Top 44 Music Albums of 2026
by 
MadhattanJack 
- Chart updated: 39 minutes ago
- (Created: 01/06/2026 08:12).
- Chart size: 44 albums.
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Softcult started out as a pair of twin sisters from Ontario, Canada who made shoegaze-pop tunes, and it has since grown into a full 4-piece band who make shoegaze-pop records. After four EPs of about 6 songs each, this is their first proper album since it has 11 tracks instead of just 6 (and isn't just a compilation of two of the EPs). They seem to be making an effort here to be less "samey," song-wise, than on the EPs, but they still don't appear to be interested in doing jazz or folk tunes. This stuff is loud, energetic, and would sound pretty aggressive if the vocals weren't so aggressively pretty. So if you like bands like the High Violets, the Fauns, Miniatures, Tallies, and so on — some of whom are also Canadian — you should like this. (Ideally, you should like this even if you don't like or haven''t even heard of those other bands, but I do at least realize you're not here on this Earth just to live up to my personal expectations.)
[First added to this chart: 01/25/2026]
Nothing is perhaps the finest shoegaze-metal band in the world right now, and could easily be the best ever, though I haven't heard every shoegaze-metal band that ever existed or anything like that. (How many are there, anyway?) On this album they show signs of moving away from the metal aspect of their sound, at least on some of the tracks, and towards a more diverse and (generally speaking) "up-to-date" approach — in other words, I have no idea where their heads are at now, musically speaking, but there's still plenty of shoegaze-metal involved. Another good album from a a band that doesn't make bad ones. (Sometimes they do bad album cover art though, like in this case.)
[First added to this chart: 02/24/2026]
I used to say the same thing, but I had to stop because every time I said it, Nothing would release a new album on the very same day, like they did here. (Admittedly, it was a better gag when I had this album ranked just above Nothing's, rather than just below it.)
[First added to this chart: 02/24/2026]
This might be SPC ECO's 20th original studio album, in which case, congratulations, SPC ECO! (The count gets confusing because of all the EPs, remix albums and compilations.) It also continues a pretty good recent run of consistently good "tripgazer" material dating back to 2024's "How Did We Get Here?" And yet through it all, the sound still reminds you of Curve, Dean Garcia's previous band. That's a good thing! And singer Rose Berlin (Garcia's daughter) sounds just enough like Toni Halliday to make you almost forget Curve ever broke up. Another good thing! They probably really hate it when people point that out, but I've given up trying to gloss it over.
[First added to this chart: 01/25/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
Appears in:
Rank Score:
1
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The fifth album from this mostly-Australian indie rock band, formerly known as "Waikiki" and currently referring to themselves as "Howling Bells with Juanita Stein," and the first from them since 2014's "Heartstrings," this is just a really solid, powerful rock album, reminiscent of Throwing Muses and, well, lots of other bands of that nature. And with a Friday the 13th release date, what could go wrong?
[First added to this chart: 02/13/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
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Rank Score:
1
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Here's the huge-sounding third album from this all-woman doomgaze/doom-metal trio from Portland, Oregon who have just recently moved to Los Angeles. They used to be a five-piece though, so maybe the other two missed the plane, or their car broke down? Things like that used to happen to me all the time, before I bought my own personal aircraft carrier... Anyway, should I move to Los Angeles too? I don't want to creep anybody out, but somehow I feel like I'm not meeting the right women where I live now.
[First added to this chart: 01/30/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
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Rank Score:
2
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These guys really put the "art" in art rock. Not everybody can write songs like this. I know I can't! Life isn't fair, I guess. Oh well, at least I can make silly comments in annual "best of" charts, though to be honest, Ulrika Spacek can probably do that better than I can too. By the way, Ulrika Spacek is a 5-piece band from London, not a German female solo artist — maybe it's not the greatest band name ever, but it worked for Alice Cooper, Molly Hatchet, Alice Donut, and perhaps not coincidentally, Sissy Spacek, an LA-based grindcore band. (No relation. At least, not that I'm aware of.)
