The weather is picking up at this side of the hemisphere, you spend more time outside, and we all need a soundtrack for that. After the overwhelming amount of outstanding records we received in March, April 2026 was a bit more calm and reserved. Nevertheless, there are quite a lot fantastic albums from last month, and we spotlight some of the finest, as usual, in THE NOISE OF!
Haedrons – Palimpseste
April 2 // Independent
My first thought was that this reminds me a bit of Melpomene and their phenomenal latest album A Body Is Suggestion, and this is already a win in my book. Nowadays, instrumental prog is not particularly thriving anymore, but there are a few outstanding releases here and there. If you like instrumental prog and are as tired as I am of whatever noodling over backing tracks, this is for you.
Cassus – Scalis Felden
April 3 // Dog Knight Productions/Voices of the Unheard
When Separation Anxiety dropped back in 2018, Cassus were one of the hottest skramz bands within the relatively fresh revival of the genre back then. Over 8 years later, this UK band is back with their new album, showcasing with ease that they lost nothing of their mojo. This is an easy contender for one of the best skramz albums of the year.
Herba – tapete roto
April 3 // Hombre Montaña
Commitment – Fear Of
April 3 // Get Better Records
Easily one of the coolest hardcore albums of the year. This feels truly real, if that makes any sense. I believe that those guys are frustrated by the world and that they want radical changes, they wanna destroy injustice. And if a band can convey this authentically, it is the key to a good hardcore album.
deary – Birding
April 3 // Bella Union
Awesome-sounding dream pop from London. Covered in thick layers of haze, but with a charismatic and very uplifting vibe throughout its phenomenal collection of songs. It gets noisy when it needs to, but this is simply a very focused project with some highly talented songwriting.
Wendy Eisenberg – Wendy Eisenberg
April 3 // Joyful Noise Recordings
I love Wendy Eisenberg‘s mix of folk, rock, and jazz, and after the dark and moody Auto and the introspective Viewfinder, her new self-titled feels very cozy and warm, which is a nice and very fitting shade for her sound. Generally, her ability to stick to her sound while constantly progressing the frame of it never fails to impress me.
Radwan Ghazi Moumneh & Frédéric D. Oberland – Eternal Life No End ليلة ظلماء ملعونة، كحياة طالبيها
April 3 // Constellation Records
Everything Frédéric D. Oberland is involved in is at least worth checking out, and this collaboration with Lebanese-Canadian artist Radwan Ghazi Moumneh feels very unique in the context of his catalog. Eternal Life No End is massive and packed with details, thickly veiled by walls of noise and textures.
KNUMEARS – Directions
April 3 // Run For Cover Records
Houses We Die In – A Brief Glimpse of Solace
April 3 // Paper Wings Records
Phenomenal nostalgia-core from Austin, Texas. Skramz-flavored without being skramz, this is way closer to ’00s metalcore — breakdowns and panic chords included. I usually feel very meh about those nostalgia-trigger attempts, but this album carries an infectious energy that makes it impossible to resist.
FAINTING DREAMS – Silence of Birds That Rarely Sing
April 3 // Softseed Music
We have been avid fans and supporters of Fainting Dreams for a long while, but these three songs might be the best the project has produced so far. Somewhere between wild genres like art rock and doomgaze, this EP displays the biggest versatility in sound the band and its mastermind Elle Reynolds have showcased so far. If this is any indicator in terms of quality for a possibly upcoming album, I’m beyond stoked.
tolaat – TOLAAT
April 9 // Independent
Got this recommended by a friend who used to be in a band with the person behind this project. Very unique mix of genres like post-punk, goth rock, and blackgaze. Feels very distinct and fascinating, and even if I’m not a fan of neither post-punk nor goth rock, tolaat makes it work.
Mei Semones – Kurage
April 10 // Bayonet Records
Sugar Horse – Not A Sound In Heaven
April 10 // Fat Dracula Records
Also one of those bands we have a long history of coverage with because there is simply nothing out there like Sugar Horse. I wasn’t super into The Grand Scheme of Things, but the raw, very dark and angry approach of Not A Sound In Heaven. The noisy production is an interesting choice, which didn’t resonate with everyone (check our review for more info on that), but this album works for me and it really fucks.
Poly-Math – Something Deeply Hidden
April 10 // The Laser’s Edge
Hannah Featherstone – The Space In Between
April 10 // Most Least
One of those records I only briefly scanned through in the beginning to get a grasp for it, but something I’m coming back to time and time again. This is very glassy and ethereal, but absolutely majestic: vocal jazz built upon trip hop-ish beats and delicate ambient soundscapes.
