Death Is June - Immolation : "Descent"

Not sure why I never really gave these guys a shot, I'm sure they have played with bands like Morbid Angel, who I have seen countless times over the year, and they did not make that much of an impression on me or become background music. Perhaps it is because they are a New York band instead of a Tampa band. Whatever the case, I am impressed by the first song off their new album. The guitar playing is more melodic than I expected. The vocals are a low guttural growl that you expect from this sort of thing, but they have some shit going on, so let's see how well they can maintain this momentum. The second song finds them more aggressive from the outset. The verse does not carry the same sense of melancholy haunting it that I got from the first one, as it runs more on aggression. Which is not to say there are not some clever subtleties in the songwriting, and hooks that they lock into. There are.

Their drummer, Steve, has been bashing artfully at his kit for over twenty years with these guys, so while he might not have played on their first album, he might as well be an original member at this point. They bring back the darker vibes for "God's Last Breath". "Adversary" has some cool riffs in the blur of aggression, but it seems like this is the other mode they operate in, which I can appreciate the dyanmic shift. The hooky riffs that emerge balance it out in their favor. "Attrition" works better as it moves with more of a groove.. They blast back on "Bend Toward the Dark". The vocals accent the riff well, though. There is a difference between " Well Done " and their most inspired song. 

"Host" balances out the melodic, darker side with the more aggressive pound. There are moments of more purposeful Morbid Angel-like accents that try to balance out the blast of "False Ascent' which is pretty effective, though the rapid fire drumming at times just makes them sound like everyone else. :They switch it up from this with the syncopated double bass of the last song, to bring things to a more memorable clsoe which was a smart move on their part.. While this album has gotten a great deal of hype in the metal circles, I will say it's excellent, though not the best album of the year from the genre so far, though that list is coming soon. They are going to get a 9.5, so near perfect for what they do, and better than expected. I gained a great deal of respect for them here. 

Death is June- FAKE DUST - "Decrepitizing Din Of The Cerebral Psyopticon"

 

When you like bands like Full of Hell and Portrayal of Guilt, who fall somewhere between grindcore and powerviolence, finding new music in that vein is not always easy. So i took a chance with this band. They are basically death metal for people with ADHD, who medicate it with cocaine and alcohol rather than Big Pharma. They blast through the first four songs in the blink of an eye. There are some cool riffs flown by you in that time, but not enough to hook you into what is a sonic assault and battery. You are five songs in before you know what seems to be a long, spastic song. Long by grind core standards, as the first five songs clock in at around five minutes. 

"Substance Abuse Lifestyle" is not only a pretty accurate song title, but in its 52 seconds almost forms an identity of its own. "Insominac Fluid" does have a more purposeful riff for a few seconds. "Cooked at Conception" actually makes it over the two-minute mark, how self-indulgent of them. They actually need to do more of that. "Detaching' sounds like a train knocked the drummer down the stairs, then the guitar was the tank that rolled over him afterwards. Their drummer is pretty insane; there is no question about that.

I used to think there was little songwriting involved in something like this, but there can be as you have to cram a great deal into a short time frame. I think the key is not getting lost in the chaos. That is the part these guys struggle with a little. "Delete" has more punk in its veins. Then they bring hyper-fast death metal back on "Little Bottle". You can at least get a better idea where they are flying off to on "Living Conditions,"/ Though it's hard to call "Marker" a song. The last song is almost three minutes, so that is really the test for them of what they can do in the span of a normal song. There are a few seconds of ambiance before they crunch into something that is obviously the album's best song. I will give this album a 7.5; there is potential but they are caught up in the hyperblast mentality of the genre. 

The Top 5 Goth / Post-Punk Albums of 2026... so far

As the Doomsday Clock races, time speeds up, as 2026 is at its midpoint. With the impending end of times comes a celebration of darkness, and these bands are making substantial soundtracks for that. This year, there is more emphasis on post-punk than industrial, as that is what has been worth listening to this year so far.  Maybe by October, there will be more worthwhile industrial releases. These lists serve as a decent snapshot of where the year is heading in terms of music. I have already received promos for albums dropping as far out as August in my inbox, so they will need to bring it to compete with the top five albums on this list. For the mid-year report card list,  I have included links to full reviews if you want to check these out, and with all that said, here are the top 10 Goth / Post-Punk albums of 2026 so far. 