[First added to this chart: 02/06/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
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Rank Score:
3
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The Julies were active in the early-to-mid-90s "Christian Underground" scene, and released a 6-song EP called "Lovelife" that was well-received by critics — except that they broke up almost immediately after it was released. They billed themselves as "American Britpop," so maybe that's why. Anyway, they got back together in 2020, just in time for the COVID-19 pandemic, and finally managed to release an album called "Always & Always" in 2023. Not bad, but this one is even better! This is their third album if you count "Lovelife" as an album, which I do, because I'm one of "those" people. No word on whether or not the band is still Christian, or still underground, though I've seen photos of them looking very, very dirty, so they probably are.
[First added to this chart: 02/24/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
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Rank Score:
1
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This Philly-based trio made a pretty good EP called "What Stays" in 2022, but I didn't listen to it because their band name led me to believe it wouldn't be all that entertaining. Boy, was I wrong! Not to mention the fact that the possessed-doll horror genre was peaking around that time, threatening to join zombies, vampires, AIs, and the US Republican Party in the "most horrifying" Top Five. Spring 2025 saw "Annabelle's Tour Of Terror," aka the "Devil's On The Run Tour," bringing the best-known possessed doll spirit vessel to roadhouses, conventions, and strip clubs all across America. So clearly, this band was simply ahead of their time. That said, as good as this album is, it does seem to run out of steam towards the end, and maybe the songs could stand to be filled out with some additional instrumentation — they're not really punk songs, but they have some genuine feeling to them, and they don't really call for the kind of minimalist approach they're getting.
[First added to this chart: 03/05/2026]
Year of Release:
2026
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Rank Score:
1
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Darksoft has been making consistently good albums for almost a decade now, and on this new one there's even a Martin Heidegger reference in the album title! How can you not like that? (Although for maximum authenticity, he should have called it "Alltäglichkeit.") It's all jangly, bouncy-yet-hypnotic dreampop with low-key vocals by... well, we still don't know Darksoft's real name, we just know he's from Maine (but originally from Seattle) and he's "radio-friendly." Admittedly, the songs are a bit samey, and the title of track 6 ("Same Ol Sam Ol") suggests he might be aware of this problem — but it's a good kind of samey, and it's well-produced sameyness, too. The dude should be a bigger deal than he is — hopefully this album will be the one that puts him over the top so that he can become a famous rock star despite nobody knowing his real name.
[First added to this chart: 03/06/2026]
Total albums: 44. Page 1 of 5
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Top 44 Music Albums of 2026 composition
| Artist | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| Blackwater Holylight | 1 | 2% | |
| Peaer | 1 | 2% | |
| Kula Shaker | 1 | 2% | |
| Dustbunny | 1 | 2% | |
| Ulrika Spacek | 1 | 2% | |
| Jenny On Holiday | 1 | 2% | |
| Winged Wheel | 1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
| Country | Albums | % | |
|---|---|---|---|
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| |
15 | 34% | |
 |
14 | 32% | |
 |
4 | 9% | |
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4 | 9% | |
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2 | 5% | |
 |
2 | 5% | |
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1 | 2% | |
| Show all | |||
Top 44 Music Albums of 2026 chart changes
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Other year charts by MadhattanJack
MadhattanJack has shared 74 more year charts with the community. Browse them all here.| Title | Source | Type | Published | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Top 44 Music Albums of 2026 | MadhattanJack | 2026 year chart | 2026 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of 2025 | MadhattanJack | 2025 year chart | 2026 | |
| Top 100 Music Albums of 2024 | MadhattanJack | 2024 year chart | 2026 | |
Top 44 Music Albums of 2026 ratings
Average Rating = (n ÷ (n + m)) × av + (m ÷ (n + m)) × AVwhere:
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Showing all 1 ratings for this chart.
| Rating | Date updated | Member | Chart ratings | Avg. chart rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 01/10/2026 04:44 |  Repo | 573 | 100/100 |
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Top 44 Music Albums of 2026 comments
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From Repo 02/06/2026 18:17 | #313030
Repo 02/06/2026 18:17 | #313030
Loving the notes!!!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
From Repo 01/10/2026 04:45 | #312550
Repo 01/10/2026 04:45 | #312550
Great comments! Loving that Winged Wheel LP!
Helpful? (Log in to vote) | 0 votes (0 helpful | 0 unhelpful)
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