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Friday, June 26, 2026

Medium Build, currently touring with Mumford & Sons, reveals September album details

Island Records
Medium Build—a.k.a. acclaimed singer-songwriter Nick Carpenter— is set for the release of his new album King of Having Fun on September 4 via slowplay/Island Records. The first single is “Armor;” listen HERE/share HERE. Pre-order/pre-save the album HERE.

“‘Armor’ is the first song I knew was on the album. The most transparent look into my no filter stream of consciousness,” says Carpenter of the track. “The lyrics and the music pair up to imprint the feeling of unease and awareness that comes with being alive nowadays. If you listen to the lyrics there’s a lot to chew on, if you just vibe the music there’s a lot to bop to. Hope it leaves you better than it found you.”

King of Having Fun marks Carpenter’s first full length album since 2024’s Country. It often approaching each song from a perspective of playing live in bigger rooms and focusing on “rock and roll moments.” Carpenter explores multiple genres with traces of ’90s pop-country, modern country, rock, indie and more across the 14 tracks.

“I’m swinging for some big ideas, and I’m proud of how I showed up lyrically, leaving it all out there,” Carpenter details. “There’s a playfulness, sonically, and it’s a big collaboration, with six or seven people involved on almost every tune.”

He goes on to explain, “I’ve had no problem describing how sucky it is to be with someone; I’ve never been good at writing about how nice it can be. So this record feels like the first time I was able to say, in an artistic way that didn’t feel cloying, ‘Thank you for loving me”… This album has a genuine love song for my partner and a genuine love song for my mom… I guess it’s a sign of my growth. It’s maybe the best and most important thing I’ve ever made…. It’s a celebration of life.”

Medium Build is on the road supporting Mumford & Sons this August ahead of a fall headline tour. See below for a list of dates.

Born and raised in Georgia, Carpenter now splits his time between hometowns in Nashville, Tennessee and Anchorage, Alaska. Creating Medium Build in 2015, Nick Carpenter has gone on to release five studio albums to date. He has become a favorite across the creative community, with artists including John Mayer, Zach Bryan, Elton John, boygenius and more counting themselves amongst his fans. 

He has toured with the likes of Role Model, Tyler Childers, FINNEAS, Holly Humberstone and Briston Maroney, and found himself in a highly coveted slot on Zane Lowe’s Artists to Watch 2024 list. In 2025, he was nominated for Emerging Act of the Year at the 24th Annual Americana Honors & Awards.

Track listing:

1. Every Noise Is You
2. Do Something Productive
3. Perceived
4. Bird Woman
5. Home Depot
6. It’s Not Easy (Falling In Love)
7. Cone Off
8. Feed the Boys
9. In My Gut
10. Chill
11. Downpour
12. Armor
13. King of Having Fun
14. Thank You, Cook

Tour Dates: 

July 31—Shakopee, MN—Mystic Lake Amphitheater*
August 2—Riverside, MO—Morton Amphitheater*
August 4—Atlanta, GA—State Farm Arena*
August 6—Hollywood, FL—Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino*
August 7—Tampa, FL—Benchmark International Arena*
August 9—Charlotte, NC—Spectrum Center*
August 11—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 12—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 13—Madison Square Garden—New York, NY*
August 15—Gilford, NH—Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion*
October 4—Washington, DC—9:30 Club†
October 5—Pittsburgh, PA—Mr. Small's Theater†
October 6—Philadelphia, PA—Theatre of the Living Arts†
October 9—New York, NY—Webster Hall†
October 10—Cambridge, MA—Royale†
October 12—Toronto, ON—The Concert Hall†
October 13—Detroit, MI—St. Andrews‡
October 16—Chicago, IL—Metro‡
October 17—Madison, WI—Majestic Theatre‡
October 18—Minneapolis, MN—First Avenue‡
October 21—Oklahoma City, OK—Tower Theater‡
October 23—Denver, CO—Gothic‡
October 24—Salt Lake City, UT—Soundwell‡
October 26—Vancouver, BC—Vogue§
October 28—Seattle, WA—The Showbox§
October 29—Portland, OR—Roseland Theatre§
October 31—San Francisco, CA—The Regency Ballroom*
November 2—San Diego, CA—The Observatory*
November 5—Los Angeles, CA—The Bellwether*
November 6—Phoenix, AZ—The Van Buren*
November 9—Dallas, TX—Studio at the Bomb Factory*
November 10—Austin, TX—Emo’s*
November 12—Memphis, TN—Satellite Music Hall††
November 13—Louisville, KY—Mercury Ballroom††
November 16—Columbus, OH—Newport Music Hall††
November 17—Indianapolis, IN—Deluxe††
November 20—Nashville, TN—Brooklyn Bowl††

*supporting Mumford & Sons
†with Ken Kates
‡with Bella White
§with Merle Law
**with The Scratch
††with Eden Joel

Sam Smith returns with 'Hazel Eyes' in August

Capitol Records
Multiple award-winning pop/R&B singer and songwriter Sam Smith - of "Stay with Me" and "I'm Not the Only One" fame - has detailed fifth studio album Hazel Eyes, set for release on August 21. 

New single “My Guy” is out now via Capitol Records and accompanied by an official music video. Go HERE to pre-order Hazel Eyes, listen to “My Guy” HERE, and watch the video HERE.

“This album is an incredibly special record to me,” says Sam. “I have been writing it for over three years with a very small group of beautiful, dear friends of mine. This album is very personal, and I feel I have deepened myself as an artist through the making of it, through being a producer on the record, to walking alongside this record from the start to the finish and pushing myself at every single turn. This record and this music is incredibly romantic. I’ve learned so many life lessons through making this album, and I’ve documented it all through the music.”

Hazel Eyes was co-produced by the UK artist. Most of it took shape in New York, where Sam was joined by guest Feist, and draws from baroque pop, British folk, outlaw country, and R&B. 

“My Guy” (co-written by Sam, Feist, and Shahzad Ismaily), is a portrait of fully requited love as Sam proclaims their all-out affection for the one they adore. Feist and Moses Sumney join in on girl-group-esque harmonies. Earlier this week Sam performed “My Guy” on Later…with Jools Holland, watch HERE.

Said Sam of “My Guy”:

 ”This is a song that I feel I have been waiting a lifetime to write and sing. Written with beautiful friends on a summer’s day in New York, this one fell out of the sky. In this sometimes cold and distant world, I hope you can feel the love and the closeness of this recording. I tried to capture the glow and the warmth of love in this one, it makes me cry, maybe it will make you feel a little love too.”

In a kickoff to NYC Pride Weekend, Sam is performing tonight at The Booking.com Theater at the Stonewall National Monument Visitor Center (SNMVC). The first LGBTQ+ visitor center within the National Park Service, the SNMVC honors the legacy of the 1969 Stonewall Uprising and serves as a vital physical sanctuary dedicated to protecting and preserving LGBTQ+ history. 

The follow-up to Gloria (a 2023 LP featuring their global smash single “Unholy” with Kim Petras), Hazel Eyes also includes the previously released Love Is A Stillness and To Be Free.” 

Track listing: 

1. Everlasting Love
2. Hazel Eyes
3. Moondance (feat. Feist)
4. My Guy
5. When He’s Gone
6. Thief
7. Love Is A Stillness
8. Sugar Rush
9. Oh Mother (feat. The TwoCity Chorus)
10. Constant Companion
11. Hold On
12. To Be Free

UK alt-rock band Editors explore 'Surface, Echo & Sound' in October

Editors' 8th studio album, Surface, Echo & Sound, is slated for release on October 30 through Play It Again Sam. The latest single is "The Rush." 

Watch the video HERE

Following 2022’s EBM, a collaboration with electronic producer Benjamin John Power, aka Blanck Mass, on Surface, Echo & Sound, Editors have found themselves somewhere new entirely. When the band regrouped in summer 2025 to work on a follow-up, after three albums written and recorded very much as in-the-studio projects, Editors felt they wanted to go back to a more natural approach, something that harked back to their earliest days, sat in a practice room in Stafford, facing each other as they worked through songs together.

Like on last year’s solo record There is Nothing In The Dark That Isn’t There In The Light, frontman Tom Smith took a similar stripped back, acoustic-based approach to the new Editors material, bringing a selection of songs to the band for them to play together, trying different things out, and seeing where they went. 

In terms of creating the record, “It was a very productive summer, ” says Smith. “The sun was out for the most part, we were in greenest Gloucestershire, not far from where I live, on this innocuous little industrial estate – it was pretty much the opposite of being in Berghain!”

"The Rush" is described by the frontman as an imagined bar scene of two people talking about life, drinking, and thinking about all the ups and downs. Smith continues, “that idea of finding comfort in people close to me, friends and loved ones and family, is a theme that comes up all the time. It’s a theme that is in everything to a degree.”

The track features Smith on mandolin, an instrument that provides a more organic core to Surface, Echo & Sound. “It’s not used in a folky kind of way, but it brings a warm element that can spike through anything in the mix,” says the band’s guitarist Justin Lockey who also recorded and produced the album. “As a texture, it’s definitely a big character on this record. A lot of the rhythms come from the mandolin and the acoustic as much as they do from the drums.”

The single arrives alongside an official video, shot in Tokyo and directed by Henry Ehara.

Pre-Order / Save The Album HERE

Formed in 2002, having met at university in Birmingham, Editors have released seven studio albums all of which achieved top 10 status in the UK. Their debut album, The Back Room (2005) received a Mercury Prize nomination and the 2007 follow up, An End Has A Start, reached number 1 in the UK and went on to earn a Brit Award nomination. Their 2009 album In This Light And On This Evening also hit the top spot in the UK album charts.

Track list:

Surface, Echo & Sound
Call It In
The Rush
Rescue
Shadow
Real
Happiness
Much Love
Butterfly Wings
Seriously
The Hills We Died Upon

Mammoth box set of Joy Division rarities set for September

Joy Division's ETERNAL (LIVE), the first-ever official collection of live concert recordings, is out on Sept. 25. 

The box set is available to pre-order now via Warner Music. It brings together audio from 16 live performances across 14 CDs, sourced from audience recorded cassettes, soundboard tapes and broadcast recordings, all mastered at Abbey Road Studios.

ETERNAL (LIVE) documents two previously unreleased shows, Hope & Anchor and Acklam Hall, and three previously unheard recordings: The Factory, Lyceum, and Moonlight Club (2nd April). It also features the band’s final live performance, at High Hall Birmingham in 1980.

There are two DVDs featuring over 2hrs 30mins of live shows, including the previously unseen Plan K, Brussels concert and two concerts and soundcheck from the Apollo Theatre, Manchester that have only been partially released on VHS (in 1982) and a brand new edit of Joy Division - A Malcolm Whitehead Film.

Go to rhino.com for full track listing.

PRE-ORDER ETERNAL (LIVE)

STREAM "TRANSMISSION"
(LES BAINS DOUCHES,
PARIS) 12/18/79


In related news, "Ian Curtis: Insight" is now showing in NYC. The major exhibition exploring the life and legacy of Ian Curtis brings rare archival material to the United States for the first time.

Presented through a revealing selection of handwritten lyrics, photographs, personal letters, ephemera and artefacts drawn from the Ian Curtis archive, held by The John Rylands Library at The University of Manchester as part of the British Pop Archive.

The exhibition shows Ian Curtis as a writer and observer whose words captured a time and place while speaking to themes of alienation, vulnerability and connection. Curated with full access to the archive, the exhibition reveals the tension, tenderness and energy that defined his – and Joy Division’s – short life and enduring influence.

Runs through July 22.

Phoebe Bridgers takes fans on a 'Lost Weekend' later this summer, tour in the fall

Phoebe Bridgers' third album. Lost Weekend arrives August 14th on Dead Oceans. New single, “Lost Boys” is now available on streaming platforms with a video directed by Lance Oppenheim and Pablo Rochat. 

Stream “Lost Boys” Here
Watch the Video

“Lost Boys” marks the four-time GRAMMY winner’s first original material to be released since 2022’s “Sidelines” single.

The news comes after a run of surprise ‘pop-up’ shows across the US, which culminated earlier this month with a sold out show at New York City’s Madison Square Garden. Her newly announced arena tour sold out in North America and the UK within hours of the general on-sale. All dates below.

Lost Weekend is the first Phoebe Bridgers album since her multi-GRAMMY nominated sophomore album, Punisher. 

Pre-Order Lost Weekend

Before her recent pop up shows, Bridgers was last seen on stage with boygenius, her group with Lucy Dacus and Julien Baker, collecting their GRAMMY Awards for 2023’s the record, including ‘Best Alternative Music Album’ and both ‘Best Rock Song’ and ‘Best Rock Performance’ for their song “Not Strong Enough.” 

Bridgers, it turns out, left the building as the evening’s most awarded artist; she won her fourth GRAMMY ‘Best Pop Duo/Group Performance,’ for the song “Ghost in the Machine,” a feature on SZA’s SOS. Before that, a stint of dates opening for Taylor Swift on The Eras Tour. And before that, for nearly two years, her solo Reunion Tour, featuring three sold-out legs in North America, thirty shows in Europe, and a finale of dates in South America, Asia, and Australia. 

