The best albums of 2026 so far

These standout releases span dizzying ambition and intimate simplicity. Angine de Poitrine’s Vol II makes a big leap from 2024’s more straightforward Vol I into an addictively wayward record built from interlocking, ecstatic drums and dual‑necked guitar/bass, while Otto Benson’s Peanut constructs a warm, twilit bedroom world with country‑tinged songs and superb melodies.

Chalk’s Crystalpunk drags the breakbeat hacker‑tech aesthetic of the Prodigy and Propellerheads into the present, topped by Dave Gahan‑grade goth‑pop vocals, and Olof Dreijer’s Loud Bloom compiles previously released pieces into a zippy, Technicolor album that draws from kuduro and cumbia and sounds like a party in a coral reef.

Dry Cleaning’s Secret Love populates its songs with awful designers, edgelords and influencers, delivered in Florence Shaw’s deadpan voice as the band expands from vinegary post‑punk into ominous electronics, folk and funk.

vol ii, otto benson, peanut, chalk, crystalpunk, olof dreijer, loud bloom, dry cleaning, secret love, goth pop