Photos: Charlotte Cornfield by Colin Medley; Mandy, Indiana by Charles Gall; Aquakultre by Mo Phùng; Dry Cleaning by Shervin Lainez
BY Exclaim! StaffPublished May 29, 2026
Last year ended with Heated Rivalry putting Canadian indie rock back into the zeitgeist, and that momentum has carried forward into 2026: a Toronto comedy duo turned the Rivoli into a household name for cinephiles, a pair of microtonal math rock aliens from Quebec became a viral sensation, and Prime Video’s latest hit series features the Beaches as a key plot point.
It’s no surprise then that Canadian artists factor heavily in Exclaim!’s list of the best albums of 2026 so far.
25. Robyn
Sexistential
(Young)
If there’s one person who is qualified to make the existential crisis of aging sexy for audiences young and old, it is 46-year-old Swedish pop star Robyn. It’s not too often that an album full of dance floor bangers comes with a wallop of perspective and wisdom. On Sexistential, Robyn finds a way to make single motherhood via IVF in your 40s club-friendly. The album is sensual and playful, and thoughtful without taking itself too seriously. It’s in that playfulness — and its pulsing rhythms — that it connects across generations.
Francis Baptiste
24. Loukeman
Sd-3
(SDMG)
Concluding his Stardog trilogy, Toronto’s Luke Fenton narrows in on what has made the series compelling thus far. On Sd-3, he hones his distinctively light and playful sampling style without losing an ounce of edge. His signature eclecticism is on full display, but at its most cohesive. There’s an expansiveness to the album, the longest entry in the series, that feels earned and balanced. It’s also Fenton’s prettiest work to date: airy, nostalgic and surprisingly organic. Fenton doesn’t forget to make you dance, while also providing respite, resulting in a joyful and beautifully paced listen.
Scott Simpson
23. Charli xcx
Wuthering Heights
(Atlantic Records)
How could anyone follow the culture-defining moment that was Brat Summer? It’s an impossible challenge, but one that Charli xcx maneuvered expertly by releasing something completely different under the banner of someone else’s creative project. Her Wuthering Heights soundtrack for Emerald Fennell’s sultry adaptation may be the only critically acclaimed part of the film, which, as of press time, is sitting at 57 percent on the Tomatometer. The OST’s redux aura makes for pensive pop draped in gothic goodness, with Charli nabbing yet another viral sound clip in the form of “House,” featuring the inimitable John Cale, while “Eyes of the World” makes excellent use of featured icon Sky Ferreira. As the pop star wades somewhat clumsily into her contentious “rock” era — whatever that means — Wuthering Heights will remain a stroke of her more understated genius.
22. hemlocke springs
the apple tree under the sea
(AWAL)
On her debut album, it sounds like hemlocke springs — a.k.a. Isimeme Udu — has squeezed out several tubes of Crayola Glitter Glue into a cauldron, turned up the heat and concocted a looking glass into the future of pop. The album is thrillingly theatrical, with standout tracks like “head, shoulders, knees and ankles” and “sense (is)” sounding as though Udu took a creative retreat to Chromatica and wrote a rock opera there about Lisa Frank burning in hell. But comparisons are generally useless when nobody is out here doing it quite like hemlocke springs.
Josh Korngut
21. Friko
Something Worth Waiting For
(ATO Records)
Contrary to their album’s title, Friko does not sound like a band content with waiting. The Chicago band race against time, carried by songs about trains, bicycles and hot air balloons, held aloft by the heart-rending blare of Midwest emo given a late-’90s post-Britpop updo. Their sophomore album makes room for more in both membership (the group have added a fourth full-time member) and sound, adding a few well-timed string sections to keep even the quiet parts dramatic. It’s a work of ecstatic velocity that welcomes both those who fly and those who try to.
Eric Hill
20. Fcukers
Ö
(Ninja Tune)
With 11 addictive dance pop bangers in 29 minutes, no album in 2026 is more crushable than the debut full-length from Fcukers. It speedruns through all of the must-haves of indie sleaze: the irony-poisoned NYC swagger of DFA Records, cheerful Y2K throwbacks, a touch of appropriation of global club culture, and the dishevelled glamour of someone who got dolled up and has since spent all night partying in a chemically enhanced fugue state. If you ever attended one of those “indie dance nights” circa 2006, this is exactly what it was like.