10-KMFDM-"ENEMY"

They might be somewhat confused as to what the majority they have no pity for. Their mission statement is 40 years of conceptual continuity, but the concept expands in recent years, aside from the more rock n roll vibes the title track opens the album with, there does seem to be a similar vibe that checks off all the boxes you expect from the long-running electro-industrial band. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/kmfdm-enemy.html

9-Deeper Gaves- "Pull Me Toward the Dark"

 This serves as the third album from  Jeff Wilson's more dark wave-leaning project since. Where Chrome Waves has gradually drifted in a darker, more post-punk direction, this album bridges the gap where darkness becomes heavy. In some ways, it is closer to what a band like Cold Cave does, which is a fair comparison as it is forward-thinking rather than just paying homage to the 80s.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/01/deeper-graves-pull-me-toward-dark.html

8-Wailin Storms- "The Arsonist"

Here is a project that has improved over the past decade. Each album has been a little more impressive as it has morphed from a noisy cow-punk band into something more focused, serving songs rather than working on a sound. They have moved in the right direction, and this album si a testament to that; It is dark enough to appeal to fans of post-punk who work more of the kind of brooding summoned here.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/04/wailin-storms-arsonist.html

 

7-Shadowlands - "004"

The album opens with them threatening to take us down "Fascination Street" before the verse breaks things up into something more haunting and dark wave. They work with the required sounds of the genre without sounding like a stale tribute act. The choice of effects draping the atmosphere works in their favor to help solidify their identity. The Sabin sisters get props for not trying to be Siouxsie Sioux, another key element. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/shadowlands-004.html

6-Traitrs-"Possessor"

The Canadian post-punks are back. They open their newest album with the lead single "Burn in Heaven," which is grooving and dark enough to be in regular rotation at goth clubs everywhere.  It bridges the organic guitar focus of post-punk with the slinking slither of dark-wave to fit nicely into the goth paradigm. Even for all its Cure worship and ballads halting the momentum, it sounds great, and there is a depth to the melodies that makes you a believer in the moping going down here. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/traitrs-possessor.html

 

5-Astari Nite -' Medications in Bloom"

The Miami-based goth project continues their journey away from their death rock beginnings into somewhere new yet not far removed from the more new wave sound they expanded upon with  2024's "Resolution of Happiness." The excellent productions help put it toward the top of the heap when it comes to goth so far this year. I like that overall the mood is darker and more melancholy than the previous album. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/05/astari-nite-medications-in-bloom.html

 

4-Crucifera-"Exostential"

The creative force behind this project is Danielle Astraea, who combated the problem that the vast majority of new dark wave runs into by giving the music some sonic rock balls. In doing so, she invokes the spirit of 90s electro-tinged alternative. Highly recommended for fans of 90s goth who would like to hear it in the context of today's production values.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/06/crucifera-era-exostential.html

3-Crippled Black Phoenix: "Sceaduhelm"

I have enjoyed watching this band descend further into darkness with each album. This is an impressive display of refined and dynamic songwriting and is likely the band's best album yet, as it feels the most focused.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/01/crippled-black-phoenix-sceaduhelm.html

 

2-The Secrecty-"Pins and Needles"

 The first song blew me away as it's what I want from post-punk, taking inspiration from my favorite bands like Killing Joke and Fields of the Nephilim, but without sounding like a blatant tribute to any of them, as they have their own thing going on. From the darker rock vibes to a more hypnotic pulse, they can also shift into a dance beat that adopts a new wave touch.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/06/the-secrecy-pins-and-needles.html

1-Twilight Sad- "It's the Long Goodbye"

f there is any justice in the world, the 6th album from this Scottish band will find them getting the recognition they deserve. They have toured with the Cure multiple times, but also had some hardships in their daily lives, which led to their bass player and drummer being replaced with Arab Strap's drummer and Mogwai's bass player. Vocalist James Graham's distinct voice is centerstage, with guitarist Andy MacFarlane providing the needed backdrop.n some ways, it is more experimental and raw, but it holds up well against their legacy.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/the-twilight-sad-its-long-goodbye.html

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Death is June- Left to Die : "Initium Mortis"

 

Two original Death members, Rick Rozz and Terry Butler, are joined by members of Gruemsome Matty Harvey and Gus Rios, who have been performing in this project as a tribute to their early "Lepersy" and "Spiritual Healing" days of the band, which is my favorite. It is not until the clean guitar leading into "Zombie" that it feels like we are getting to hear something outside of being in the vein of Death, which worked great for the first three songs, but it would have gotten old otherwise if they continued to churn in that direction without bringing anything new. There is more of a traditional metal feel when they go off into "Zombie".

The lyrics to "Witch of Hell" feel more like something Venom would have done, but the vocals have purpose and balance everything out. Not sure if this is the direction CChuck would have gone, but oh well, it works in this context, and perhaps it is how they feel they get their own identity. "Rise of Satan' has a more thrash approach, which makes sense as this music came out of the thrash scene. In fact, in early death metal, the lines between the two were blurred. They continue to pour on the speed for "Summoned to Die," which captures the spirit of this era more effectively. 