Tour dates:

09.14.26 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse* (SOLD OUT)
09.15.26 — Indianapolis, IN @ Gainbridge Fieldhouse* (SOLD OUT)
09.17.26 — St. Paul, MN @ Grand Casino Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.18.26 — Chicago, IL @ United Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.19.26 — Chicago, IL @ United Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.22.26 — Columbus, OH @ Nationwide Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.24.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.25.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.26.26 — Brooklyn, NY @ Barclays Center* (SOLD OUT)
09.28.26 — Philadelphia, PA @ Xfinity Mobile Arena* (SOLD OUT)
09.29.26 — Washington, DC @ Capital One Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.01.26 — Toronto, ON @Scotiabank Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.02.26 — Toronto, ON @Scotiabank Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.03.26 — Detroit, MI @ Little Caesars Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.06.26 — Boston, MA @TD Garden* (SOLD OUT)
10.07.26 — Boston, MA @TD Garden* (SOLD OUT)
10.09.26 — Charlotte, NC @ Spectrum Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.10.26 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.11.26 — Nashville, TN @ Bridgestone Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.13.26 — Atlanta, GA @ State Farm Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.16.26 — Austin, TX @ Moody Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.17.26 — Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.19.26 — Denver, CO @ Ball Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.21.26 — Salt Lake City, UT @ Delta Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.23.26 — Seattle, WA @ Climate Pledge Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.24.26 — Vancouver, BC @ Rogers Arena* (SOLD OUT)
10.27.26 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.28.26 — San Francisco, CA @ Chase Center* (SOLD OUT)
10.30.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
10.31.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
11.01.26 — Los Angeles, CA @ Intuit Dome* (SOLD OUT)
* with Alex G

Brandon Flowers (The Killers) news

Island Records
The Killers’ Brandon Flowers will release THRASHER, his first solo album in over a decade, August 21, via Island Records. Recorded in Nashville at Historic RCA Studio A with longtime producers Shawn Everett and Jonathan Rado, THRASHER features Gillian Welch collaborator David Rawlings on guitar, pedal steel player Bruce Bouton, and 85-year-old Charlie McCoy, the harmonica player whose playing is heard on all four of Bob Dylan’s Nashville records.

Rooted in his formative childhood years in the small town of Nephi, Utah, the first single from the album, “Plans” is available now. It is accompanied by a special live performance video “Plans (Live From Historic RCA Studio A).”

Brandon has also revealed touring plans for September and October in support of THRASHER. All dates below and on sale.

Watch the video of “Plans” live from Nashville
Stream “Plans” from THRASHER

Though Americana and Western stylings have often mingled with the alternative traditions in The Killers’ DNA as far back as their 2006 sophomore outing Sam’s Town all the way on to Pressure Machine, Flowers found that he’d tapped a new, rich vein of his songwriting: “As I’ve gotten older, I’ve found my way back to my father’s music - ‘Country-Western’ (as he called it) - and discovered that the stories I carry really feel most at home in the skin of this beautiful American tradition,” he says.

Track listing:

Does It Ever Cross Your Mind?
One Of Us
Tiger’s Blood
Plans
Paradise
Miss America
Angel
The Red Ground
In A Heartbeat
An American Dream

Tour dates:

September 1st - The Van Buren - Phoenix, AZ
September 4th - John Anson Ford Theatre - Los Angeles, CA
September 5th - Fox Theater - Oakland, CA
September 7th - Roseland Theater - Portland, OR
September 8th - Vogue Theatre - Vancouver, BC
September 9th - Showbox - Seattle, WA
September 11th - Red Butte - Salt Lake City, UT
September 12th - Ogden - Denver, CO
September 15th - Palace Theatre - St Paul, MN
September 16th - The Riviera Theatre - Chicago, IL
September 18th - Brooklyn Paramount - Brooklyn, NY
September 20th - 9:30 Club - Washington, DC
September 21st - Franklin Music Hall - Philadelphia, PA
September 23rd - Roadrunner - Boston, MA
September 24th - HISTORY - Toronto, ON
October 2nd - Austin City Limits - Austin, TX
October 6th - Wynn Encore Theater - Las Vegas, NV
October 14th - Bournemouth O2 Academy - Bournemouth, UK
October 15th - Royal Albert Hall - London, UK
October 17th - Bristol Beacon - Bristol, UK
October 18th - Nottingham Rock City - Nottingham, UK
October 20th - O2 Apollo Manchester - Manchester, UK
October 21st - Barbican - York, UK
October 23rd - O2 Academy Glasgow - Glasgow, UK
October 24th - O2 Academy Birmingham - Birmingham, UK
October 27th - Olympia Theatre - Dublin, Ireland

Almost Monday confirms fall album, latest single, tour

Hollywood Records
Since I interviewed the band earlier in the year (see elsewhere on this blog), I'm very interested in hearing the new material...

Almost Monday announce their new single and video “delicate,” out now, alongside their upcoming headline tour. Tickets went on sale today; purchase HERE.