Alex Hudson
19. Grace Ives
Girlfriend
(True Panther Records / Capitol Records)
When Grace Ives released her debut album Janky Star in 2022, it was a level-up in every way: Ives’s already brilliant, economical songs were suddenly beefier, catchier and smarter without losing any of their fiercely interior charm. On her full-length follow-up, she manages to pull off the same trick twice. Girlfriend is lush and complex, silly and deadly serious, a new high-water mark for ambitious, off-kilter indie pop. From the frothy infidelity comedown of “Trouble” and the champagne-fizz pleasure of “Dance with Me” to the absolutely massive “Stupid Bitches,” Ives has never sounded so in control of her boundless imagination.
Kaelen Bell
18. Softcult
When a Flower Doesn’t Grow
(Easy Life Records)
Softcult’s eagerly anticipated debut album is a testament to the power of embracing your true self. Taking inspiration from Alexander Den Heijer’s quote, “When a flower doesn’t bloom, you fix the environment in which it grows, not the flower,” the Ontario duo, made up of siblings Mercedes and Phoenix Arn-Horn, hold nothing back as they explore queerness, identity and the pervasive effects of patriarchy with some of their hardest-hitting lyrics to date. The duo solidifies their riotgaze sound as they incorporate more grunge and punk elements into their alt-rock-flavoured shoegaze, especially on songs like “Tired!” and “She Said, He Said,” creating soundscapes that strike the perfect balance between heavy and ethereal. Softcult create an environment where they can flourish on When a Flower Doesn’t Grow.
Em Moore
17. Ratboys
Singin’ to an Empty Chair
(New West Records)
On Singin’ to an Empty Chair, Ratboys make intimacy sound like a risk worth taking, even if it isn’t reciprocated. These songs linger like unfinished conversations, full of love, irritation, humour and the ache of your words falling on deaf ears. Rather than tidy up tensions, the band let these songs breathe, drift and flare with both lightheartedness and emotional heft when appropriate. That patience to go between the two modes gives the record its undeniable power.
Kyle Kohner
16. Aquakultre
1783
(Next Door Records)
Lance Sampson had previously established himself as a major force as a rapper, vocalist and songwriter on 2022’s Don’t Trip (one of Exclaim!’s favourite albums of that year). He takes a giant leap forward on 1783, a musically eclectic work that’s both ambitious and perfectly executed. Something of a concept album, it probes the history and culture of black Nova Scotians. He’s assisted by Erin Costelo’s crisp production and guest turns by Measha Brueggergosman, Gary Beals and Haliey Smith, but it is Sampson’s vision, intellect and musical chops that make this a tour de force.
Kerry Doole
15. Mitski
Nothing’s About to Happen to Me
(Dead Oceans)
Cats are misunderstood. They’re deemed aloof for not immediately handing over their trust, and their unwillingness to easily obey rules intimidates people who think obeying commands equates to love. No one understands this better than Mitski, who, like a house cat running amok and clawing at the walls to get outside, delivers her most whimsical and theatrical performance yet on Nothing’s About to Happen to Me. Continuing the lush Western and folk sounds from 2023’s The Land Is Inhospitable and So Are We, with flashes of angsty alt-rock that will satiate old-school fans, the horror lover in Mitski embraces the macabre. For her, the gut-dropping moment of misplacing your phone and feeling like you lost your entire life is on the same level of terrifying as haunted houses, stray wild animals, and visions of the River Styx. Even her softer, not-quite-love songs are clouded with looming anxiety and loneliness. Mitski tells a disconnected story of a woman who flourishes in her own isolation and madness as it destroys her at the same time — nightmarish for most, and for others who understand this paradox intrinsically, a comforting 35 minutes.
Jordan Currie
14. James Blake
Trying Times
(Good Boy Records)
James Blake’s music can be so emotionally heavy it’s difficult to sit with. But on Trying Times, the UK singer-songwriter-producer finds a balance that only comes with maturity. Without compromising the emotional weight of his unique electronic soundscape production, Blake finally found the words to express the existential weight and anxiety that come with living through these trying times. Blending his signature glitchy beats with warm piano chords and a lyric-forward approach, Blake creates a comforting space where emotionally in-tune listeners can easily get lost in his transformative rhythms, while those struggling to find their own voice can find assistance in his words to untangle their feelings. Brilliant guest appearances from Dave and Monica Martin help lift the album’s brightest moments, making this Blake’s most accessible album to date.
Vernon Ayiku
13. Joyce Manor
I Used to Go to This Bar
(Epitaph Records)
Joyce Manor have made a career out of perfecting the two-minute pop-punk song, and after the better part of two decades, the California band are still making the kind of ultra-catchy music that instantly grabs listeners. Their seventh album is jam-packed with clean, punchy guitars and explosive sing-along hooks — except, instead of songs about heart tattoos and teenage suburban hijinks, frontman Barry Johnson has switched to a more existential tone, detailing the suffering of friends and remembering the now-distant feeling of being young and careless. Joyce Manor have done a marvellous job of aging gracefully as elder emo revivalists, maintaining their all-killer-no-filler sentiment and nostalgic perspectives.
