I have decided to start sharing covers released in 2026 as I find them instead of compiling a year-end list like I did for 2025.
First up is Seventh Day Slumber’s heavy rendition of the Elevation Worship song “Praise.”
Five Songs I’m Obsessed With [6/29 – 7/5]
Silverstein + Story of the Year: Camp Screamo Tour 2026
Canadian post-hardcore outfit Silverstein has announced the “Camp Screamo Tour.” Featuring fellow post-hardcore act Story of the Year as co-headliners, and Origami Angel as support, this summer run kicks off July 12th in Asbury Park. Tickets on sale at silversteinmusic.com and storyoftheyear.net! Story of the Year is also offering VIP.
- 7/12 – Asbury Park, NJ – Stone Pony Summer Stage
- 7/14 – Charlotte, NC – The Fillmore
- 7/15 – Norfolk, VA – The NorVa
- 7/17 – Lexington, KY – Manchester Music Hall
- 7/18 – Davenport, IA – Capitol Theatre
- 7/19 – Kansas City, MO – VooDoo Lounge
- 7/21 – Council Bluffs, IA – Stir Concert Cove: Harrah’s Council Bluffs Casino & Hotel
- 7/22 – Denver, CO – Mission Ballroom
- 7/23 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
- 7/25 – San Diego, CA – The Observatory North Park
- 7/26 – Long Beach, CA – Warped Tour Long Beach 2026
- 7/28 – Tempe, AZ – Marquee Theatre
- 7/29 – El Paso, TX – Lowbrow Palace
- 7/31 – San Antonio, TX – The Espee
- 8/1 – Houston, TX – White Oak Music Hall
- 8/2 – Dallas, TX – The Bomb Factory
- 8/4 – Fayetteville, AR – Ozark Music Hall
- 8/5 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl
- 8/7 – Buffalo, NY – Outer Harbor Live at Terminal B
Train: 25 Years in the Atmosphere Tour
Pop-rockers Train are celebrating 25 years of their second studio album, Drops of Jupiter. The band will be accompanied by their peers in Barenaked Ladies, along with the folk rock artist Matt Nathanson. Tickets are still available at savemesanfrancisco.com!
- 7/8 – West Palm Beach, FL – iTHINK Financial Amphitheatre
- 7/10 – Tampa, FL – MIDFLORIDA Credit Union Amphitheatre
- 7/11 – Alpharetta, GA – Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
- 7/12 – Orange Beach, AL – The Wharf Amphitheater
- 7/14 – Charlotte, NC – Truliant Amphitheater
- 7/16 – Raleigh, NC – Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
- 7/17 – Columbia, MD – Merriweather Post Pavilion
- 7/18 – Wantagh, NY – Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
- 7/20 – Gilford, NH – Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
- 7/22 – Saratoga Springs, NY – Broadview Stage at SPAC
- 7/24 – Holmdel, NJ – PNC Bank Arts Center
- 7/25 – Mansfield, MA – Xfinity Center
- 7/26 – Camden, NJ – Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
- 7/28 – Cuyahoga Falls, OH – Blossom Music Center
- 7/29 – Cincinnati, OH – Riverbend Music Center
- 7/31 – Nashville, TN – Ascend Amphitheater
- 8/1 – Noblesville, IN – Ruoff Music Center
- 8/3 – Bethlehem, PA – Musikfest 2026*
- 8/4 – Toronto, ON – Budweiser Stage^
- 8/5 – Clarkston, MI – Pine Knob Music Theatre
- 8/7 – Tinley Park, IL – Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
- 8/8 – Madison, WI – Breese Stevens Field
- 8/9 – Shakopee, MN – Mystic Lake Amphitheater
- 8/11 – St. Louis, MO – Hollywood Casino Amphitheater
- 8/12 – Kansas City, MO – Riverside Amphitheater
- 8/14 – Houston, TX – The Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion
- 8/15 – Dallas, TX – Dos Equis Pavilion
- 8/17 – Morrison, CO – Red Rocks Amphitheatre
- 8/19 – Salt Lake City, UT – Utah First Credit Union Amphitheatre
- 8/21 – Phoenix, AZ – Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
- 8/22 – Santa Barbara, CA – Santa Barbara Bowl
- 8/24 – Los Angeles, CA – Greek Theatre
- 8/25 – Lake Tahoe, NV – Lake Tahoe Outdoor Arena at Harveys
- 8/26 – Mountain View, CA – Shoreline Amphitheatre
- 8/28 – Bend, OR – Hayden Homes Amphitheater
- 8/29 – Ridgefield, WA – Cascades Amphitheater
- 8/30 – Auburn, WA – White River Amphitheatre
* Train only
^ Co-headlining with Barenaked Ladies
Female-Fronted Friday: 13 Spiders
When: 2021
Where: Knoxville, TN.