Paperclip Minimiser – Topology Transform
April 10 // Blank Mind
Experimental, ambient dub you can basically taste. Listening to tis with good headphones unravels beats and glitches that drill right into your brain, and some of them made my jaw clench. I personally love when electronic music does that, and I’m a sucker for sound design, so this new project by Manchester-based producer Paperclip Minimiser is right in my wheelhouse.
Guests – Common Domestic Bird
April 10 // World of Echo
Man Band – Strong Man
April 17 // Independent
This is the new band by two of the guys who used to be part of British doom/sludge band OHHMS, and I always liked them. With Man Band, you can still hear little specks of their old band, but this new project is way closer to punk and hardcore, with a good chunk of dirt and sleaze.
Marta Sánchez – For The Space You Left
April 17 // Out Of Your Head Records
This is jazz, which is a bit more on the wild side without being super noisy or all over the place, which is kind of a rare trait. In the blink of an eye, this goes from sweet and nice to spooky and borderline uncomfortable, which makes listening to For The Space You Left a very interesting experience.
gif. from god – Dissimulation
April 17 // Prosthetic Records
TEEN SUICIDE – Nude descending staircase headless
April 17 // Run For Cover Records
I’ve been on the TEEN SUICIDE train (that sounds wrong) for a long time now, and stuck with them when they changed their name to American Pleasure Club a few years back. They ultimately reversed their name change, and their noise rock-drenched, dreamy, and hazy indie rock is as infectious as when they hooked me on their sound all those years ago. Also, I want new Ricky Eat Acid.
Meitei / 冥丁 – AGATE / 瑪瑙
April 17 // KITCHEN. LABEL
Mylingar – Út
April 17 // Amor Fati Productions
Just recently, I published an article called Brutalité Sophistiquée, where I talked about artistically sophisticated extreme metal. Mylingar‘s new album would have been a pretty awesome addition. Dark and dissonance, but very elegant and dense.
Kathryn Mohr – Carve
April 17 // The Flenser
Stalled – Pave Desire
April 17 // Independent
I got this recommended by our writer Colleen shortly after it came out, and I’ve been obsessed with this album ever since. Gazy, noisy post-hardcore with a lot of dirt, but generally carried by awesome energy and vibrancy. Love this album.
Gia Margaret – Singing
April 24 // Jagjaguwar
Nequient – Avarice
April 24 // Nefarious Industries
Friko – Something Worth Waiting For
April 24 // ATO
I was hyped for a new Friko album, but found myself be a bit disappointed because this new album didn’t feel as artsy as Where we’ve been, Where we go from here. I didn’t give up on Something Worth Waiting For, and it managed to impress me in much more subtle ways. This album feels very nostalgic and kinda British, which is weird for a Chicago band, but here we are.
THE PRESTIGE – Isthmos
April 24 // BANSHIES
I was trying to scratch that Devil Sold His Soul itch for a while now, and this type of mid-tempo, atmospheric post-hardcore is just not super common these days, so when I got my hands on Isthmos, the new album by French outfit THE PRESTIGE, and heard how those guys put some Every Time I Die-flavored riffs in there, I knew I came to the right place.
Roman Candle – UNADULTERATED
April 24 // Sumerian Records
Sumerian Records isn’t particular my favorite label around, quite the contrary — I feel it’s a very opportunistic, very ‘let’s keep bad label clichés alive’ label. I was very surprised to see Las Vegas-based skramz/metalcore band Roman Candle on that label, but hey, I’m a man of pragmatism much more than of principle, so one of the coolest skramz records of the year apparently comes from Sumerian Records. Odd, but alright.
Fatboi Sharif & Child Actor – Crayola Circles
April 24 // BackwoodzStudioz
April wasn’t a particularly strong month for hip hop, at least for my taste, so of course, BackwoodzStudioz had to swing in and save the day. With New Jersey rapper Fatboi Sharif, produced by Child Actor, you got a very wonky and jazzy, kinda trademark Backwoodz-y sound, and I can’t get enough of that.
Fall Of Messiah – Green Lands
April 24 // Dog Knight Productions/Persistent Vision Records/Voices Of The Unheard
Bk Pepper – Pagan
April 24 // Bigo & Twigetti
Last but not least is another gem, which I saw little to no buzz about. Very interesting mix of classical music, mixed with modern electronica and a bunch of other ideas. Epic and tender.
Thanks for scrolling!
