The Best of August '26

Aug 31

If OTR had a nickel for every time Hayley Williams was featured on a new rock album this month, we’d have two nickels — which isn’t a lot, but it’s weird it happened twice.

With August 2026 seemingly blessed by “Miss Paramour” herself, historic comebacks and career-defining debuts abounded. So, let’s recap, shall we?

RAPID REVIEWS

Phoebe Bridgers is Reborn in Lost Weekend- Cassidy LaPointe

Watch the music video for “I Can’t Wait” on YouTube.

“The record is one of uncertainty, both in sound and subject matter – Bridgers shifts wildly from bluegrass to indie folk to alt-rock as she moves down the tracklist; songs oscillate between frantic existentialism and lovestruck euphoria; even within one track Bridgers will move from subject-to-subject with seemingly no rhyme or reason, singing about her partner in one breath only to deliver a crushing line about her father in the next. Lost Weekend is a rebirth, a making-sense of the world once everything you thought you knew has been flipped on its head, whether grief or love has delivered the blow.”

For Fans Of: getting your heart ripped apart and putting it back together, voice memo demos, spacial production

Westside Cowboy Captures Fleeting Humanity in Timeless Debut Album, It Goes On- Brooke Shapiro

“Their tech-free sound relies on propulsive guitars, tumultuous drum fills, and rough-around-the-edges vocals to tell stories that don’t always make perfect narrative sense, but teem with humanity … At its core, the 11-track record is a feat of ’90s alt-rock with a morphed sense of simplicity that personifies human connection and everything that comes with it, from catharsis and love, to doubt and sorrow.”

For Fans Of: call-to-action choruses, dumb phones, pure fun instrumentals

The Linda Lindas are Older and Angrier Than Ever in New Album, GOTTA GET OUT - Daisy Calderon Arredondo

Watch the music video for “Everybody Told Me” on YouTube.

“‘Big world and I’m falling behind / Yeah I’d thought I’d go far / But I’m just wasting time,’ eerily repeats over and over as the song seamlessly flows into ‘Burning Out.’ Here, they lean into anxious restlessness. The world is falling apart, and we’re watching it unfold in real time, on our phones, from the comfort of our rooms. There’s an uncomfortable juxtaposition made between the desire to act, the familiarity of passiveness, and the subsequent guilt of ineptitude.”

For Fans Of: protest music, garage rock, Bikini Kill

Launched Into Rotten Paranoia: Porch Light’s Latest Singles - Eva Elisa Wells

“Ahead of their upcoming debut album Hush, Porch Light just delivered the perfect set of singles for those of us who find ourselves constantly trapped within our own heads. Pouring doubt over every situation we possibly can, overthinking has grown into a disgustingly unconscious habit and Porch Light describes those feelings in ways that leave you reeling from relatability.”

For Fans Of: Florence Road, steering wheel drumming, early 2000s alt-rock

BROOKE’S BONUSES

Daniel Nunnelee Returns in Jangly Folk Rock Glory with “Carry Me Home”

Since the 2024 release of his debut album, June, Baby, Nashville indie folk artist Daniel Nunnelee has steadily dropped frolic-worthy singles — but the latest is certainly his best. “Carry Me Home” is a hopeful track with a rollicking, nuanced orchestration to match its message. Restless strumming ascends chromatically in the verses, building tension ripe for a blossoming release in the chorus as he sings of coming to the realization that he can’t do it all on his own. A quintessential track for letting it all go, “Carry Me Home” is an end of summer playlist must-add.

For Fans Of: banjo, hunting for four-leaf clovers, Tusk

hey, nothing is Utterly Charming on Debut LP

Listen to Hound on Spotify.

As Westside Cowboy’s waves of indie rock brilliance reverberate from across the pond, August also saw the release of another debut album flourishing from seeds planted in Athens, Georgia. Hound is hey, nothing’s first LP under Interscope, and marks a sophisticated shift for the emo-folk duo (who also happened to be featured in OTR Volume 6). The dual title and opening track lays the record’s dichotomous foundation with the repetition of “Be a lover, be a hound;” the album is animalistic yet refined, metaphoric yet trivial, vulnerable yet playful. From the silly and punchy “Beluga Whale (Call Again)” to the lullaby-like “When the Rain Comes,” Hound invites listeners to tag along on hey, nothing’s ranging journey bound to take them far.

For Fans Of: midwest emo, overlapping vocalists, “Sterling Point”

Turnstile Takes “Stacked Lineup” Seriously with NEVER ENOUGH: VERSIONS

Just over a year after releasing their Grammy-winning fifth album NEVER ENOUGH, Turnstile teamed up with what feels like every modern powerhouse to reimagine the record and make its title even more fitting. On NEVER ENOUGH: VERSIONS, 23 artists of drastically ranging genres — from jazz, to lofi, techno, death metal, and beyond — morphed the punk band’s album in a show of what it means to make art today, with endless creative options at our fingertips. Slayyyter turns the hardcore “BIRDS” into a club-ready house track. Brandon Woody takes the trumpet foundations of “DREAMING” to the next level with a full jazz combo rendition of the otherwise heavy song. Faye Webster transforms the surrealness of “I CARE” into a breezy Bossa nova. With other names like Porches, A.G. Cook, Hayley Williams, Oklou, and Elton John populating the track list, Turnstile truly ensured that there’s something for everyone on this sprawling revision.

For Fans Of: unlikely mashups that work, genre-blending, multi-generational collaborations

EXTRAS

August Staff Picks: