Top 60 Albums of 2026 to Drink Tea To
Hello hello!
Welcome to this year's list of the best 60 albums to drink tea to!
2026 has been a spectacular year for music. I'd argue 2026 has had better output for music than 2024 and 2025 combined.
This year, my music analytics reported that I have listened to over 1,000 artists, and around 500 albums in full. With this, I started creating a list of albums that I'd listen to with tea. Since starting this list, there's 127 albums that paired beautifully with tea.
(Note: The full list is made available at the bottom of this article, with album's listed in alphabetical order)
However, below is this year's list of the top 60 albums that stood out the most, and pair beautifully with tea.
Before we start, below are some observations and guidelines...
Guideline:
Each album on this list may/may not be critically acclaimed. Each album below was selected based on it's flow, production, lyricism, ability to tell a cohesive story, aesthetic, athmosphere, and overall enhanced the emotional mood of the tea session at hand. I have listened to every album on this list, in full.
Observations:
The British and Irish dominated music this year. Across rock, jazz, and singer-songwriter categories, The British had some of the best output in years.
Country music as a mess a whole. There were a few hidden gems in the mix but this has got to be one of the worst years for country.
Rap's lack of diverse and creative output was shocking.
R&B, Soul, and Jazz outshone most music releases this year. The amount of good quality R&B that came out this year, was an unexpected and pleasant surprise.
Indie Pop was elevated more than ever. Indie pop artists were able to make massive-sounding albums on a tight budget, and outshone all other major pop releases.
Surprisingly, older generations also dominated music this year. I'm more than happy to see older artists receive recognition, despite starting out at an older age.
Alright, now let's dig in to this year's top 60 albums to drink tea to!!!
Top 60
60
Album: Confessions II
Artist: Madonna
Release Date: July 3rd
Genre: Dance, Electronic, Pop
Description: Right when you thought Madonna didn't have anyhting up her sleve. This album is fresh, fun, groovy, and plays like a DJ set list. Madonna reminds us why she is the queen of pop.
59
Album: Albatross
Artist: Katie Gregson-MacLeod
Release Date: November 5th
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Pop, Folk
Description: Irish singer and songwriter folk album a vocal peformance that's vulnerable, intimate, and heart-felt. This album's ambience, as well as a folk-Anne Murray-esque vocal performance feels soft, yet solidified.
58
Album: The Apple Under The Sea
Artist: Hemlocke Springs
Release Date: February 13th
Genre: Alternative Pop, Indie Pop
Description: This pop album is unapologetic in its fun, lightheartedness, and quirky delivery.
57
Album: Vol. II
Artist: Angine de Poitrine
Release Date: April 3rd
Genre: Alternative Rock/Instrumental Rock
Description: This French-Canadian rock band delivers an album that's simple, yet fun. It almost feels like going to see a college band in a neighborhood garage.
56
Album: Ride Lonesome
Artist: Beck
Release Date: September 18th
Genre: Pop, Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Rock
Description: Beck delivers his most raw and vulnerable album to date. The gentleness, yet bluntness about his emotions makes this album feel like a warm blanket, yet a mirror being held up to emotions that might not come out until in a quiet and intimate setting.
55
Album: RE/SOLVE
Artist: 2Lot
Release Date: September 25th
Genre: EDM, Electronic
Description: This electronic album is laid-back, yet fun and groovy.
54
Album: Picking Petals
Artist: Lucia & The Best Boys
Release Date: July 31st
Genre: Alternative Pop
Description: This Joni Mitchell-inspired album feels fresh, while feeling like a classic throw-back.
53
Album: Nature's Pill
Artist: Wishy
Release Date: October 2nd
Genre: Indie Pop, Indie Alternative Rock
Description: A modernized take on Arcade Fire, this album's fun and care-free approach feels playful and inviting.
52
Album: Di Hotel Malibu
Artist: Three Marloes
Release Date: May 22nd
Genre: Alternative Pop, Soul
Description: This Indonesian duo brings forth a breezy throwback that feels reminiscent of a 70's blues nightclub while being vibrant, fun, and down-right addicting. I did not want this album to end.