Chris Gee
12. Aldous Harding
Train on the Island
(4AD)
At a time when so much hyper-confessional pop music feels like parasocial DeuxMoi fodder, Aldous Harding is revealing more of herself than ever before. “I have been watching myself / She can take her stuffing out,” she observes, sauntering in the ego’s rubble on “What Am I Gonna Do?” and staying strong in her conviction to witness a mercurial reality in every shape the twisting, turning, always spellbinding journey Train on the Island takes. It might not bring us closer to concrete details about the singer-songwriter’s taste (“I don’t mean anything,” she insists), but, like the shoddy Blue Man Group-style abstraction of her face on the album’s artwork, the undefined space is the perfect foil: a blueprint for cultivating a personal wisdom universal to humanity itself.
Megan LaPierre
11. Converge
Love Is Not Enough
(Epitaph Records)
With a back catalogue as iconic as Converge’s is, they could be forgiven for resting on its laurels and becoming a nostalgic legacy act; instead, more than 30 years into their career, they’ve produced another essential in the hardcore canon, proving once and for all that they’re some of the best to ever do it. Love Is Not Enough is an absolute barnburner, offering a distilled dose of the emotionally crushing musical outbursts that only Converge can deliver. While the brief runtime may leave some wanting more, Hum of Hurt, the band’s second record of the year, is just around the corner.
Jeremy Sheehy
10. underscores
U
(Mom + Pop Music)
Underscores does not like labels. “Pop, rock, electronic, rap, rock ‘n’ roll,” sings the San Francisco musician on her latest, before underscoring (ahem) her point: “We don’t give a fuck.” Genre-agnostic since her earliest days, U finds singer, songwriter and producer April Grey staring down the mainstream, a byproduct of the post-BRAT pop landscape U lands in. It’s a world primed for U‘s self-referential lyrics and tight production that foregrounds hooks and experimentation. Accessible yet uncompromising, Grey didn’t meet the moment; the moment finally caught up to her.
Ian Gormely
9. Slayyyter
WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA
(Columbia Records)
In the wake of Brat Summer, America’s Midwest hyperpop princess Slayyyter (a.k.a. Catherine Grace Garner) lays claim to this year’s maximalist crown and cranks it past 100. Her third album, WOR$T GIRL IN AMERICA, explores life growing up in Missouri, searching for authenticity in “beat-up Chanels” and chasing down bad crushes. It’s a mix of highbrow and lowbrow on cocaine, where the only guarantee is virality. With her trusty trucker hat and ripped jeans, Slayyyter’s Y2K persona emboldens nostalgia only to have it thrown in your face as she leans into the razor-sharp sounds of today’s distorted electronic (“$T. LOSER,” “I’M ACTUALLY KINDA FAMOUS”). She playfully flits between the two ends of this spectrum with dazzling success. Her raw, DIY approach is loud, chaotic, high-energy and perfectly executed. The star power is undeniable, and explains why she was among 2026’s breakout stars at Coachella. She may label herself the worst, but she’s proven herself the best.
Dylan Barnabe
8. Bibi Club
Amaro
(Secret City Records)
Bibi Club’s Amaro is an album born of love and tragedy. On their bilingual third LP, the pair display an intimate bond that makes Adèle Trottier-Rivard’s tender vocals and Nicolas Basque’s intricate guitar lines merge seamlessly. Yet, it is the duo’s darkest and heaviest album to date, both lyrically and sonically. Death runs like a recurring theme throughout the record, though the band channel their grief into something visceral and powerful, as shown by the euphoric club vibe of the title track and the poignant “Washing Machine.” Drawing from darkwave and gothic pop, Amaro is a majestic statement about life and beauty, and how they often reside in the darkest of places.
Bruno Coulombe
7. Neurosis
An Undying Love for a Burning World
(Neurot Recordings)
In what seemed like the impossible, Neurosis have returned a decade later with their most cathartic offering in An Undying Love for a Burning World. The album sees the band revisit their sludge metal roots in a modern context; the slow, methodical nature of their latter catalogue has been traded in for the walls of sound and punishing riffs that define the band’s golden era. It is a record that calls for community and connection in times of immense isolation and divisiveness. With the rise of global fascism more terrifying than ever, Neurosis’s An Undying Love for a Burning World is a necessary musical outlet.
