I try to be timely and consistent, but honestly this month got away from me. I'm going to partially blame the Carolina Hurricanes for sucking up a lot of my recent evening free time. If they end up winning the Stanley Cup, it will be an impressive achievement, but not as remarkable as getting me to actually give a shit about sports for an extended period of time. Anyways, setting expectations, the word count on this one'll be a bit light.

May 2026 Monthly Report Playlist:

Lotsa twang and lots of heavy from May.

Click here to listen while you read along below.

Ali Forrest - Learning Love [Indie Rock]

North Carolina produces great twangy indie rock. Ali Forrest is one to watch and if you like Wednesday & MJ Lenderman & the like, this fits right in. "2035" is one of the funniest (and saddest?) songs I've heard all year.

Gun Outfit - Process and Reality [Cosmic Americana]

Twanged out country/folk laced with dreampop delirium.

Long Relief - Win Some, Lose Some [Rock]

This album sounds very Raleigh to me. It's rock'n'roll, but it's got some country & some punk in there too.

Julia Keefe Indigenous Big Band - Incarnadine [Jazz]

Indigenous-led big-band jazz that counts one of my current favorite musicians - Mali Obomsawin (Solo, Deerlady, Lazyhorse) - as a member (the song on this playlist is one of her compositions as well).

Khun Narin - III [Psychedelic Rock]

One of the coolest sounds in modern psychedelic music, this album is entrancing as hell. What makes it stand out is the band's focused use of a fuzzed out electrified phin (traditional three-stringed Thai lute) that might get ya up and dancin'. This one will probably end up on my favorites of 2026 list.

Iglesia Atomica - Low Cost & High Grasa [Heavy Psych]

The Puerto Rican heavy psych trio is back with another burner of a record. If you like instrumental heavy psych/stoner rock (ala Earthless), blaze on!

Baratro - No Comply [Noise/Sludge Metal]

I've tried writing this blurb seven different ways but I'll just keep it simple: this heavy, angry, Italian anti-fascist cello sludge record is one of my favorites of the year.

Sons of Node - Consequence of Abundance [Sludge Metal]

More anti-capitalist sludge that is as heavy as modern life in a rotting empire.

Panopticon - Det Hjemsøkte Hjertet [Atmospheric Black Metal]

Panopticon doing what Panopticon does best - with friends! (e.g. Alex CF doing guest vocals on a track). If you're black metal averse but unfamiliar with the band, give Panopticon a try. It's beautiful and orchestral. It's also anti-fascist black metal, so it's a safe listen in that regard, too.

Masker - Spellbreaker [Electroacoustic Jazzy Post-Rock]

Cinematically intriguing instrumental experimentation. Also, while we're on the topic of anti-fascism for some reason, no earthly idea why that might be, the band's nearly 12 minute interpretation of Bella Ciao absolutely rules.

In case you missed them, check out the January, February, March, and April mixtapes as well.

Shows of Note (for those in central NC)

Mid-June's gonna be busy.

6/13 - Long Relief / Cor de Lux / Chicken Ranch Roadshow (@ Kings)

6/17 - Playboy Manbaby (@ Local 506)

6/21 - Gozu / Restless Spirit / Crystal Spiders / Archaos (@ Chapel of Bones)

6/25 - Slow Teeth (@ Rubies on Five Points)

7/17 - Wailin Storms album release show (@ Stanczyks)

7/19 - Slumbering Sun (@ The Pinhook)

8/5 - The Body / BIG|BRAVE (@ The Pinhook)

9/20 - W.I.T.C.H. (We Intend to Cause Havoc) - (@ Stanczyks)

Global Garage on WHUP FM

Listen live to Global Garage on WHUP every Sunday from 1pm-3pm EST or stream episode archives for two weeks on the WHUP website.

Let's Make A Mixtape Podcast

Targeting September release for Season 3.

Doomsday Profit

6/19 - Stanczyks - Durham (With Weight Shift, StormToker, Crop) [Tickets]

8/28 - TBA (Durham, save the date)

Bite Back!

Thanks for making it this far. I'd love feedback if you have any, please let me know what you think! What would you like to see more of? Less of? What albums did you love so far this year that I've totally missed? What albums are you looking forward to? What shows are you looking forward to?

Until next month. Keep those ears open, keep those minds open, and keep those borders open.

-Ryan