"Mantas" takes this in a more Venom-like direction, which shows Venom's influence on the genre. This also shows how the ovcals had more purpose back in the good old days. "Slaughterhouse" benefits from a more memorable chorus than verse, which racing along the typical tremolo-picked death metal riff.. One cool thing about this album is the compact, efficient style of writing songs that gets everything you need done in under three and a half minutes. The last song also chugs into the intersection of where thrash met death metal. Overall, this album does not try to have its own identity as it's clearly a tribute to a specific era, but it works well, and they nailed what they wanted to do. Death fans dying for new music should be appeased. I will give it a 9. It drops on Relapse Records July 19th. 

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Chalk Teeth : "s/t"

 On the experimental side of where post-punk meets darkwave, the Los Angeles-based band dances to their hypnotic drone in the shadows of obscurity. The depressive reverb-plucked guitar bolsters the musical backbone of hte opneing track as their vocalist, Karolina, utters the lyrics in her native Polish tongue. This is fitting as what they do might wink in the direction of New York bands like Swans, but holds little common ground with their current base of operations, leaving you to imagine they came from the smoky clubs of Eastern Europe. 

The second song carries less drone and more groove, with some No Wave tendencies. So if you are looking for darkwave that could be mixed in behind Clan of Xymox at your local goth night, this might not be the band for that. They did, however, align themselves with the indie scene who play vintage synths and tries to replicate the sound of dark electronic music coming from the late 70s. There is a darker pulse to the more foreboding "Oscillopsia. They return to more of the lo-fi beats and retro synths for "Floor It". Based on the name, I am surprised it shuffles along rather than busts into a dance floor banger, but I respect them more for the slow build of layers assembled here. 

"Casket Casino" is a bit of an oddity. A large part of this is due to the mix. The drum machine sits in the background rather than creating a groove; they amble along with a haunting accompaniment of the dissonant gathering of guitar parts. Not as melodramatic in their downtrodden expression, they hold some similar ground with a band like Xiu Xiu in this regard.'Old Mill' might be the album's best song because it is also the darkest. They bust out some interesting sounds on the last song. The vocals take on a more expressive quirk that recalls 80s post-punk. They can jam a groove which makes them seem like they would be fun live. I will give it an 8.5

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The Top 10 Hardcore/ Punk Albums of 2026 ...so far

Hard-core is being lumped in here with punk, and its adjacent genres like noise rock and screamo. punk.   These lists serve as a decent snapshot of where the year is heading in terms of music. I have already received promos for albums dropping as far out as August in my inbox, so they are really going to need to bring it to compete with the top five albums on this list. No matter the genre,  darkness trumps speed when it comes to heavy, so these bands reflect that sentiment. These albums provide a fitting soundtrack to the demise of the US.  I have included links to full reviews if you want to check these out, and with all that said, here are the Top 10 punk  / hardcore albums of 2026 so far. 

10- The Crosses -"Outlier"

Dan from Die Kruezen is back with this band, which started as a way to resurrect the songs of his classic band, before they began looking forward and making their own music. His voice has changed with age. The timbre is different from what it was with Die Kreuzen, but the spirit is there. It is more of an obvious scowl than what he was doing back in the day. Granted, he never sang the same on the Die Kruezen albums as he was allowing his voice to evolve with each album. This album helps to fill the void his old band left. https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/the-crosses-outlier.html

 

9-Gros Enfant Mort -"Le Sang Des Pierres" 

As genres shift and evolve over the years, it is easy to forget their origins. This French  band Gros surprised me as they hey remembered that screamo originated from emo, which was the more melodic and emotive version of hardcore that could be attributed to bands like Rites of Spring and Sunny Day Real Estate. This album opens more in that vein, though they build things into the explosive intensity of hardcore. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/01/gros-enfant-mort-le-sang-des-pierres.html

 

8-Chalk Hands-" The Line That Shapes the Coast of Us"

This British screamo band brings a great deal of sonic space and dynamics to their explosive gnashing of teeth. It takes you back to 1999, when this sort of thing was evolving into the force that would take over Myspace. These guys are able to not just scream but also emote. This is a reminder of how these bands carried shoegaze into the scene we have today. Bands like Mineral can be heard in what they are doing here.This hit all the heartstrings it needed to and kept the flame alive

 

7-Oakwood- "Blurred Away"

This Texas band is well-versed in late-90s emo and brings it in a powerfully dynamic and moving manner. This was a time when melancholic introspection was more blue-collar than dressed in marketed darkness. It was steeped in suburban punk angst with no political motivation. All but one song clocks in at under thirty minutes, proving they follow a less-is-more punk formula while still allowing the guitar to linger in jangling melody. They nailed this era I have fond memories of, but still wrote songs that give them their own identity for 2026

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/06/oakwood-blurred-away.html

 

6-Truck Violence-"The Weathervane is my Body"

