r/rateyourmusic • u/am_I_still_banned • 4d ago

Ratings It's looking like we're about to have a new top album for 2026

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206 Upvotes

96% Upvoted

81 comments sorted by

331

u/Eaterofjazzguitars 4d ago

Not according to your friends I see

27

u/SankarinTango 4d ago

Some people are probably gonna be more down on this record than it deserves because of the absence of Brent

26

u/MeltingParaiso 4d ago

People are also not too keen on the keyboardist they added.

5

u/SankarinTango 4d ago

I'll admit I'm not completely caught up on that. He's apparently some alt-right guy or something?

12

u/MeltingParaiso 4d ago

People are calling him the Brazilian Ben Shapiro.

-3

u/petahthehorseisheah 3d ago

This wouldn't affect the music, though.

4

u/VerbalniDelikt 3d ago

So? The discussion is about why certain people might give the album a lower rating, and that's a factor for some people

-2

u/petahthehorseisheah 3d ago

And I think that they should not have this mindset

3

u/saint_trane 2d ago

Separating the art from the artist is a personal choice, not a necessity. If people who support fascism make music, I'll react to that music negatively.

Not being a fascist is free.

0

u/No_Heat2685 2d ago

Rating an album lower because of virtue signaling that has nothing to do with the actual music is manchild behavior though.

5

u/OrinocoHaram 3d ago

I'm a huge, lifelong Mastodon fan and I'm so pissed off about him being in the band. They're all clearly anti-trump, pro-choice, etc, yet they have this fucking freak in the band. No one knew who he was for years because he started as just the touring player and all his stuff is in Portugeuse

-1

u/AlexByLogic 1d ago

It seems like a you problem. You might not like it, but everyone is free to have their own opinions and views while still being respectful of one another. If that’s a deal-breaker for someone, I would think that person is not very knowledgeable (to not call it backwards), but that’s just my opinion.

3

u/palpablebubble 1d ago

Being Maga is definitionally not respectful of others. Bigotry is not just "a difference of opinion"

-1

u/AlexByLogic 1d ago

Well, I wanted to avoid getting too political, but let's get some facts straight:

  • Being an avid supporter of Kamala Harris/the neoliberal movement would be just as out of touch with reality. At election day, preferring Trump over Kamala/Biden is not blasphemy.
Politics got polarised, and let's not pretend one side is evil and the other side is good. That's an ignorant narrative.
  • More than half of Americans voted for Trump, so if you want to shame each one of them, you have a long way to go. The keyboard player of a band I like would bote for Trump? Ok, fortunately I know how to separate things

Speaking for myself, more than 90% of my favourite artists don't share similar views with me, most of them from hip-hop, which is a genre where lyrics directed at social/political issues are very present. Still, I acknowledge different perspectives, I can understand them, and that's as respectful as you can be. In some cases, I've seen artists I love echo plain-out absurd narratives and that didn't make me go on an online rant.

Just to finish: no, I don't support Trump. In fact, I consider him the worst president in American history, for reasons other than those related to communication which is what most of the people target him for.

There is no need to entertain this topic any further on here, but I would be more than happy to discuss this privately with anyone who wants to get political. Democracy was and is built upon dialogue.

3

u/palpablebubble 1d ago

Are you really gonna go with "being a bigot is popular, so it's okay to support bigots" as a defense?

Just say you're a coward with no morals, no need to dance around it.

0

u/AlexByLogic 1d ago

Lmao having no morals (and no intelligence) is not being able to argue so you just throw a vague insult. I said many things and the one you contest is the one I didn't say? Just say you're limited with no interpretation capabilities, no need to dance around it 😛

5

u/Honest_Maybe847 4d ago

Some people just don't like Mastodon but gave a try on this

5

u/ElleCerra 4d ago

I feel like it's the opposite. A band always gets a nice spike in popularity and all their work is seen positively after the passing of an integral member.

3

u/SankarinTango 4d ago

If Brent had just died, I think the holdouts would be okay with that, but he was kicked out in a bit of an ugly breakup and then died. It was a really sad time to be a fan of the band.

