder - the numbers are just for your convenience. These are in alphabetical order (by first name, because I’m slow).

1. Foxwarren - 2

Longtime readers may be surprised to see an Andy Shauf project in my picks at all, let alone so high up my list. I’m not really a folk music person, but that doesn’t mean I refuse to listen to it — just that my bar for it is much higher. Alt-folk produced like hip hop is exactly what the doctor ordered. A rich vintage sample collage and groovy beats lend the record a warm, nostalgic quality, but an oddly haunting one that reminds me of my favorite record from 2024 as well. I never thought I’d be thinking of Aimee Mann and MF Doom in the same breath, but here we are.

(Best tracks: Listen2me, Deadhead, Wings)

2. John Michel & Anthony James - Egotrip

The Chicago/Philly hip-hop duo seems to have dropped out of the ether fully formed, with no backstory, no web presence, and a strong whiff of industry plant fuckwittery. All the better that this particular Philly-based music curator learned about them from Chicago-based music Historian . I owe him a great debt, because Egotrip is the kind of sample-heavy, melodic, catchy, soulful rap (complete with chipmunk backing vocals!) that we haven’t enjoyed since the mid 2000s. In fact, if you used to love Kanye West but now feel completely betrayed by the Nazi he’s turned into, Egotrip is your salvation. This is The College Dropout for the newest crop of graduates. Highly recommended to soundtrack your next slow motion limousine exit.

(Best tracks: TAKE NO MORE, PREACHER!, NOBODY)

3. McKinley Dixon - Magic, Alive!

Yes, more hip hop. It’s been a stellar year for it, and if you’re still an “everything but rap” kind of person, it might be time to reevaluate, because I can think of no better genre to simultaneously expose you to as many other genres as possible. McKinley Dixon’s masterful blend of jazz, gospel, and funk results in a lush and ebullient sound. More than this though, he is a brilliant storyteller. In half an hour, he weaves a Southern Gothic about three friends grieving the loss of a fourth, and trying to figure out how to resurrect him… magic, alive. I still maintain this is a joyful record, and another reminder that slow, full album listening is a worthwhile pursuit.

(Best tracks: Sugar Water, We’re Outside, Rejoice!, Magic, Alive!)

4. The New Eves - The New Eve Is Rising

I have my readers to thank for this recommendation, which has quickly become one of my most listened to albums of the year. I’m grateful that this is a debut, meaning that I haven’t missed much else of this strange concoction of both discomfiting and oddly spare, almost brutally primal sounds. It’s a tenuous connection at best, but something about it makes me think of that brief period in 2000 when we were all collectively obsessed with the soundtrack to O Brother, Where Art Thou? A better point of comparison would probably be The Raincoats, if they were inspired more by ancient folklore than punk rock.

(Best tracks: Highway Man, Cow Song, Volcano)

merchy merch

5. Prewn - System

What a weird and wonderful record that I wish more people were talking about. There’s something about it that reminds me of Joanna Newsom, though the instrumentation here is far darker, or even Fiona Apple’s Fetch the Boltcutters. It has something of Solex in it, too. And at the same time, it’s nothing like those records. It’s grimier, closer to P.J. Harvey’s dirtiest depths or Kim Gordon’s scuzziest fuzz. I love the purposefully unfinished feel that this album leaves behind — heavy feedback and plunking of instruments here and there that seems like they’re being passed by more than played. Yet these are intentional decisions, carefully placed. It’s like nothing else I’ve heard this year.

(Best tracks: Easy, System, My Side)

6. Smerz - Big city life

This record reminds me of the heat wave of the first summer I spent in Philadelphia: the late nights I’d spend out dancing, the cigarettes I’d smoke on stoops and in bars (because we could back then!), and the sticky un-air conditioned concert venues I’d frequent. My first impression assessment, when I had only heard “Roll the dice,” was that this was full-on recession sleaze, revived and ready to party. Not quite. The rest of the record is a bare bones, bare-ass, bare knuckled exploration of womanhood. It’s real and it’s sexy. Last week I compared Daughter of Swords to Tune-Yards, and The Blow, and the same touchstones apply here, but repurposed in a totally different way.

(Best tracks: Big city life, Roll the dice, You got time and I got money1)

7. Um, Jennifer? - Um Comma Jennifer Question Mark

I resisted the quirky conceit behind this buzzy-as-fuck new band for as long as I could… which turned out to be all of about two days. I was wrong to wait even that much, because the record is annoyingly infectious. This is an encapsulated memory of your favorite basement show. This is Steve Malkmus’ lo-fi cool and Kimya Dawson’s wit and (early) Rivers Cuomo’s awkwardness all wrapped up in the perfect pop-punk package. More of this, please.

(Best tracks: Girl Class, Car Wash, Cut Me Open)

8. Victor Jones - Zookeeper

I’m making you watch a video instead of reading! Oh no! Here are the Cliff’s Notes: He sounds like Frank Black’s Modest LCD Meatloaf System. You’re going to hate this at first, but hang in there. You’re welcome.

(Best tracks: White Fang Safari, We Go to Russia)

Also, as a bonus, this is a fantastic non-album single that he released this year:

Your turn!

What was your #1 album in 2025?

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I chose eight :) You can pick more than one, if you like.

Albums I Should Have Included (Maybe)

I’ve repeated my exclusion rules countless times. If they’re:

• too big

• too established

• overhyped

…I probably left them out.

But it’s fun to know what I was culling from!

That’s most of everything I would have included, if I weren’t playing by my own rules.

Playlists, etc.

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Believe it or not, there’s even more. If you’ve made it this far, and you care this much, you deserve a little extra treat. I may send out a “no but really” last brain dump of all the honorable mention records that you might want to scan.

If I spontaneously combust before I manage to do that —

Happy holidays. Happy new year. Thank you for an incredible 2025 here at New Bands for Old Heads. There is lots of exciting stuff in store for 2026. Stick around.

xo

Gabbie