“Delicate” offers another look into the band’s forthcoming sophomore album THANK GOD IT’S ALMOST MONDAY, arriving September 9. Building on previous singles “skinny dip” and “no more regrets” the track leans into a more defined sense of storytelling and perspective while maintaining the band’s signature energy. 

“In a lot of ways, the song is an elevator pitch for a short story,” the band shares. “We’ve always been so inspired by filmmakers and world builders. So ‘delicate’ is a tongue-in-cheek, wink-at-the-camera-esque journey of a guy who wakes up feeling overly confident, only to discover just how fragile his ego truly is.”

The official video, directed by Sean Schmitt, was captured on the road and features tour footage from across multiple cities and locations, offering a behind-the-scenes look at life on tour while visually reinforcing the song’s themes.

Alongside the release, almost monday have announced a new run of headline dates across the U.S. and Canada, set to follow their current tour with Young the Giant and Cold War Kids. The upcoming headline run places the band at the top of the marquee across markets, following previously sold-out headline tours in the U.S., UK, and Europe.

“‘THANK GOD IT’S ALMOST MONDAY’ is our second studio album. We made this during the best and worst year of our lives. It’s the result of an honest life lived; the highs, the lows, the pain, and the joys are all there on this record,” the band shares.

Written after a period of constant touring and life on the road, the album reflects what the band describes as both the best and hardest year of their lives, balancing career highs with more personal challenges. The record pulls from those experiences, with themes of growth, distance, and self-reflection surfacing naturally over time.

The album’s visual identity mirrors this shift in perspective, reflecting the tension between intimacy and expansiveness, and between where you’ve been and where you’re headed. Single artwork focuses on macro, close-up imagery that highlights small, easily overlooked details, reinforcing the idea that seemingly minor moments can hold greater meaning. In contrast, the album cover pulls back into a wider frame, placing subjects within a more expansive landscape. Together, the visuals underscore the balance between intimate, day-to-day experiences and the broader sense of growth and possibility that defines the album.

Onstage, almost monday has appeared at major festivals including Lollapalooza, BottleRock, Life is Beautiful, as well as iHeartRadio’s 98.7 ALTer EGO. They’ve opened arenas for AJR, toured globally with The Driver Era and The Band CAMINO, sold-out their own headline tour across the U.S., UK, and Europe and were nominated for Best New Alternative Artist at the 2026 iHeart Music Awards. In 2024 they released their debut album DIVE.

To date, the trio has over 1.5B streams, a late-night TV debut on Jimmy Kimmel Live!, collaborations including Sofi Tukker on “broken people,” Jordana on “jupiter” and work with producers behind OneRepublic and The Killers.

Track List:

1. thank god it’s almost monday
2. delicate
3. class a
4. no more regrets
5. superprism
6. fade
7. losing streak
8. leaving is easy
9. buzz
10. skinny dip
11. enjoy the ride
12. french kids
13. better late than never

North American headline tour dates:

9/27: Hartford, CT @ The Webster
9/29: Amherst, MA @ The Drake
9/30: Portsmouth, NH @ 3S Artspace
10/2: Montreal, QC @ Ausgang Plaza
10/3: Toronto, ON @ Mod Club
10/4: Hamilton, ON @ Bridgeworks
10/6: London, ON @ Rum Runners
10/9: Winnipeg, MB @ Park Theatre
10/11: Edmonton, AB @ Double Dragon
10/12: Calgary, AB @ Commonwealth
10/14: Vancouver, BC @ The Pearl
10/16: Seattle, WA @ Neptune Theatre
10/17: Boise, ID @ Knitting Factory
10/19: San Francisco, CA @ Castro
10/20: Los Angeles, CA @ Belasco
10/22: San Diego, CA @ Observatory
10/23: Phoenix, AZ @ Van Buren
10/24: Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theatre
10/26: Oklahoma City, OK @ Beer City Music Hall
10/27: Dallas, TX @ AM/FM
10/28: Austin, TX @ Scoot Inn
10/31: Atlanta, GA @ Center Stage
11/1: Charlotte, NC @ Underground
11/4: Silver Spring, MD @ Fillmore
11/6: Boston, MA @ Paradise
11/7: Philadelphia, PA @ TLA
11/8: New York, NY @ Irving Plaza
11/10: Grand Rapids, MI @ Elevation
11/13: Chicago, IL @ House of Blues
11/14: Minneapolis, MN @ Fine Line Cafe
11/15: Madison, WI @ Majestic Theatre
11/17: St. Louis, MO @ Delmar Hall
11/18: Kansas City, MO @ The Truman
11/19: Denver, CO @ Summit
11/21: Salt Lake City, UT @ The Grand @ Complex