The anticipation for one of the biggest rock releases of 2026 has reached a fever pitch. Shinedown is officially in the final stretch before the release of their eighth studio album, EI8HT, set to drop on May 29th via Atlantic Records. This week, the band has solidified their dominance by announcing additional dates for their massive “Dance, Kid, Dance” World Tour, which is already seeing sold-out arenas across North America.
The lead single, “Safe And Sound”, has become an instant anthem, blending the band’s signature melodic power with a raw, introspective lyrical depth that resonates with the current global climate. Frontman Brent Smith has described the new album as a “survival guide for the modern soul,” focusing on resilience and the human connection in an increasingly digital world.
A Global Phenomenon
Shinedown’s impact on the modern rock and metal scene is undeniable, and EI8HT promises to be their most diverse and ambitious project to date. The production, helmed by bassist Eric Bass, captures the band’s explosive live energy while pushing their sonic boundaries into more experimental territories. “We wanted to create something that feels timeless but speaks directly to the now,” Smith shared in a recent interview.
As the band prepares to take the stage at major festivals this summer, the momentum behind EI8HT is unstoppable. With a legacy built on record-breaking hits and a relentless touring schedule, Shinedown is once again proving why they remain at the forefront of the industry.
EI8HT is available for pre-order now, and “Safe And Sound” is streaming on all major platforms. The countdown to May 29th is on.
The anticipation for one of the biggest rock releases of 2026 has reached a fever pitch. Shinedown is officially in the final stretch before the release of their eighth studio album, EI8HT, set to drop on May 29th via Atlantic Records. This week, the band has solidified their dominance by announcing additional dates for their massive “Dance, Kid, Dance” World Tour, which is already seeing sold-out arenas across North America.
The lead single, “Safe And Sound”, has become an instant anthem, blending the band’s signature melodic power with a raw, introspective lyrical depth that resonates with the current global climate. Frontman Brent Smith has described the new album as a “survival guide for the modern soul,” focusing on resilience and the human connection in an increasingly digital world.
A Global Phenomenon
Shinedown’s impact on the modern rock and metal scene is undeniable, and EI8HT promises to be their most diverse and ambitious project to date. The production, helmed by bassist Eric Bass, captures the band’s explosive live energy while pushing their sonic boundaries into more experimental territories. “We wanted to create something that feels timeless but speaks directly to the now,” Smith shared in a recent interview.
As the band prepares to take the stage at major festivals this summer, the momentum behind EI8HT is unstoppable. With a legacy built on record-breaking hits and a relentless touring schedule, Shinedown is once again proving why they remain at the forefront of the industry.
EI8HT is available for pre-order now, and “Safe And Sound” is streaming on all major platforms. The countdown to May 29th is on.
Whitehorse have always made tension sound like a room two people refuse to leave. On All I Want Is All of It, Luke Doucet and Melissa McClelland return to early folk-rock romanticism with the mileage of a long musical and marital partnership, recorded with a ragged, farmhouse-studio looseness that lets the floorboards speak up too. The “Then” that helps frame it is The Civil Wars’ Barton Hollow, a 2011 touchstone for modern male-female roots duos built on intimacy, friction, and the dangerous sport of singing very close together.
Dennis Locorriere sang on The Cover of Rolling Stone, Sylvia’s Mother, Only Sixteen, When You’re In Love With A Beautiful Woman, Sexy Eyes and many more
It’s safe to say The House Beyond the Fires has been an absolute triumph for The Virginmarys. Having road-tested its songs for a number of years on the lead-up to its recording and release and now, eighteen months on, those songs show no sign of wearing thin. In that time, there’s been some relentless touring … Continue reading Album Review: The Virginmarys – Beyond the House of Fires
With A Pale White Dot, Periphery return with their eighth studio album and a follow up to 2023’s Periphery V: Djent Is Not a Genre. Once again produced and mixed by Adam “Nolly” Getgood, the album finds the band maintaining their trademark heaviness while taking a more streamlined approach to songwriting, with every track clocking in under five minutes. Songs like “Mr. God” and “Subhuman” rank among the heaviest material the band has released, while tracks such as “Blackwall” and “Carry On” lean into electronic textures and more accessible melodic hooks. Elsewhere, “Neon Valley” and “Everyone Dies Alone” strike the balance that Periphery have perfected over the years, combining soaring melodies with extreme metal intensity. Vocalist Spencer Sotelo delivers some of his most varied performances to date, moving effortlessly between aggressive screams and melodic passages. Longtime fans should find plenty to enjoy here, while listeners who may have been intimidated by the band’s longer and more complex material could find A Pale White Dot to be one of the most approachable entry points into the band’s catalog.
