Monthly Picks | January 2026
Sining Shelter
TONCHI'S PICKS
NO DREAM
ALBUM | Jeff Rosenstock
I tend to relisten to a Jeff Rosenstock album on New Years' Day most years. It isn't really a tradition, I just end up gravitating towards listening to something Jeff Rosenstock had a hand in on NYD for some reason. I chose "NO DREAM" this year, Jeff's pandemic album, and dear god did it hit me hard. It's probably his most viscerally fed up album, using that raw feeling of The World Is A Terrible Place to propel some of the catchiest pop punk melodies I've ever heard. The emotion feels desperate, the riffs arent just huge; they're dance-worthy, and throughout all of the album's grappling with how much everything sucks, it never loses hope. Love for life and the good in humanity make it worth living.
Hazel
SINGLE | Far Apart
There's something in the Swedish water. Slowly but surely this has become one of my favorite songs to ever have a guitar on it. The back-and-forth during the verse, the way it builds up into the hook, the incredibly huge breakdowns after the chorus' screamworthy "silly, silly, silly silly me"... This may be one of the best songs ever written about desperately wanting to impress someone you're hopelessly in love with.
AJ'S PICKS
Pirouette
ALBUM | Model/Actriz
One of my personal favorite releases of 2025, despite only getting into it in early January. It's a raw and honest album that processes queer identity struggles, divine self-acceptance, and religious trauma while voguing out against a backdrop of industrial dissonance and religious self-loathing. Watching the band perform live is just as essential as listening to the album; Cole Haden’s on-stage charisma and love for theatrics are a beauty to behold. Very much a personal and life-changing album for me.
45 Pounds
ALBUM | YHWH Nailgun
A groovy, guttural, and off-kilter collection of tracks that hits harder than anything I’ve heard in a while. Despite being so chaotic and erratic, there's a level of focus that ties the whole project together. Every song brings something so unique that it never gets tiring. Plus, it features some of most pummeling drum work you'll ever hear. Couple that with Zack Borzone’s raw, abstract delivery, it just makes you want to punch a hole through a wall.
GABY'S PICKS
The Reminder
ALBUM | Feist
A treasure unearthed, considering I've heard Feist semi-unknowningly via 500 Days of Summer, the Kings of Convenience album I recommended last year, and more recently, Heated Rivalry. It feels as if I listened to an older sister's songs; dreams and sagely life lessons accompanied by the type of pop rock you have to sneak of the house to get ahold of or witness live. While upon first glance a little messy tone-wise, I'd argue that such amplifies the listening experience tenfold. I truly believe I had discovered this album at the perfect time.
SOF'S PICKS
Passing By
SINGLE | Darsh
darsh - who i believe only started releasing music early last year - is an act to look out for. he’s got this warm, melodic sound that isn’t too polished, but just right. his alternative indie/rnb influences are definitely there, but they’re filtered through a production style that's refreshing and feels unmistakably his own. reminds me of roy blair when i first discovered cat heaven. c : here’s to finding more gems in the wild!