51
Album: Ö
Artist: Fcukers
Release Date: March 27th
Genre: EDM, Electronic
Description: This electronic dance album has a fun quirky carelessness that lightens the mood of any tea session.
Top 50
50
Album: Superbloom
Artist: Jessie Ware
Release Date: April 17th
Genre: Disco, Funk, Soul, Pop
Description: This modernized-disco album contains Jessie's best vocals in years. While making you feel gay and groovy, Jessie Ware perfectly crafts what funk, soul, and pop looks like when combined in the modern era.
49
Album: This Might be Useful
Artist: INOHA
Release Date: September 4th
Genre: Indie Rock, Garage Rock, Alternative Rock
Description: This rock album feels like a throwback to early Nirvana with a level of grunge that feels like you're right there with INOHA while recording this album, in a suburban neighborhood garage.
48
Album: Coming of Age
Artist: Mette
Release Date: October 9th
Genre: Pop
Description: This Paula Abdul inspired 80's pop album is short, sweet, and all-around fun. It's highs are high, and it's lows are vulnerable and impactful.
47
Album: Detour
Artist: Kim Petras
Release Date: May 29th
Genre: Pop, Electronic, Dance, EDM
Description: This hyper-pop adjacent electronic pop album is Kim Petras best album to date, with influences of SOPHIE and Charli XCX drizzled throughout.
46
Album: Cutting The Wings Off a Dove
Artist: Conrad Graham
Release Date:
Genre: Classical, Alternative Jazz
Description: This short classical album has hints of Jazz while highlighting vulnerability.
45
Album: Side Eye III+
Artist: Pat Metheny
Release Date: February 27th
Genre: New Age, Jazz, Funk
Description: This jazz album almost teeters on the line of pop, while still feeling groovy and fresh.
44
Album: Life 1
Artist: Quadeca
Release Date: October 1st
Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Rock, Experimental, Electronic
Description: This is probably the hardest ablum to explain on the list. This alternative album will have you grooving one moment, and devastated in the next. Despite covering a wide-color wheel of emotions, this album's experimentation works in its favor.
43
Album: Kehlani
Artist: Kehlani
Release Date: April 24th
Genre: R&B, Pop, Soul, Hip-Hop
Description: This R&B album sounds like it time-traveled from the early 2000's and landed in our lap. Kehlani perfectly captured influences of TLC, Destiny's Child, and Missy Elliott. This album broughtforth some of the best throw-back hiphop and despite it's lengthy runtime, somehow felt endless in the best way possble. Bravo!
42
Album: Big Disgrace
Artist: Haute & Freddy
Release Date: March 13th
Genre: Indie Pop, Alternative Pop, Art Pop
Description: Is it offensive to say 'mannequin gay' to describe this album? I only ask because 'mannequin gay' feels like the best way to describe this album. This unapologetic pop album is funk, funky, and gives hints of Cindy Lauper, Allie X, and Chappell Roan.
41
Album: Cry Baby
Artist: Vince Staples
Release Date: June 5th
Genre: Rap
Description: This politically driven rap album is one of the freshest albums of the year. The beats are sick, and Vince's flow is jaw-dropping. In a year where Rap felt lacking, Vince makes up for the genre.
Top 40:
40
Album: Poem 1
Artist: Ana Roxanne
Release Date: May 1st
Genre: Ambient, Classical, Alternative Jazz, Art Pop
Description: This artsy album weaves through pop with a stunning atmosphere to back it. While being one of the harder albums in this to describe in greater detail, it would be very accurate to call this album gorgeous.
39
Album: Popstar
Artist: Tinashe
Release Date: September 25th
Genre: Pop, EDM, Dance
Description: Tinashe released a dance-pop album that felt carefree, fun, and groovy. This is a must-listen to album that feels effortless, fun, and will have you head-bopping throuhgout.