Tracklisting
1. Obsession (3:18)
2. Talk (5:18)
3. Mr. God (2:59)
4. Heaven on High (4:20)
5. Unlocking (4:29)
6. Subhuman (feat. Will Ramos) (2:52)
7. Blackwall (4:07)
8. Malevolent (4:01)
9. Carry On (3:30)
10. Neon Valley (5:02)
11. Everyone Dies Alone (4:36)
12. A Pale White Dot (3:09)
Spencer Sotelo / lead vocals
Misha Mansoor / guitar, synthesizers, programming
Jake Bowen / guitar, synthesizers, programming, backing vocals
Mark Holcomb / guitar
Matt Halpern / drums, percussion
Adam “Nolly” Getgood / bass
Bruce Soord – Ghosts in the Park (May 15th, 2026)
Bruce Soord delivers his most personal and unguarded solo work to date with his new album Ghosts In The Park. Best known as the founding member and principal songwriter of The Pineapple Thief, Soord crafts an album shaped by loss, memory, and reflection, capturing the feeling of life continuing to move forward while everything else seems frozen in place. Despite its heavy themes, Ghosts In The Park ultimately feels more hopeful than despairing. Soord once again demonstrates his gift for weaving addictive melodies into subtle and unexpected arrangements, creating songs that quietly reveal their emotional weight over repeated listens. The single “Pillars” stands as another strong example of the understated songwriting that has defined much of his career. While fans wait for the next release from The Pineapple Thief, Ghosts In The Park offers a rewarding and deeply human listen that more than fills the gap.
Tracklisting:
1. Concepcion (1:25)
2. Meet Me on the Downs (3:05)
3. Pillars (3:10)
4. You Made a Promise (2:56)
5. Our Predicament (3:43)
6. Day of Wrath (4:21)
7. Stared Down (4:33)
8. Kept Me Thinking (6:34)
9. Ghosts in the Park (12:52)
Bruce Soord / vocals, all instruments
With: Jon Sykes / bass (8)
Geoff Tate – Operation:Mindcrime III (May 3rd, 2026)
Twenty years after the release of Operation: Mindcrime II, Geoff Tate returns to the iconic concept series with Operation: Mindcrime III. Since parting ways with Queensrÿche, Tate has continued performing the original Operation: Mindcrime live in its entirety, and this latest installment expands the story further by serving as a prequel centered around the rise of the villainous Dr. X. Musically, Operation: Mindcrime III stays faithful to the sound and atmosphere established by the previous two albums, blending melodic hard rock and progressive metal with cinematic storytelling. Tate’s vocals remain impressively strong throughout, carrying much of the album’s dramatic weight. While the material was never likely to reach the towering heights of the original classic, the songs are consistently well constructed and entertaining. Tracks such as “Vulnerable,” “The Devil’s Breath,” and the single “Power” stand out among the strongest moments, while the closing track “Monster” provides a solid finale, even if it brings the album to a somewhat abrupt conclusion. Time will tell whether this album surpasses Operation: Mindcrime II, but it is certainly strong enough to be part of the conversation.
Tracklisting:
1. The Scene Of The Crime
2. You Know My F–king Name
3. The Answer
4. Vulnerable
5. I’ll Eat Your Heart Out
6. Do You Still Believe?
7. The Devil’s Breath
8. Ascension
9. Set You Free
10. Descension
11. Power
12. You Can’t Walk Away Now
13. A Monster Like Me
Geoff Tate – lead vocals
Kieran Robertson – lead guitar, backing vocals
John Moyer – bass, backing vocals
Dario Parente – guitar
Amaury Altmayer – guitar
Rich Baur – drums
Clodagh McCarthy – support vocals
On their fifth studio album, Something Deeply Hidden, Poly-Math continue pushing their sound into more experimental territory. Across seven tracks, the band blends elements of Ethio-jazz, classic progressive rock, math rock, and post rock into a dense and constantly shifting instrumental experience. Recorded at Brighton Electric with producer Mark Roberts, the album leans heavily into jazz fusion, layered arrangements, and intricate rhythmic interplay. Rather than focusing on technical shredding, Something Deeply Hidden thrives on atmosphere, abstract polyrhythms, and unpredictable compositions. Inspired by physicist Sean M. Carroll and his book Something Deeply Hidden: Quantum Worlds and the Emergence of Spacetime, the album embraces a similarly complex and disorienting energy. “One/Two/Three/Four Body Problem” feels chaotic and frantic in the best possible way, while “No Such Thing as Now” explores a smoother jazz fusion direction. Other standouts include “Spectral Dis/Order,” which captures the band’s balance of technical precision and adventurous songwriting, and “Terror Management Theory”, the album’s longest and heaviest track. While there are clear influences from bands like King Crimson and The Mars Volta, the results still feel fresh, adventurous, and innovative.
1.The Universe as an Engine 03:31
2.One/Two/Three/Four Body Problem 04:10
3.No Such Thing as Now 07:33
4.Euthyphro Dilemma 05:55
5.Spectral Dis/Order 06:28
6.Chronostesia 03:56
7.Terror Management Theory 08:05
Joe Branton – Bass
Josh Gesner – Keys
Tim Walters – Guitar
Chris Woollison – Drums
