Mid-year picks 2026
Looks like we’ve made it half way through 2026. What’s been most memorable this year aside from the Artemis II lunar flyby mission? Music and other good things only, please :)
Here are my mid-year music picks for 2026 so far. No bests or rankings here, just a few albums, eps or songs that I’ve enjoyed this year, indie and under the radar for the most part. And because music doesn’t expire and I’ve been going through some old stuff lately, I’ve added a few picks from the archive.
blank mood 2026 mid-year picks
Obsidiana by J.Zunz [Rocket Recordings]
There’s a sultry restrained energy across Obsidiana, trying to sustain the hedonistic joy of the night before with new-found consciousness. Lorena Quintanilla allows trance to drift like a sweet and woozy lullaby with abrasive industrial edge.
Dreams For Somebody Else by White Flowers [The state51 Conspiracy]
Katie and Joey’s characteristic loner pop swirl of emotions at odds with each other, forming songs with ripples of joy and doubt, extroversion and introversion.
True Bypass by Manual [Darla]
Delicate but fearless electronica, warm while also feeling spacious, True Bypass will bring you places, but not leave you at any of them. A solemn car ride along a timeless, coastal road and a hip Thai eatery in Union Square NYC circa 2002, are a few for me.
Jorden kallar by Vargkvint [piano and coffee records]
Delicately stretches stillness into loudness, bringing worry under the command of a magical spell… your soundtrack for disappearing, preferably in nature.
Sunlight Echoes by Whitelands [Sonic Cathedral]
A sophisticated daydream rejecting soft focus in favour of lucidity. As if to answer the question found at the depths of their debut album, Night-bound Eyes Are Blind To The Day, Whitelands tell ‘how it feels’ on Sunlight Echoes, bringing murky emotions to light.
First Light ep by brightmoon [Noon Records]
Streaks of Lush and Throwing Muses, as well as My Bloody Valentine, Sonic Youth and other 90s indie rock.
The Moth ep by Cancer House [Motion Ward]
Comforting dark confusion, as in Disintegration, but sparse, as Low, and ever so slightly deranged, like Ween.
“Simulacra” by Chainlacing [These Hands Melt]
Another “dungeon dream pop” gem from New England DIY’ers Lauren and Rick, from their forthcoming album Messuage.
Also listening to:
“Windy Weather” by Ian and Sylvia (1967)
In Search of Manny by Luscious Jackson (1992)
Beverley Atonale by The Ladybug Transistor (1997, 2026 re-issue)
Tender Buttons by Broadcast (2005)
Destiny Waiving by Ulrich Schnauss and Mark Peters (2021)