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Bristol Rock Trio Masca Share New Single “Diggin'” From Debut Album ‘Love Letters’

Eric Alper
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Bristol Rock Trio Masca Share New Single “Diggin'” From Debut Album ‘Love Letters’

Masca’s debut album ‘Love Letters’ arrives April 3rd via Cold Hard Bangers, and new single “Diggin'” gives you a sharp, immediate sense of what the Bristol trio are about. It’s rock with a pop sparkle and pop with a rock snarl, and it lands with the kind of political directness that feels entirely at home in the current climate. Vocalist and guitarist Christina Maynard describes it as “a song about not being able to see the other side, getting so entrenched with your own views that you’re unable to take a step back. Left vs right.”

The track features guest vocals from Ellie Godwin of PEACH and Aisling Rhiannon of Sans Froid, two fellow Bristolians who bring additional texture to an already richly layered piece of songwriting. It’s indicative of Masca’s broader approach, glittering melodies sitting alongside blistering riffs, music built for curious minds who also want to move.

‘Love Letters’ covers serious ground across its eleven tracks. “Oxytocin” is a feelgood song Maynard wrote for her young son while pregnant with him. “Fitting In” takes direct aim at billionaires damaging the world. “DWIW” is about working hospitality on minimum wage. It’s an album with genuine things to say, recorded in part at The Louisiana’s basement studio and finished with vocals tracked in a duvet-lined home booth Maynard built herself, fairy lights and all.

Masca formed in 2021 during lockdown, with Maynard and Hamilton livestreaming jam sessions from their tiny Bristol flat just to cover the mortgage. A breakout set at 2000trees Festival followed, a trio completed by bassist Ben Holyoake, and now a debut album that feels like everything that origin story was building toward.

‘Love Letters’ Tracklisting:

Act My Age

Elevate

Love Letters

Oxytocin

Cry Baby

Sucker

Fitting In

DWIW

Bones

Diggin’

Old Friend

Masca Live Dates:

May 14 – Cardiff @ Fuel Rock Bar

May 28 – Luton @ The Castle

May 29 – Brighton @ The Hope and Ruin

May 30 – Southampton @ Heartbreakers

June 5 – Sheffield @ Sidney and Matilda

June 6 – Birmingham @ Sunflower Lounge

Polish Heavy Rockers Misscore Drop Cinematic New Single “Domino” via DarkTunes Music Group

Eric Alper
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Polish Heavy Rockers Misscore Drop Cinematic New Single “Domino” via DarkTunes Music Group

Misscore have been building steadily since solidifying their lineup in 2023, and “Domino” makes it clear the momentum isn’t slowing down. The new single is out now via DarkTunes Music Group, and it’s the kind of track that grabs you immediately, blending modern alternative rock with cinematic darkness and the kind of emotional weight that lingers well after the last note.

Vocalist Natalia Rygiel is direct about where the song comes from: “‘Domino’ was written as a reaction to control disguised as comfort. We recorded it instinctively, chasing tension rather than perfection. The song captures the moment when one small move breaks the illusion, and everything begins to fall around us.” That tension is all over the track, and Rygiel’s commanding vocal performance carries it with real authority.

The band from Lubrza, Poland, features Rygiel on vocals, Mateusz Dźwigała on bass and keyboards, Maciej Przybylski on guitars, and Jarek Bielecki on drums. Drawing from Bring Me The Horizon, Slipknot, and Linkin Park while building something distinctly their own, Misscore released their debut full-length ‘DRᛜWN’ in early 2024 before following it with ‘Hypocrisy’ in May 2025 via DarkTunes, a darker and more mature record that marked a significant step forward for the band.

“Domino” signals the next chapter, and with a full schedule of live dates planned for 2026 and an international fanbase already stretching from mainland Europe into the UK, Misscore’s rise on the global rock scene is gathering real force.

Blues-Rock Singer Lena Morris Bares Her Soul on Live-Recorded EP ‘Rouge’

Eric Alper
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Blues-Rock Singer Lena Morris Bares Her Soul on Live-Recorded EP ‘Rouge’

Lena Morris didn’t go into a studio to polish something. She went in to capture something real. ‘Rouge,’ her second EP and first concept record, was recorded live at Motif Music Studio in Paris, bass, drums, and rhythm guitar all tracked in real time, and the result is exactly as raw and immediate as that approach suggests. It’s out now, and it hits with the kind of urgency that only comes from a band playing in the same room at the same time.

The concept is a five-card cross tarot spread, with each of the four tracks embodying a card and a corresponding emotional state. Nostalgia, passion, anxiety, and acceptance. It’s a framework that gives the EP genuine thematic coherence without ever feeling academic or distant. The songs do the work. The structure just gives them room to breathe.

“Buying a Donkey” opens with a longing for instinctive freedom. “Red” captures the exact moment desire reignites after monotony. “Young Blood” calls back to a younger, freer self as a guide through adult anxiety. “Dancing In Hell” closes the record by choosing to move with fear rather than against it. Four tracks, four emotional states, one fully realized artistic statement. “Red” and “Young Blood” have already accumulated over 86,000 streams on Spotify combined.

