Death is June : Endseeker : "Coffin Born"

 

Germany has been busting out a ton of death metal and harcore this year, and this entry should go to the top of the list. Interestingly, I just reviewed the new Fleshcrawl album, and they are another German band with a strong Entombed influence, so Germans must just be getting into Entombed. These guys have a better production, making the vocals snarl their way over the dense attack of guitar, which seems to be the main Entombed factor driving these bands is nailing the nasty tone, maybe there's a pedal or lugin that does it? This is why I stand by the fact that songs matter more than a sound, as anyone can dial in a sound with the right equipment. 

It's the guitar knack for adding melody to balance the brutality that works best for these guys, though the second song does not have the same impact as the opening track. Some of this is because my ears are braced for impact and know what to expect. Three minutes in, the song turns around to the point that it almost feels like another song. Though with this comes an increased sense of dynamics. The title track is well done, and perhaps more intentionally, it does not grab me as strongly as the first song, but it is still cool.

They are even more polished in the songwriting department on "Life Breeds Death". The vocals are more articulated and interplay perhaps the best yet with the guitars. There are cool hooky guitar accents, showing they can write catchy songs when they set their mind to it. The palms muted chug of the everse is headbanging worthy for sure. They employ sung vocals for a cover of David Hasselhoff's "True Survivor" . He is huge in Germany so I suppose I am not surprised by the choice, but it's interesting that their vocalist can sing cleans this well and does not do more of them.  I will give this album a 9, as it shows you can still pay tribute to a band and write catchy songs.  Dropping on Metal Blade Records. 

The Top 10 Pop Albums of 2026 ...so far

 

 That time of year again. 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. When it comes to pop, what you are not going to see much of are big mainstream radio artists that are part of the music industry machine that spits bullshit out on an assembly line with two dozen producers and even more songwriters making a product for the sheep to consume. Maybe two are adjacent to that machine, though are unlike the bulk of their peers. 

What I want from my pop is catchy songs that have actual instruments being played, rather than just empty calories being pumped into my ears. My people refer to this sort of thing as their guilty pleasures, and I do not use that term, as anyone on this list is better than vapid shit kids on TikTok are dancing to. Hip Hop has pretty much been garbage this year; only two artists have managed to rise from that trash pile to form music with depth.  There are links to full reviews if you want to check these out, and with all that said, here are the top 10 pop albums of 2026 so far. 

10-Mothica-'Somewhere In-Between"

In a shift from the dark synth pop of "Kissing Death," Mothica is shifting into a more modern metal sound that is not unlike what artists like Poppy and Spiritbox are doing. You can't accuse her of making the same album twice, which I admire.  

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/mothica-somewhere-in-between.html

9-Qveen Herby-"Isle of Qveen"

Her second album proves to be one of the few on this list that delivers what you expect you are going to get, going into though, she is much more polished this time around. She combines a catchy blend of rapping and singing. The wheel is not being re-invented, but what she does have is a smart streak of creativity and perhaps more attitude now than when I first heard her. 

 https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/qveen-herby-isle-of-qveen.html

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8-Cobrah- "Torn" 

If you combined the otherworldly alien nature of Poppy and mixed it with the hyper sex of Slayyyter, the results would be similar. Musically close to Poppy, with the electronic throb keeping the songs together. This is also an apt description of the title track that opens this album. On the second song, which is about Instagram is seductively lures you to check out her Instagram. There is a bit of a Charli XCX attitude involved in what goes down here as well. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/cobrah-torn.html

7-Nine Inch Noize- "s/t"

Nine Inch Noize is a collaborative album between producer Alex Ridha, aka Boys Noize, and Nine Inch Nails, which is now basically just Reznor and Atticus Ross.  If you are looking for big arena-rock riffs, that is not happening, as the songs reimagined here are strictly electronic. That's not to say the synths don't have heft, and Reznor's voice roots it in the sound you expect from him. The track listing replicates their Coachella set list. If you ever wanted to hear gay house remixes of Nine Inch Nails, well, here you go, get to boofing your Molly.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/04/nine-inch-noize-st.html

6-Ghost Bells - "Caracoture"

This duo blends various sub-genres of dark electronic music into a moody but buoyant pop that feels like it is haunted by the 90s. The female vocals offer a childlike sing-song cadence to their chant. Repetition is king here and works. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/01/ghostbells-catacoture.html

5-Charli XCX-"Wuthering Heights"

  This soundtrack finds her deviating from the normal ode of operations, which are club classics, and instead draws more avant-garde classical music with weird atmosphere coating the bulk of these songs in a smart shift away from having another Brat Summer.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/charli-xcx-wuthering-heights.html

 

4-Dalek- "Brilliance of a Falling Moon"

The new Die Antwoord has not dropped yet, so the competition when it comes to hip-hop is not as thick this year, but he broke into the top 5 this time around, thanks to songs that work off of what made hip-hop great in the 90s, but with more sonic depth and lyrical integrity. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/dalek-brilliance-of-falling-moon.html

3- Lights - "A6EXTENDED"

 Canadian pop songwriter Lights released an extended version of her "A6" album with 8 new songs, which is a whole ass album, that proved to be better than what the Instagram divas on the radio were rolling off the assembly line so far this year. Hooks with smarts to them in abundance here. 

