Paul McCartney‘s The Boys Of Dungeon Lane and the forthcoming Rolling Stones album, Foreign Tongues, are not the only reasons 2026 is turning into a stellar year for music. True, Macca’s new record is a stunning return to form and, from what I have heard so far, the Stones are back with an even bigger bang (see what I did there?), it’s not just the older, more established artists who are making great music. It’s everyone.
Just today, I became of a band I’d never heard of called Little Grandad. I had assumed from the tone of their new record, Sleepwalking, that they were from somewhere like the American rust belt, but no, they’re from London. I downloaded Sleepwalking and their other new song Unmasked, for money, today and the even better news is that they are coming to Bristol early in the meteorological autumn. That’s far from all the good news.
Radiohead man Ed O’Brien has a new solo LP called Blue Morpho, which is a type of butterfly, and the excellent Tuareg band Tamikrest have a new album called Assikel. I know this because of the free CD that came with the last issue of Uncut magazine where tracks from these albums have been included. There are also tracks by The Lemon Twigs and Kevin Morby. As soon as I heard the Morby track, I went straight out and bought his fabulous album Little Wide Open.
I’ve discovered Bleachers recently, too. Very late to the party, I heard Everyone For Ten Minutes which is great. The lead single The Van is my favourite song of the year so far.
Then, there are new albums by Bruce Hornsby, Robyn, Avalon Emerson, Barry Can’t Swim, Alexis Taylor, Thomas Dollbaum, José Gonzalez, Zach Bryan and Courtney Barnett. All really, really good, some verging on great. Courtney Barnett’s Creature Of Habit is better than verging on great. It is great.
Do not believe people who tell you that music today is not as good as it used to be. It’s the opposite. We live in the best time ever for music because we have all the music that’s being created now along with everything that’s ever been written.
It’s perfectly fine if you are happy with your music lot. No one can tell you must like something else. I was that man who thought the old music was the best until I opened my ears and mind and stretched out a little. Just tell me The Van by Bleachers isn’t a fucking classic. Because I won’t believe you.