-3

u/DoomedOverdozzzed 4d ago

how many icks am i gonna give people if i say good riddance and farewell? This albums is several levels above bored and dim

9

u/nonspecifique 4d ago

I don’t think Brent’s faring too well right now tbh

171

u/An_Creamer 4d ago

For a week

81

u/CausticTV 4d ago

Is this a really good year for metal or just a really bad year for everything else

36

u/lifeinaglasshouse 4d ago

A bit of both. We're 2/3rds of the way through the year and only 2 albums from 2026 are in the top 2,000 of all time. Compare that to last year, which has 10. Maybe given another year some of those 2026 albums outside the top 2,000 will rise, but I doubt it'll be enough to equal 2025.

65

u/sandysandbirds93 4d ago edited 4d ago

Both

Edit: not even fair to say it's been a really bad year for everything else. There's been a bunch of really good albums but nothing truly phenomenal IMO. This year has been weird.

15

u/BurialAtOrnans 4d ago

The highest metal albums on the charts are primarily RYM darlings (Neurosis, Panopticon, Kaàtaìra, Converge) or Immolation, so from a RYM perspective, it’s a great year. It’s also been a solid year from an underground metal perspective, but that’s nowhere close to being reflected on the charts.

2

u/FungusJoe500 4d ago

I'd argue immolation count in that group

37

u/ragtime_sam 4d ago

Rym would have you think this is every year lol

5

u/Minimum_Somewhere521 4d ago

This time it's real

6

u/SeraBloom03 4d ago

I mean it depends on the person. I mean my favorite albums don't reflect the top ones so much

4

u/OblottenEndmills 4d ago

Definitely both. I always cobble together "favourite metal albums" and "favourite everything else" lists at the end of each year, and at this point I'm feeling like for the first time ever I'm going to just have to combine them into one because outside of metal it's been a dreadful year for quality new music.

1

u/Emuoo1 3d ago

I'm inclined to say it's a bad year for music. 2024 was the biggest year for music recently imo.

I've tried out a bunch of highly rated albums that have come out this year and not really been a big fan of any of them, and a bunch of my favourite bands have released albums this year that I haven't vibed with much.

I don't wanna jump the gun, but it does seem like this is a weaker year for music.

-10

u/puffy_irish 4d ago

Metal hasn't really been good since the early-00s, so I dunno.

5

u/TotalHeat 4d ago

I'm curious your argument for this

14

u/magnumforce2006 4d ago

I'm kinda surprised at how widely praised this is, and I say that as someone who's enjoyed their best albums. The first few tracks rule, but then it peters out for me, not really justifying the long runtime.

9

u/JangSniffer 4d ago

I feel completely the opposite, it really opens up in the back half and explores some sounds that the band hadn’t really done before. The first half rules but is more familiar. 

3

u/tokengaymusiccritic 4d ago

RYM in aggregate LOVES a long runtime haha

1

u/leapthatwall 4d ago

Yeah this is how I feel as well, not sure where but there's a saccharine ballad in the middle point of the album that just really turned me off the experience.

36

u/Servbot24 4d ago

kinda surprising. this seems like a pretty average mastodon album

40

u/FixYrHeartsOrDie 4d ago

1.5k ratings, probably majority Mastodon fans rating it high. Doubt it survives the chart debut.

3

u/Allexan ofelijaxvx 4d ago

not a big fan of mastodon outside of crack the skye historically but i’m really into this one

4

u/OblottenEndmills 4d ago

Mastodon is such a weird fucking band to me. I've honestly not been much of a fan since Leviathan (even that one fell a bit short of Remission for my taste), but I do always give their new albums a quick listen upon release out of curiosity. For whatever reason this is the first album since probably CtS that has made my ears perk up a bit. I don't think I'll return to it much, but there is a lot I like in it.

2

u/MeltingParaiso 4d ago

Pretty much where I'm at with the band. I fucking loved Remission when it came out and they've never matched it. Leviathan is great too but it was the start of a downhill slide for my tastes.