38
Album: Emotional Junglist
Artist: Mia Archives
Release Date: July 17th
Genre: Alternative Pop, Electronic, Art Pop
Description: This electronic pop fusion is a heavy-hitter, and one of the year's most overlooked electro-pop albums. This album's emotions are heavy, raw, and still somehow manages to rope it back into a fun and carefree landscape.
37
Album: This Mirror Weighs a Ton
Artist: Interpol
Release Date: August 28th
Genre: Rock, Alternative Rock
Description: This is one hell of a comeback. Interpol came back strong, while singing about the state of the world and the despair that comes through with it. As a disclaimer, this is probably the most depressing album on the list lyrically. It'll throw your mental health in the gutter.
36
Album: Nothing's About to Happen to Me
Artist: Mitski
Release Date: February 27th
Genre: Alternative Rock, Indie Pop, Singer/Songwriter
Description: Mitski, the Indie rock queen, released another masterpiece in her catalogue. While being more rock-based, this album feels more return-to-form for Mitski and is an album you cannot miss.
35
Album: Human Error
Artist: Olēka
Release Date: October 21st
Genre: Alternative Rock
Description: I'd consider this one of the best debut-albums of the year. Human Error is an incredible alternative rock album that flows so effortlessly that you won't want it to end. Oleka's debut is impressive, and creates a hauntingly beautiful atmosphere that pulls you in, and you won't want to let go.
34
Album: ???
Artist: FourTet
Release Date: July 3rd
Genre: Electronic, Low-fi, Ambient
Description: I have no idea how you'd even say this album, much less type it. Copy-and-pasting the name made my computer freeze.... Anywho, this electronic album is cohnesive, expiermental, and laidback enough to meditatie with throughout your tea session. It'll sometimes make you feel like you transformed into an alternate reality.
33
Album: F.I.G.
Artist: Naomi Scott
Release Date: March 20th
Genre: R&B, Pop, Soul
Description: This R&B album feels timeless already, depsite being less than a year old. The hooks are addicting, and Naomi Scott's vocal peformance is memoriable. For breaking out of the Disney shell, Naomi Scott did an incredible job of standing on her own ground and defining herself.
32
Album: Remember The Humans
Artist: Broken Social Scene
Release Date: May 8th
Genre: Alternative Rock, Alternative Pop
Description: This alternative album's vibe is unique and fun. While being reminiscent of Arcade Fire, this album wasn't afraid to lean into its clunkiness and unique production -- which led to an incredible payoff.
31
Album: Cynthia
Artist: Sydney Ross Mitchell
Release Date: February 6th
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Pop, Alternative Country,
Description: This pop/folk album was lush through out. While not re-inventing the wheel by any measure, this album's quality certainly stood out and made for a memorable listen.
Top 30:
30
Album: Vila
Artist: Fabiano do Nascimento & Vittor Santos E Orquestra
Release Date: February 27th
Genre: Somba, Jazz, Classical
Description: This Latin jazz album is a masterpiece all across. The latin strings laced throughout this jazz backdrop makes this album feel personal, and takes you to another world that you wont want to leave.
29
Album: Middle of Nowhere
Artist: Kacey Musgraves
Release Date: May 1st
Genre: Country, Pop
Description: Thank God Kacey leaned away from pop and back into country. This album's laid back production, and the inclusion of Mariachi, made me feel like I was on a bar patio drinking a cheep beer in a Texas summer night.
28
Album: A Rush to Nowhere
Artist: Arima Ederra
Release Date: March 6th
Genre: R&B, Folk, Electronic, Pop, Low-fi, Alternative
Description: This album is a beautiful fusion of glossy melodies that feel, raw, honest, and nostalgic. The 80's nad 90's influence on this album was done beautifully, and made the feeling of loss feel pretty and memorable.
27
Album: A Mile South of Heaven
Artist: Jess Williamson
Release Date: October 9th
Genre: Country, Singer/Songwriter
Description: This is a country album that would make Loretta Lyn smile upon listening. While being one of the other most raw and depressive albums on this list, Jess Williamson reminds us all why Country music can be beautiful, poetic, and the perfect space to open your heart without filter.