These Canadian hard-core kids are venturing further into noiserock in their sophomore release, which finds a more angular dissonance steering the songs. The vocals are monaded and howled, as they steer the boozy sonics with a precise ugliness to create something beautiful. Some moments might not be as overtly metal as where a band like Chatpile, who crosses over into sludge, goes, but could have a similar appeal.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/05/truck-violence-weathervane-is-my-body.html

 

5-Terror-"Still Suffer"

This is the 10th album from this long-running hardcore band whose origins trace back to Buried Alive from the late 90s. They deliver what you expect from this brand of hardcore. They are in your face and more on the metallic side, which makes plenty of sense considering their origins and influences. Even with the metallic elements the guitar riffs embrace, the dominant presence of gang vocals and attitude of the lead vocal are clearly hardcore, in fact, more hardcore than most bands these days.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/04/terror-still-suffer.html

 

4-Final Gasp-"New Day Symptoms"

 liked their last album a great deal, but was unsure why it was being called death rock when it was old school metallic hardcore that owed more to Die Kreuzen. Sure, there is more of a hint of old AFI on this album. It's the more aggressive elements that have been refined with some more outright metal playing captured here. It is easy to get swept away in the album's momentum.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/final-gasp-new-day-symptoms.html

3-Converge -" Love is Not Enough"

I've seen some people say this album is just as chaotic as their other work, and I am here to tell you it's not, and that is a sign of growth. It feels more like "You Fail Me" if you had to compare this to other albums. The biggest improvements lie in the mature songwriting and stellar production. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/converge-love-is-not-enough.html

 

2-Poison Ruin-"Hymns From the Hills"

Philly punks Poison Run continue to improve with each album. This one finds them settling into some of their catchiest and most melodic songwriting yet. This does not make them any less punk; in fact, it connects them more closely to the classic punk of the late 70s. The vocals show the most improvement. Despite theming the songs around the Middle Ages, there is an almsot more Western feel. One of the best punk albums I've heard in some time. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/poison-ruin-hymns-from-hills.html

 

1-Converge - the Hum of Hurt

These guys have been working overtime as it's their second album of the year. The buzz made it seem like this was going to be their noise rock albun, but that was not the case. In some ways in picks up where they left off on  "Love is Not Enough", but Jacobs' vocals are less snarled and chaotic, giving the songs a greater sense of deliberate purpose that finds it beating out the heavier nature of their previous release. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/06/converge-hum-of-hurt.html

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crucifera : era "Exostential"

 

The creative force behind this project is Danielle Astraea, who combatted the problem that the vast majority of new dark wave runs into by giving the music some sonic rock balls. In doing so, she invokes the spirit of 90s electro-tinged alternative and puts her in a similar musical zip code as artists like Kidney Thieves and Snake River Conspiracy, though darker than the latter. But wait, that is not the best part; she actually uses her voice more like an instrument to color the songs, rather than try to emulate pop vocal hooks, yet proves herself capable of drawing you in. 

The paino is her primary instrument, but she does not relegate that to center stage and instead allows a mix of brooding and sensual grooves to keep her songs slithering through the dark corners of your d  dreams. This is perhaps best epitomized in the song "Better". Sometimes the ambiance woven around the songs carries more of the creepy ambiance of  Switchblade Symphony, but it's balanced out by hefty beats. Lyrically their a range from what might be personal torment to addressing social issues on songs like "Martyr Box", which addresses the rising tide of victim self-identification. It's hard not to appreciate someone who goes against the lowest-common-denominator narrative here. 

"saVior" finds the vocals sitting back against a more sexual slink that possesses the drum programming, which also refuses to conform to the expectations of most dark wave fans that have been trained to think production value that is stuck in the nostalgia for the early 80s is true goth. A silly notion considering all of those bands progressed beyond that era. She pushes further into darkness with the pulse of "Pity" that drips with sardonic snarl of its own amid well-layered vocals and synths. "The Empty" is more rooted in a haunting piano line with vocals that carry the dream-laden nature of Kate Bush. Much like Kate, the sense of melodrama is balanced with a more honest emotional current. While Kate Bush is one of my favorite artists, I find that when other singers try to tread similar water, they end up doing the Nightwishy washy thing I don't care for, but this seems to be rooted in a longing I connect with more.

"Burning to Death" moves off a more rock-centric beat, with the vocals following a more 90s flavored path until midway into the song, as they follow the music into a darker shift. Earlier, I noticed an inflection in her voice that made me think of Cyndi Lauper, and I hear it again on the last song, "Black Tongues," which is the album's most driving rock moment. I will round this one up to a 10 as I think the moments that might not have grabbed me will grow on me and are balanced by the more powerful moments. Hihgly recommended for fans of 90s goth who would to hear it in the context of today's production values. 

 

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