2026: The Year of Deliberate Listening

We're getting more deliberate about music curation and discovery this year. Plus, a few highly anticipated new releases to look forward to, courtesy of No Ripcord.

Inside:

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.

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.” -Adam Voith

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 that might still be worth listening to.

The point is (if we’re being honest) to validate your own pre-established opinions.

Diligence or mindfulness are unlikely to be part of the calculus at all. And that’s precisely why we have to start listening to music differently. More music doesn’t always equal more meaning, and racking up stats for the sake of meeting some imaginary quota is Sisyphean at best.

“If your goal is to listen to every single album deemed worth listening to by the people who get to decide that sort of thing, then forget about it — there’s no such thing as zero inbox for new music.” -New Music Discovery 101

New Music Discovery 101

I’m not one for new year’s resolutions typically, and certainly none of those “in/out” lists. But I did feel compelled to issue a few edicts.

This year we’re locking in and listening with purpose:

• More deliberate choices; less checking off boxes.

• More second chances; fewer snap judgments.

• More humans recommending stuff; fewer algorithmically-generated playlists.

Andiamo.

“Music is a Medium Made Complete by the Listener”

I can’t stop thinking about the piece that Matthew Joel Vanderkwaak so kindly wrote as a lead-in to those 58 albums I ended 2025 with.³

“Music *must* be listened to. Until someone presses play and attends, the music is not happening. [Yet] algorithmic curation produces the illusion that listening to music is a passive and consumptive activity. It’s not.”

The Music That Belongs Where You Are

I want to use Matthew’s words as my mantra moving in to 2026: “[m]usic is a medium made complete by the listener.” Without you, the listener⁴, music does not exist. So take your role seriously.

This entire year, I want us to think of ourselves as more active participants in music, even those of us who don’t make it ourselves. We can make more deliberate, intentional choices in so many aspects of listening: what we play, how we play it, when we play it, and who we share it with. After all, what better route out of overwhelm than choice?

I’ll warn you right now: I’m more of a tour guide than a self-help book. There are many ways to approach listener-focused music discovery and consumption, and part of the fun will be figuring those out together.

So while I’m not here to solve this for you, at least not right this second, I am here to orient you.

Here are some of the questions we’ll explore in 2026:

• How can I be more mindful in my listening habits?

• How do I keep music discovery joyful in the face of infinite choice?

• How do I stay regularly connected with new music without becoming overwhelmed?

• How can I discover new music with minimal algorithmic intervention?

• How do I make room for new music without abandoning the music I already love?

• How does talking about music help shape how I hear it?

• What makes something a “must listen” for ME?

What else is a priority for you, personally?

These aren’t questions to answer perfectly or all at once. They’re threads we’ll keep pulling at, from different angles, over time.

Your Overwhelm Is My Overwhelm

I’ve already slid dangerously into “tell don’t show” territory, so I won’t reveal too much more about what’s to come. I do want you to know that I’m thinking about this as purposefully as I’m forcing you to think about it, though.

A few things to look forward to as we carry on:

• Special guests tackling the questions above from their own perspectives

• Listening parties that dive into the process behind my “If You Like [X], Then You’ll Like [Y]” posts and playlists

• More community-driven ways to experience music together — discussion, listening, live meetups (???)

The suggestion/discussion box is always open:

A Small, Approachable Look Ahead

My instinct at the beginning of any year is to inundate you with a full on, full year release calendar (complete with color commentary). This time, I wanted to do the opposite.

I asked David Coleman to help us ease in slowly instead with a small handful of carefully chosen picks that he thinks you guys will especially enjoy.

The founder of the recently resurrected No Ripcord Magazine (which turns 27 this year!), and the reason I started writing about new music in the first place, David also created my absolute dream of an actual release schedule, so you can trust him in this task. It has everything:

• Bandcamp links

• Record labels

• Genre tags (!!)

• Country of origin flags

I honestly don’t know why we put up with less.

🗓️ Bookmark this release schedule immediately.

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(All blurbs by David Coleman of No Ripcord and The Perfect Prescription.)

1. Sunday Mourners - A-Rhythm Absolute

(Curation, January 19th)

LA’s Sunday Mourners came onto my radar late last year with the excellent “Careers in Acting,” a grimy, stomping homage to Television — or at least the early 2000s indie rockers who were paying homage to Verlaine, Lloyd, et al. Of the other tracks I’ve heard, “There’s A Garden In You” is closer in spirit to the Modern Lovers. I’m not saying it’ll be this year’s Getting Killed, but A-Rhythm Absolute promises to be an early indie rock highlight at the very least. RIYL: Marquee Moon, “Blank Generation”, the spirit of CBGB

2. Geologist - Can I Get A Pack Of Camel Lights?

(Drag City, January 30th)

I used to adore Animal Collective, but they’re a band I almost never listen to these days. To date, Panda Bear has gained the most traction as a solo artist — last year’s Sinister Grift was excellent, as was his collaboration with Sonic Boom — but 2026 sees Geologist enter the fold as an unlikely challenger. Not only is Can I Get A Pack of Camel Lights? a great name for a record, but it’s also an ode to the hurdy-gurdy. I’ve only heard one track so far (the drone-based “Tonic”), but I am excited to see where Geologist can take his hurdy-gurdy—which is a sentence I didn’t expect to write this year, or indeed any. RIYL: fun experimental music, the repurposing of medieval instruments, solo projects by less notable band members

3. Whitelands - Sunlight Echoes

(Sonic Cathedral, January 30th)

Shoegaze is having a moment. My Bloody Valentine are playing arenas, Slowdive have a huge Gen Z following, and a whole host of newcomers are breathing new life into a genre that seemed like a thing of the past. London quartet Whitelands opened for Slowdive on their 2024 tour, and while their songwriting comes from a more traditional indie rock angle (with vocals you can actually make out), the duelling guitars of Etienne Quartey-Papafio and Michael Adelaja place them squarely in the shoegaze domain. Their upcoming album features a guest appearance from Lush’s Emma Anderson. RIYL: Pale Saints, Lush, Ride

4. Ratboys - Singin’ To An Empty Chair

(New West, February 6th)

If I’m allowed a more obvious pick, I’m going to throw in the new one from Chicago’s Ratboys. Although it was their most acclaimed release yet, I was a little disappointed with 2023’s The Window, which seemed bigger in sound but diminished in spirit. If the three tracks I’ve heard are anything to go by, that is well and truly back on Singin’ To An Empty Chair. Indeed, if they can match the standard of ebullient power pop bangers like “Anywhere,” it could be their best yet. RIYL: Rilo Kiley, Alvvays, Ducks Ltd.

1. Or a weekend? A week?

2. Are you? I don’t want to besmirch anyone here.

3. At least I did it piecemeal, right?

4. I listened to way too much NPR growing up…