Genre: Hard rock/Alt-metal
FFO: Flyleaf (early), 3 Pill Morning, 10 Years
13 Spiders was originally founded in 2021 by Alicia Hurst. She was the bassist and planned to put together an all-female act, but that didn’t work out. In order to keep the band alive, Alicia opened the door to any musician who was interested. She managed to find a bassist, guitarist, and drummer, yet the position of vocalist was a difficult one to fill. As the author of the lyrics and the vocal melodies, Alicia was pushed to the forefront of 13 Spiders.
13 Spiders’ current lineup consists of Alicia (vox), Mike (bass), Andrew (guitar), and Scott (drums). Real life has intervened and stalled the release of new music, but the band does have songs in the studio just waiting for their producer to get in with Alicia to lay down the vocal tracks! The most recent single is “You,” which dropped in late 2024. They do have an upcoming track entitled “Scarred Innocence.” The song was written as a voice for child victims of sexual abuse and is based on a real-life case that occurred locally to them.
Make sure you follow 13 Spiders on all their socials, as well as your streaming service of choice, so you don’t miss any news or the studio release of “Scarred Innocence” (they have been performing it live).
“You”
“Scarred Innocence” [Live]
Jeffrey Nothing: 202SICK U.S. Tour
Former Mushroomhead vocalist Jeffrey Nothing is taking his solo performance on the road. Jeffrey has been in several projects over the years, but as “Jeffrey Nothing” has only released two albums, 2011’s The New Psychodalia and this year’s upcoming 202SICK.
The 202SICK U.S. tour features special guests Dizasterpiece or October Noir. Tickets are on sale now at nothing-mart.com! VIP passes are available for select shows.
- 7/25 – Houston, TX – BFE Rock Club*+
- 7/28 – Jackson, MS – Hal & Mal’s (Red Room)*
- 7/29 – New Orleans, LA – Southport Music Hall*
- 7/30 – Destin, FL – Club LA*
- 8/1 – Winter Park, FL – Conduit*
- 8/2 – Tampa, FL – Orpheum*
- 8/5 – Spartanburg, SC – Ground Zero^
- 8/6 – Richmond, VA – Ember Music Hall^
- 8/7 – Clifton, NJ – Dingbatz^
- 8/8 – Harrisburg, PA – Capital City Music Hall^
- 8/9 – Rochester, NY – Photo City Music Hall^
- 8/12 – West Chicago, IL – WC Social Club^
- 8/13 – Iowa City, IA – Wildwood^
- 8/14 to 8/16 – Kansas City, MO – Appearing at Crypticon Horror Convention#
- 8/18 – Omaha, NE – Reverb Lounge^
- 8/19 – Madison, WI – High Noon Saloon^
- 8/20 – Cadillac, MI – The Venue Event Center^
- 8/21 – Cleveland, OH – The Foundry^
- 8/22 – Baltimore, MD – Zen West^
- 8/23 – Bensalem, PA – Broken Goblet Brewing^
- 8/25 – Providence, RI – Alchemy^
- 8/26 – Manchester, NH – Bungalow Bar & Grill^
+ w/DieHumane
* w/October Noir
^ w/Dizasterpiece
# Jeffrey Nothing only
The Mostly Music Podcast, Ep. 5: Little Evil 101
Hey, y’all! The latest episode of my podcast is available now! It features the Iowa-based hard rock band Little Evil, who I wrote about a little while back in a Female-Fronted Friday post.