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/lights-a6extended.html

2-Joji- "Piss in the Wind"

He sidestepped expectations with an oddity of an album that continues to grow on me. More organic than previous releases but also more experimental as it dips into shoegazing at times, which was not on my bingo card. More artists need to take these kinds of chances.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/02/joji-piss-in-wind.html

1- Slayyyter- "WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA"

This one was almost too close to call, and who knows what the competition for these albums might turn out to be by the end of the year, but She delivered less experimentation andd took a hookier groove approach that sticks to your ears harder than Joji's more atmospheric musings, which were still pretty potent. But this is the pop list, not the shoegaze list, so she took the top spot, as her attitude oozes what you want from pop stars in 2026.

https://abysmalhymns.blogspot.com/2026/03/slayyyter-worst-girl-in-america.html

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Feyleux : "Phases"

 This duo from North Carolina delivers legit darkwave in a manner that does not suffer the plight of being lost in the lo-fi murk of nostalgia. There are no overt trips to the Bat Cave, by trying to sound like "the Garlands", but employ a great grooving bass line that a DJ would have no problem wedging between Boy Harsher and Switchblade Symphony, but without giving a wink to either. I guess by the time I get to the second song, it's clear the benefits of modern production boosted this mix and elevated them out of the mire of tribute bands pining for days lost.

"Frailty" gives a strong opening with danceable drive, yet not neglecting the vocal melodies, which are also locked in. "Mercury" is more melodic and carries a more melancholic pace that brings the more recent offerings from Cold Cave to mind. There is an actual guitar being played, which goes a long way in my book . Her haunting alto falls in line with the expectations most goths have of this sort of thing without being a blatant tribute to Gothmother Sioux. I like how this moves. This ep is dedicated to their kitty, who died, so there is enough loss to make me a believer in their brand of darkness.

A more synth-minded bass line fuels "Shoreless" . The guitar sits further back in the mix, and there is a more spacious reverb sound that brings them closer to how modern darkwave is produced. Her vocals do not feel as fueled by the same level of passion here. I like how the synth riff turns the groove around in a dramatic fashion that recalls new wave. I will give this one a 9, I really enjoyed what they are doing and curious as to where they might go on a fulllength album,

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Dagger Threat : "Bleed /// Reboot"

This German band is a metalcore band that leans more toward the hardcore side of the equation more often than not. They are in your face and heavy as fuck, but can still pull out some catchy riffs, and melody drifts through what they do like a Victory Records band from the 90s. You can hear how both Deftones and Slipknot have influenced them. "Tissue' certainly has  aml\mple nu-metal influence, and this is fine. I don't feel this makes them any less hardcore. The death metal vocals that come in on "Leech" do, however, lean their sound more in the direction of metalcore. As death metal is less influenced by hardcore, where nu-metal came out of the hardcore scene. 

"Code red" shows how entwined the genres of hardcore/metalcore and nu-metal are as it incorporates all the elements of those genres. "mire stomp" bounces with the more typical modern hardcore hybrid, as unless it's bands like Terror, most of these are pretty incestous as it is jsut not limited to what these guys are doing but the direction things seem to be heading in, even bands like Code Orange took a turn toward. By the time we get to 'shiver," things begin to run together, despite the darker elements being present, and it almost runs off a Korn-like riff.

The dense staccato attack of "the nothing" finds the down-tuned hammering pretty effective, but even with the bellowed singing and bits of atmosphere, the intensity level has been at 11 for the whole album, and it has collided into Slipknot-influenced breakdowns in a way that has been a constant throb, that dulls my ear drums this point.It does get mired in it's own groove at time but I am down with the energy it brings as it makes for a great album, I will give this a 9.

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Death is June -Fleshcrawl : "Epitome of Carnage"

 

This is the 10th album from this German death metal band. They have had a few incarnations under different names, but this version of the band emerged in the 90s. They have a dense, almost Entombed-like production feel, but the vocals on the opening are buried in the wall of guitar. They grind with a more deliberate feel on the second song. The vocals snarl out from the guitar a little, but the wall of riffs is the heart of what they are doing here. "Grave Messiah' finds them speeding up into the more typical death metal sound. It's fine for what it is, but since the vocals are just an obligatory texture, it does not lend itself to the catchiest songwriting. 