Mark Tremblay
6. Isaiah Rashad
IT’S BEEN AWFUL
(Top Dawg Entertainment / Warner Records)
Isaiah Rashad’s highly anticipated return from hiatus, aptly titled IT’S BEEN AWFUL, is as much about the pitfalls of the past as it is about acceptance and optimism moving forward. Deeply cathartic and unwaveringly vulnerable, this album is an introspective exploration of Rashad’s battles with substances, mental health and identity, all wrapped into his most tightly written project to date. Sonically fresh, jumping from southern hip-hop staples to lo-fi bedroom pop duets, it stays true to his sound and more than lives up to the hype built in his absence.
Wesley McLean
5. Mandy, Indiana
URGH
(Sacred Bones Records)
Decades, even centuries from now, when someone asks what 2026 sounded like, you (or some digitized version of you) would be hard-pressed not to play them Mandy, Indiana’s sprawling, enraged URGH. A vulgar, callous, often indifferent world deserves its foil — something ugly but brazen, beautiful but acerbic. From its shattered musical palette, filled with noise and billy woods, to the French and English lyrics antagonizing complacency and conformism, URGH demands action and self-scrutiny. “Illegitimi non carborundum” (“Don’t let the bastards grind you down”) is a beautiful sentiment; on URGH, Mandy, Indiana boldly and bluntly ask, What are you going to do about it?
Marko Djurdjić
4. Dry Cleaning
Secret Love
(4AD)
London post-punk quartet Dry Cleaning are at their most focused on their Cate Le Bon-produced third record. With subdued poise, in her signature spoken-word style, vocalist Florence Shaw spirals out from mass misinformation (“Hit My Head All Day”), protests against gendered domestic labour (“My Soul / Half Pint”), savours carcinogenic warm meals (“Evil Evil Idiot”) and denounces the “muscle cult” of toxic masculinity (“Joy”). Secret Love lays out an expansive patchwork of modern anxieties and acknowledgment of the forces we can’t control, stitched together by jangly guitars, groovy basslines and a little bit of optimism for the future. Despite the chaos of modern life, Dry Cleaning kindly remind us on the album’s cheerier closing track, “Don’t give up on being sweet.”
Payton Knox
3. Kneecap
FENIAN
(Heavenly Recordings)
Revelling in the media circus surrounding their music and activism, Irish hip-hop trio Kneecap’s second album can’t be contained. With influences spanning gangsta rap and techno, the album is performed in Irish, English and Arabic. FENIAN‘s lyrics demand reconciliation for Ireland’s national intergenerational trauma while bridging solidarity with the people of Palestine. Opposing British colonial rule and advocating for the survival of their language, Kneecap have been credited with reviving Irish culture amongst the country’s youth. Politically charged and articulate, they express themselves with absurd wit, even including chants of “Free Mo Chara” recorded outside rapper Mo Chara’s terrorism trial.
Emma Schuster
2. Charlotte Cornfield
Hurts Like Hell
(Next Door Records / Merge Records)
It takes a village on Charlotte Cornfield’s sixth record. Marking her first release since the birth of her daughter in 2023, the Toronto-hailing singer-songwriter navigates beginnings (“Bloody and Alive”) and endings (“Living with It”) through country-infused, finger-plucked guitar and open-hearted clarity. Joined by a star-studded group of collaborators (including Feist and Big Thief’s Buck Meek) and a full backing band, Hurts Like Hell is a testament to the grounding power of community — but it’s Cornfield’s singular brilliance that proves that lightning can indeed strike twice. It’s time we stopped gatekeeping Canada’s best-kept secret.
Karlie Rogers
1. Angine de Poitrine
Vol. II
(Spectacles Bonzaï)
Yes, Angine de Poitrine. Ever heard of them?
From the moment these two masked Quebecers ripped it up on KEXP, everyone has been throwing up pyramid signs and chanting “Sébastien!” But we know how viral videos work; if their sophomore LP wasn’t this visceral, inventive and genuinely bizarre, they’d already been filed away with Ken Bone.
But when was the last time something this funky and tightly wound, ridiculous and technically complex, captured the attention of both high-minded critics like former Village Voice editor Jon Pareles and regressive rockists like YouTuber Rick Beato?
Comparisons to Frank Zappa, the Residents and Primus are inevitable, given their level of musical dedication and absurdity. But the more apropos comparison might actually be Aphex Twin. Because, beneath the costumes and looping pedals, lies a similarly sound approach to composition, structure and melody. Vol. II is the ultimate testament that, beyond the hype, the proof is always in the pouding chômeur.
Daniel Sylvester
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