This interview was so much fun! We chatted about their history as a band, their influences, each member’s start in music, the story behind a couple of their songs, and much more. There’s even a (brief) nod to the Backstreet Boys by their guitarist, Bryer 😂
Check it out, and if you haven’t already subscribed, please do so! I have a lot on the horizon for this channel!
Goodreads Reading Challenge 2026 [June]
I’m a bit late with this post, but I’ve been busy with band interviews and preparing to share my most recent one with Little Evil!
I read seven books in June. It was too hot to leave my house (except to work), so I curled up in the A/C and lost myself in someone else’s imagination. Here are the novels I finished with my ratings.
***
1. It’s Not Her (Mary Kubica)
Rating: 4/5
2. Incidents Around the House (Josh Malerman)
Rating: 1/5
3. The Lying Game (Ruth Ware)
Rating: 3/5
4. Malice House (Megan Shepherd)
Rating: 4/5
5. What Feasts at Night (T. Kingfisher)
Rating: 4/5
6. The Silent Patient (Alex Michaelides)
Rating: 4/5
7. Penpal (Dathan Auerbach)
Rating: 3.5/5
***
I am currently reading The Starless Sea (Erin Morgenstern) and The Resting Place (Camilla Sten).
Progress: 40/80
Albums Released May/June 2026
- Cemetery Skyline – Nordic Gothic (Deluxe Edition) [5/1]
- Reaper – Liberation [5/1]
- Sevendust – One [5/1]
- Underground Springhouse – A Noise Without a Name [5/1]
- NVTURES GHOST – I Have No Mouth and I Must Scream [5/1]
- Slaves Wage – Omnia Nova [5/1]
- Scattered Hamlet – Tangled Web [5/5]
- Crashdïet – Art of Chaos [5/8]
- Hillbilly Vegas – Á LA MODE [5/8]
- mothshade – Revenant [5/8]
- The Wandering Willows – The Light & the Dark [5/8]
- Saint Social – Saint Social Live From The Sanctuary [5/13]
- Self Deception – One of Us [5/15]
- The Hollow – The Hollow [5/15]
- Gasoline Invertebrate – Black Lists Matter [5/15]
- Heathensun – Adios [5/15]
- Black Cloud – Life Without Summer [5/20]
- Black Heart Gypsy – Into Darker Times [5/22]
- Valley Lights – Devil May Care [5/22]
- Static Dress – Injury Episode [5/28]
- Dark Divine – Undead Melody [5/29]
- Shinedown – EI8HT [5/29]
- Paul McCartney – The Boys of Dungeon Lane [5/29]
- Baarhus – Songs Under a Darkened Sky [5/29]
- The Cruel Intentions – All Hail Hypocrisy [5/29]
- Whale Watching – Remember to Love Before You Die [6/4]
- Evanescence – Sanctuary [6/5]
- The Red Clay Strays – Grateful [6/5]
- Cruel Mourning – Modern Tension [6/5]
- Christopher Ardra – Saw It in a Dream [6/5]
- seaspyre choir – spiral survival [6/5]
- Makes My Blood Dance – #Z3RO 2 LGHT $P33D! [6/5]
- BLiTZ – Bitter Me [6/12]
- Crown of Nothing – I’m OK [6/12]
- Rice Thief – The Hard Way [6/19]
- Cheap Coffins – I AM MARA [6/19]
- Muse – The Wow! Signal [6/26]
- Nachtmahr – IMPERIVM [6/26]
EPs Released May/June 2026
- Dead Adventurers – Fresh Horrors [5/1]
- Kroke Stoke – Better Late Than Ever [5/1]
- Relent – Suffer [5/6]
- Chatter – Voiceless [5/7]
- Raygun Romance – Cut Me Off EP [5/8]
- Night Signal – In the Beginning EP [5/11]
- Feverlust – American Vitriol [5/15]
- Hands Like Houses – Lótus [5/22]
- Vision Divine – A Clockwork Reverie [5/22]
- Nightwave Nexus – The Incompleteness Paradox Part Two: Farewell Archimedes [6/12]
- Circle of Origin – Gallows [6/12]
- Burning Bouquet – The Rain [6/19]
- Our Frankenstein – Cinema [6/26]
- Vibinstein – Half Way There [6/26]
Mostly Music 