26
Album: Pylon
Artist: beabadooee
Release Date: September 18th
Genre: Alternative rock, Pop, Singer/Songwriter
Description: This alternative pop-rock album is one of the most thematically consistent albums on the list, and is most certainly Beabadooee's best album to date.
25
Album: Fell Asleep in the Sun
Artist: After
Release Date: September 18th
Genre: Pop
Description: This Y2K heavily inspired album is glittery, lighthearted, and nostalgic for ending the year of 1999 and going into the year 2000. The Y2K aesthetic is done beautifully, and can't imagine anyone doing it better.
24
Album: Death in the Business of Whaling
Artist: Searows
Release Date: January 23rd
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Pop
Description: This album's lyricism and production is buttery-smooth, while providing heavier hitting themes that draws your attention in and does not let go. While being virtually unheard of, this album is a must-listen.
23
Album: Some Small Fortune
Artist: corto.alto
Release Date: September 4th
Genre: Jazz, Alternative Rock, Electronic, Ambient Pop
Description: This expiermental jazz album hits a home-run. While touching base on pop, electronic, etc..., this album's fusions paid off and ended up being one of the most beautiful albums of the year.
22
Album: Gentelwoman
Artist: Cleo Sol
Release Date: August 20th
Genre: R&B, Singer/Songwriter, Soul
Description: This R&B album was smooth, sexy, and reminiscent of a modernized SADE. While Cleo Sol is not a new voice in music, an album of this caliber definitley made her artistry feel fresh and new. My only complaint, is that this album wasn't two hours long, and the mainstream heavily slept on it.
21
Album: Songs for Sinners
Artist: Moses Boyd
Release Date: October 30th
Genre: Jazz, Soul, Gospel
Description: This is another jazz masterpiece, that's filled with gospel and soul influences. Through out the album, I felt like I was in a church in a Tyler Perry movie. Now, hopefully that didn't turn anyone away from this album, because this album was beautifully made throughout. You could hear Moses Boyd's love and passion for music, which made for a memorable listen.
Top 20:
20
Album: You're Gonna Need a Little Music
Artist: Yard Act
Release Date: July 17th
Genre: Alternative Rock, Alternative Pop, Spoken Word
Description: This alternative rock album felt fresh, and the experminental with the spoken word lyrics landed to help make chaos feel melodic.
19
Album: Ricochet
Artist: Snail Mail
Release Date: March 27th
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Pop
Description: This album's smoothness and gentleness makes this a must-have for your next tea session, while easily being Snail Mail's best album to date.
18
Album: Essam
Artist: Imarhan
Release Date: January 16th
Genre: Folk, Blues, Psychedelic Alternative Rock, Ambient
Description: This album felt like backpacking in the desert while singing folk songs around the campfire with a few close friends. The ambiance, the aesthetic, and the melodies made this album feel fun and nostalgic. If only drinking tea in the desert star-studded sky was an experience we could all have....
17
Album: Heaven 2
Artist: Lala Lala
Release Date: February 27th
Genre: Indie Pop, Electronic
Description: This moody electronic pop album was jam-packed with nostalgia, while showing us how massive you can sound while on a small production budget. This has got to be one of the best written indie pop albums of the year.
16
Album: Jazz Dreams
Artist: Fine
Release Date: October 23rd
Genre: Folk, Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Blues
Description: This is not a jazz album, but rather, one of the most stunning singer/songwriter pop-blues fusion released of the year while taking influence from Mazzie Star.
15
Album: Say a Prayer to the Gods of Getting Going
Artist: Squirrel Flower
Release Date: August 21st
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Pop-Rock
Description: This album blends Caroline Polachek and Weyes Blood, while being sung over soft rock with heavy lyrics that feels larger than life with its themes of love.
14
Album: Day and Night
Artist: Carly Rae Jepsen
Release Date: September 18th
Genre: Pop, Funk
Description: Pop's reigning queen released a double-album that is funky, smooth, and overall fun. Despite being as long as some movies, this album's use of reverb created an atmosphere that makes you wonder why Carly isn't more famous. The use of saxophone throughout out the album is juicy, sensual, and memorable. Despite being a double album, it still doesn't feel like enough.
