2026 is Going to Be a Great Music Year

février 12, 2026

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Thursday, February 12, 2026

I have a confession: I don't have Spotify. Or Apple Music. Or even, what, Limewire? Which is not to say that I don't like music. I love music. I just go about it in a very old-fashioned way: I buy vinyl, and I do it after asking friends (friends with taste, I mean) what they're into. After checking out interviews with bands I like to find out who influenced them. And—this is crucial—after reading Alan Light. Our music critic just gave his latest update on the best singles of the year so far: Springsteen. Bruno Mars. (Where's he been?) Zach Bryan. Check out the rest below. It's going to be a good year in music.

—Kevin Dupzyk, contributing editor

Plus:

The Best Songs of 2026 (So Far)

From Bruce Springsteen to Bruno Mars, the new year has already seen quite a few heavyweight singles.

How times have changed. In the old days, the superstars saved up their new projects for the end of the year, looking to cash in on holiday gift-giving, and January was a time when smaller acts and baby bands might get a chance for some attention. In a streaming universe, though, such seasonality doesn't matter—and the top of 2026 saw a blitz of new music from multi-platinum, stadium-filling artists, including some of the biggest stars in the world launching their new albums.

So while there were some strong and interesting new songs from more far-flung corners of the music world this month (Al Green covering the Bee Gees' "To Love Somebody," the Courtney Barnett-Waxahatchee duet "Site Unseen," and a couple of tracks from the Black Crowes), there were also just too many heavyweight singles that need to be addressed. Maybe these are not, in fact, the best songs of the month, but they're the ones everybody was talking about.

READ THE STORY

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Erika Kirk Wants to Recruit Northern Irish Students to Turning Point USA, Which Isn't Weird at All

That's all Ulster needs—the importation of an extremist American martyrdom cult right at the moment at which the possible establishment of a 32-county republic in Ireland seems closer than it's been in centuries.

The widow Kirk is trying to build an international organization based on American conservative politics mixed with an incoherent religious fanaticism. As we mentioned, this is clearly what Belfast has been waiting for all these years.

By Charles P. Pierce

20 Best Valentine's Day Cocktails to Get You in the Mood

Valentine's Day is all about chocolate, teddy bears, flowers, and showing someone that you love them. If you feel stumped for celebratory plans or couldn't get a reservation, then just stay home and make your date a drink. You can raise your romantic homemade cocktail and make a toast to your loved one, or have it accompany the sweet card that you got them. And forget oysters and strawberries—according to strong anecdotal evidence, alcohol is the most effective aphrodisiac. No matter the reason, a well-made cocktail that matches your date's tastes will be the romantic gesture that they'll remember long after the holiday is over.

Spicy, sweet, or tangy, whatever your lover is into, we've got the 20 best Valentine's Day cocktail recipes to shake up your night.

By Sirena He