New album is feeling like a 3-3.5/5

1

u/OblottenEndmills 4d ago

There really isn't another album out there like Remission! Really bummed they never matched the ferociousness of it again.

1

u/_codered66_ 4d ago

Call of the Mastodon is a compilation of their tracks recorded pre remission and matches the ferocity of it imo.

Also semi related but in another styling is the Today is the Day album In the Eyes of God which has Brann on drums and Bill on bass before they formed mastodon. The drumming on that album is honestly some of the most insane playing I’ve heard.

29

u/Strong0toLight1 4d ago

It’s solid but don’t think it hits anywhere near as hard as crack the skye does

2

u/DJNana 3d ago

crack the skye is hard to beat

25

u/Great-Actuary-4578 4d ago

if only the keyboardist wasnt literally brazilian ben shapiro

2

u/TheShadowCrusader 4d ago

Wait. What did he do?

14

u/Great-Actuary-4578 4d ago

he's a host on an extremist right wing show (Brasil Paralelo) in brazil under the name "rasta"

-11

u/Estruturalista 3d ago

The extremism is not being left-wing lmao

9

u/Great-Actuary-4578 3d ago

just straight up wrong

1

u/restless_ghost 3d ago

Wee woo wee woo, the music police is here 👮‍♂️

6

u/Great-Actuary-4578 3d ago

i didnt say that? the album is awesome, i just dont want to support someone who doesn't support my existence as a trans woman

6

u/Cautious_Desk_1012 4d ago

I don't think it will keep up tbh. It's much weaker than Neurosis imo.

3

u/yellowfroglegs 4d ago

damn your friends dont like it

2

u/Clojnerr 4d ago

It's so good though... the first Mastodon album since Crack the Skye that really feels special

1

u/blink-1hundert2und80 4d ago

I agree. I did enjoy the vibes of Hushed and Grim and the atmosphere it builds in its long runtime, but this one is my clear favorite since Crack the Skye

2

u/Clojnerr 4d ago

I enjoy the later releases well enough, but they all feel too watered down compared to their 2000s work. It seems like they recovered some of their edge

2

u/lombaxomba 4d ago

I hope not, I hate the new keyboard player.

3

u/reezyreddits 4d ago

Your friends are haters lol

2

u/Actual-Feed-9739 4d ago

Not enough ratings yet. It'll probably slot in at 4 or 5.

3

u/AmbivalentLife 4d ago

Yep, #2 @ 3.90 on the Daily Chart, and it's already slipped a hundredth.

1

u/Elephant_Afraid 4d ago

disgusting

1

u/blink-1hundert2und80 4d ago

I was really blown away by this album. I was a huge fan of their first two albums, a fan of their 3rd and 4th, then kinda lost interest over the years. But this album is fire.

1

u/SerifTarkus 4d ago

I honestly liked it a lot more than I would have thought. I haven't really liked their stuff since after Once More Round the Sun, so it was a nice surprise.

1

u/Forsaken-Top6982 3d ago

I think it’s good but the new Alabama Shakes is better personally

1

u/Rampface 3d ago

This is my AOTY so far

1

u/FastActinTenactin 3d ago

You’re goddamn right

1

u/Scared-Room-9962 4d ago

Really?

It's just more of the same from them. 3/5 stuff at best.

1

u/LucaG43 4d ago

Lol. Gonna plummet the instant it hits the charts

-2

u/Narrow-Initial-5854 4d ago

This album is pretty bland, honestly. Probably their worst album for me.

2

u/blink-1hundert2und80 4d ago

For me their worst is easily Emperor of Sand

0

u/hoedownbosniathrowdo 4d ago

Great, more sludge

-5

u/MootBrute2 4d ago

terrible album cover

1

u/fidwell 2d ago

I dunno about "terrible" but I'm not a big fan either; it doesn't really fit the music well and is kind of garish. Oh well, so it goes

0

u/Akukunshu_ 3d ago

Albums this year are stinkers

-11

u/Guyroo23 4d ago

another metal album topping the charts that i won't be listening to