13
Album: Blue Morpho
Artist: Ed O'Brien
Release Date: May 22nd
Genre: Singer/Songwriter, Alternative Rock
Description: Ed O'Brien's 2nd solo album is a masterpiece. Radiohead's lead guitarist took inspiration from the band's discography to create a beautiful rock album that was endlessly enjoyable throughout. It honestly makes you question why Ed O'Brien didn't pursue a solo career with more force.
12
Album: Nocturne
Artist: Wasia Project
Release Date: September 18th
Genre: Alternative Rock, Blues, Singer/Songwriter, Pop, Electronic
Description: This is one of the moodiest and atmospheric albums of the year. With a voice that sounds adjacent to Maggie Rogers, this album's production felt massive, heavy, and overall luscious. This is not an album -- this is a journey that takes you from electro-rock heavy beats and takes you to classical-blues harmonic soundscapes.
11
Album: Lost Weekend
Artist: Phoebe Bridgers
Release Date: August 14th
Genre: Pop, Singer/Songwriter, Electronic
Description: Phoebe Bridgers album battling grief is an album that's raw and open. While battling the grief of losing her father, she also sings about losing touch with people she once loved and losing them to the past. This album's theme and production was consistent throughout, and made for Phoebe's best work yet.
Top 10:
The top 10 albums will be announced weekly until the end of year, on social media!
Following me at @theoolongdrunk on instagram or tiktok to catch the top 10.
tay tuned to see if your favorites made the top 10!
10
Album: You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl So In Love
Artist: Olivia Rodrigo
Release Date: June 12th
Genre: Pop
Description: Olivia Rodrigo's artistry has leaped a massive bound with the release of this album by exploring the paradox of love and sadness. The albums starts out with the high feelings of falling in love, while the second half of the album shows how a relationship can create pain while leading up to an inevitable breakup. The structure of the album is refreshing, while the lyrics are raw, blunt, and sometimes strong with a sense of joy and dread.
Top 9, coming soon!!
~
Do YOU see any reccomendations that you recognize?
What have YOU been listening to in 2026? Join the conversation HERE on instagram!!
Thank you guys for sharing tea and music with me this year.
I can't wait to see what 2027 brings for tea and music!
See you there :)
~Cody Wade
aka The Oolong Drunk
"Blissfully Tea Drunk"
~
In case you're looking for more recommendations, below is the full list, in alphabetical order...
A Mile South of Heaven by Jess Williamson
A Rush to Nowhere by Arima Ederra
Age of the Exhibitionist by Rebecca Black
Albatross by Katie Gregson-MacLeod
America! by Orquesta Akokan
And So It Goes… by Liana Flores
Beautiful Madness by Agnes
Big Disgrace by Haute & Freddy
Big Sun by Happy Landing
Bitknot by Feeble Little Horse
Blue Angel Sparkling Silver 2 by Quiet Light
Blue Morpho by Ed O’Brien
Can’t Take my Story Away by Elles Bailey
Castlebeat II by Castlebeat
Coming of Age by Mette
Confessions II by Madonna
Cruel World by Holly Humberstone
Cry Baby by Vincent Staples
Cutting The Wings Off a Dove by Conrad Graham
Cynthia by Sydney Ross Mitchell
Day and Night by Carly Rae Jepsen
Death in the Business of Whaling by Searows
Detour by Kim Petras
Di Hotel Malibu by Thee Marloes