"Embers of Wrath" has a little more memorable riffing, which works better than the more bludgeoning assault of "Committed to Suffer." Though even that song finds its purpose more with the more accented punches. While death metal is not known for being subtle, they could have employed more atmosphere and melody on "Reign Forever," as it's just a churning blur of distortion. None of the songs really sprawl out, nor could they, in any way that makes sense, thanks to the high intensity they maintain at all times. At times, they use a Decide formula where they start off fast but take their time and find their groove, which happens to some extent on "Orphan God," which, to their credit, benefits from huge flourishes of double bass. 

"Pain of Thorns" is more deliberate in some passages, but the fast parts feel rushed. The gritty grind of Entombed now a signature of this album. There is a section that could have been cooler if the bass had been given a tone with more balls to it. "Heralds of Death' is where the songs begin to run together for me; unfortunately, what separates it from the previous songs is some feral blasting in places. The last song rides the ave of double bass and does little to dynamically seperate itself either. Though I will say the mix to this album is better heard through headphones. If you want to know the growls are there but don't need much from them and love the Entombed style of burly death metal, then this band will be worth your time. I am giving it an 8, as if want to hear Entombed. I will go listen to them, but this band created the album they wanted to and care about songs more than most death metal bands that are this heavy.Out on Reigning Pheonix Music.   

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Death is June - Deicide's "To Hell With God"

This is the last Deicide album I am going to be reviewing, as after this one, I have reviewed their entire discography of studio albums. This album found the band stepping into Auidohammer Studios to have Mark Lewis produce the album. When this album came out in 2011, Lewis had already produced Death Angel, White Chapel, The Black Dahlia Murder, Trivium, and DevilDriver, so he has dialed in the sound of modern metal. Right from the first song, it is obvious how it improved the sound. By improved and polished. That could be a drawback if you want this to sound like their earlier work and less like the average death metal band in 2011. 

Benton and his sonic sadists brough their a-game as they are ripping into these songs with no stopping their momentum. It's hyper-fast but still works. Not to say it might not get old midway through the album. Witness of Death"h makes you think it's going to side-step the god hate, but no, they dialed it up.  It is almost too fast for their own good, but it stays together somehow. "Conviction' has the lead single from this album. Lewis nails Gelns bass tone, which stands out in the mix. This song is way more purposeful than the first three songs, so it's no mistake why this was the single. They keep the catchy riffs going with "Empowered By Blasphemy." The verses are hookier than what is supposed to be the chorus. 

"Angels of  Hell starts off in a manner that is more thrashy than what they have done up to this point on this album, but I like the slight gallop in the verse. It is now a trademark that you can bet they are going to speed up at some point. What they have to do is make sure they have bookended it with enough dynamics. 'Hang In Agony Until You're Dead' is more like what was typical of death metal at the time. They have a blast-fest on " Servant of the Enemy." The taunt machine like precison in the chug of "Into Darkness You Go" is more effective. The last song works for what they do, and sounds fine, so no real complaints, but not wowed either. Overall, this album feels like it anchors their relevancy, so I will give it a 9.5. 

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The Secrecy : "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 vibe of the opener, they shift into a more hypnotic pulse for 'Dancing in the Fire,' although there is more of a dance beat to the song after that."Meet Me After Midnight,' which adopts a new wave touch.

Part of the magic at work here is thanks to the ever-prolific Jeff Wilson from Chrome Waves, who is no stranger to this sort of thing and keeps re-inventing this sound. 'Sky' displays this as it works off a more atmospheric sound, the synths have echoes of a Cure-like feel, and the song carries a similar melancholic feel, though you could also cite Clan of Xymox as a reference point. It builds over a more rock dynamic at the chorus. The guitar carries a similar sullen drone, and its metal roots haunt it. 

Another thing I love about this album is how dark it is. A good example of this can be heard on "The Watchers". They go a more Killing Joke route here as it carries both brooding darkness and tension. The synths are really well used, and the dynamics kill it. They crafted this album with some really cool sound and are not just trying to capture the retro Bat Cave sound. Hooky vocals and anthemic chords wrap in a grim little package. There are some gothy sounds to the title track. The bass line is a big one. 

One cool thing is they never really use the old Ian Curtis baritone or the Andrew Eldritch vampire voice; they convey the feeling in their own way. Goth is a genre with many vocal stylings, so it's a shame other bands just pick from those two choices. A synth ambiance opens the last song. The bass leads the way in a very Cure-tinged manner.The vocals are soft and reflective.It all comes together gracefully. I will give this album a 10 it's incredible.  

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