Doctrine of Love by Jalen Nogonda
Embraced for a Second as We Die by Amanda Bergman
Emotional Junglist by Nia Archives
Essam by Imarhan
Experimental Rap by JPEGMAFIA
Feel by Oskar Med K
Fell Asleep in the Sun by After
F.I.G. by Naomi Scott
Frequency of Love by Victoria Monet
Frozen Charlotte by Jack White
Gentlewoman by Cleo Sol
GIỮA MỘT VẠN NGƯỜI (MỞ RỘNG) by Phùng Khánh Linh
God Must Really Love Me by Tori Kelly
Good Grief by Sara Bareilles
Heartsong by Gretta Ray
Heaven 2 by Lala Lala
Here Because of Hope by Ezra Collective
Human Error by Olēka
Hunting What We Already Killed by Dev Lemons
I Built You a Tower by Death Cab for Cutie
I Think I Spoke Too Soon by Rachel Chinouriri
In Bloom by Andrea Bejar
In Endgless Awe & Agony by Diane
In Search of a Revival by The Olympians
Issam by Imarhan
It’s Been Awful by Isaiah Rashad
It’s The Long Goodbye by The Twilight Sad
Jazz Dreams by Fine
Kehlani by Kehlani
Kismet by Matilda Mann
Life 1 by Quadeca
Looking for People to Unfollow by Ecca Vandal
Lost Weekend by Phoebe Bridgers
Love is the Law by Love Spells
Material by Julia Holter
Middle of Nowhere by Kacey Musgraves
Monarch by Set Poet Society
Music, Fashion, Film by Charli XCX
Mutiny After Midnight by Johnny Blue Skies
Nature’s Pill by Wishy
New Racehorse by Media Puzzle
Nocturne by Wasia Project
Nothing’s About to Happen to Me by Mitski
Nothing Really Changes by Katie Gregson-MacLeod
Ö by Fcukers
Pareidolia by Erin LeCount
Peaches! by The Black Keys
Picking Petals by Lucia & The Best Boys
Poem 1 by Ana Roxanne
Popstar by Tinashe
Pure Devotion by Overmono
Pylon by beabadoobee
Queen of Texas by Solya
Q: From Where Do Our Primal Instincts Originate From? A: MTV by Portraits of Tracy
Remember the Humans by Broken Social Scene
RE/SOLVE by 2Lot
Ride Lonesome by Beck
Ricochet by Snail Mail
Romanticize the Drive by Metric
Run, Run Pure Beauty by Francis of Delirium
Salt Catchers by Andy Sheppard, Rita Marcotullia, & Michel Benita
Save As by Ex:Re
Say a Prayer to the Gods of Getting Going by Squirrel Flower
Side-Eye III by Pat Metheny
Sir Render by Navy Blue
So Help Me God by Kelsey Lu
SOMA by Skrillex
Some Small Fortune by corto.alto
Somewhere Good by Tara Clerkin Trio
Songs for Sinners by Moses Boyd
Sunshine by Jungle
Superbloom by Jessie Ware
Swallow! by Shygirl
Swallowtail by She’s Green
Sweet Fortune by Ryan Beatty
The Apple Tree Under The Sea by Hemlocke Springs
The Color of Rain by Aja Monet
The Great Divide by Noah Kahn
The New World by Shearwater
The Way I Saw You by Sari Lightman
The Womack Sisters by The Womack Sisters
This Might be Useful by INOHA
This Mirror Weighs a Ton by Interpol
This Music May Contain Hope by RAYE
Torn by Cobrah
Tragic Magic by Julianna Barwick & Mary Lattimore
Veils by Vanessa Carlton
Victory by Madeon
Victory Garden by Young The Giant
Vila by Fabiano do Nascimento & Vittor Santos e Orquestra
Violins by Blondshell
Vol. II by Angine de Poitrine
Weird by Basement
Wendy Eisenberg by Wendy Eisenberg
When a Flower Doesn’t Grow by Softcult
Where Have All The Good Men Gone? EP by Debbii Dawson
Worst Girl in America by Slayyyter
Written into Changes by Avalon Emerson
Yearnalism by Baby Rose
youbet by youbet
You’re Gonna Need a Little Music by Yard Act
You Seem Pretty Sad for a Girl so In Love by Olivia Rodrigo
?? by ⣎⡇ꉺლ༽இ•̛)ྀ◞ ༎ຶ ༽ৣৢ؞ৢ؞ؖ ꉺლ (Four Tet) b n
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