Morris also designed and illustrated the cover artwork herself, making ‘Rouge’ a fully self-contained creative vision from start to finish. No autotune, no artificial intelligence, no digital instruments. That’s not just a production choice. It’s a declaration. Inspired by the aesthetics of 1970s blues-rock and filtered through a sharp contemporary sensibility, ‘Rouge’ is the sound of an artist operating entirely on her own terms.

Heavy Metal Band Acidosis Announce Debut Album ‘Arrival’ With Crushing Title Track

Eric Alper
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Heavy Metal Band Acidosis Announce Debut Album ‘Arrival’ With Crushing Title Track

Acidosis have been sitting on something for nearly two decades, and “Arrival” makes it clear the wait was worth it. The title track and opening salvo from their upcoming debut album ‘Arrival,’ due April 27th, is a fast-moving heavy metal statement that wastes absolutely no time making its intentions known. Galloping grooves, relentless forward momentum, and a chorus built to be shouted back at a stage.

The track draws its lyrical inspiration from the alien abduction sequence in cult film Fire in the Sky, using the terror of helplessness and loss of control as an allegory for impending doom. It’s a sharp conceptual choice that gives the song weight beyond the riff, and the riff is already doing plenty of heavy lifting on its own. Reference points like Iron Maiden, Mastodon, and Nuclear Assault give you the sonic coordinates, though Acidosis lands somewhere distinctly their own.

The re-formed lineup features Katzman on bass and vocals, Diego Edsel, Deo Budnevich, and Jonathan Rusten on guitars, and Harry Schwarz on drums. The album was produced by Katzman and Ryan Haft, mixed by Haft, and mastered by Howie Weinberg. Artwork comes from Juan Montoya of Torche, with layout by Perry Shall, whose credits include Green Day and Black Keys. That’s a serious production team for a serious record.

‘Arrival’ is a full-length album nearly 20 years in the making, originally drafted during Katzman’s teenage years and now brought fully to life by a lineup that sounds locked in and firing on all cylinders. “Arrival” is the entry point and the warning shot. The rest of the album follows on April 27th.

Atlanta Psychedelic Doom Explorers Insomniac Hit the Road Behind Debut Album ‘Om Moksha Ritam’

Eric Alper
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Atlanta Psychedelic Doom Explorers Insomniac Hit the Road Behind Debut Album ‘Om Moksha Ritam’

Insomniac’s debut album ‘Om Moksha Ritam’ arrived on Blues Funeral Recordings in 2025 and immediately turned heads in all the right circles. Treble Zine called it “a spiritual awakening.” UK outlet Outlaws of the Sun described it as “one of the most breathtaking and brilliantly surreal pieces of music” they’d heard. That’s a debut making serious noise, and now the Atlanta band is taking it on the road in a big way.

The tour is already underway, with upcoming dates running through May, including appearances at Heavy Metal Parking Lot in Austin and the inaugural Mojave Experience Festival in Joshua Tree. Drummer Amos Rifkin puts it plainly: “We’re champing at the bit to hit the road again in the new year, and especially to be a part of the inaugural Mojave Experience festival in Joshua Tree.”

Howling Giant join Insomniac for a stretch of the run, with Crystal Spiders coming aboard for the April leg. It’s a strong triple bill across the board, three bands operating in overlapping worlds of heavy, psychedelic, and doom-adjacent rock. Reference points like REZN, King Buffalo, and Dead Meadow give you a sense of the sonic territory, though Insomniac’s approach doesn’t sit comfortably inside any single box.

The remaining dates push through the Southeast, Mid-Atlantic, and deep South before wrapping May 9th in Athens, Georgia at the 40 Watt for Expo 2026, celebrating 30 years of Kindercore. It’s a full and ambitious stretch for a band still in the earliest stages of what looks like a very promising run.

Insomniac 2026 Tour Dates:

Apr 10 – Atlanta, GA @ Drunken Unicorn

Apr 15 – Chapel Hill, NC @ Local 506

Apr 16 – Harrisonburg, VA @ Golden Pony

Apr 17 – Morgantown, WV @ 123 Pleasant Street

Apr 18 – Lexington, KY @ Al’s Bar @ Legalize Lex

Apr 19 – Knoxville, TN @ Pilot Light

May 9 – Athens, GA @ 40 Watt @ Expo 2026

Most Streamed Songs On Spotify (Updated For April, 2026)

Eric Alper
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Most Streamed Songs On Spotify (Updated For April, 2026)

Here’s something worth sitting with. “Blinding Lights” by The Weeknd has been streamed 5.354 billion times on Spotify. Not downloaded. Not purchased. Streamed. That’s a number so large it stops making sense the moment you try to visualize it.

The top 50 most-streamed songs in Spotify history are a remarkable cross-section of modern music culture, and what they reveal is both surprising and completely logical once you see it laid out. The Weeknd appears three times in the top 50. Ed Sheeran shows up four times. Bruno Mars lands four entries of his own. These aren’t flash-in-the-pan moments. These are songs that found an audience and never let go.

What’s genuinely striking is how deep the catalog runs. “Yellow” by Coldplay, released in 2000, sits at No. 15 with 3.681 billion streams. “Mr. Brightside” by The Killers, out since 2003, cracks the top 50 at No. 43. “Bohemian Rhapsody” by Queen, originally released in 1975, sits at No. 44 with 3.110 billion streams. Streaming didn’t just change how we consume new music. It rewrote the rules on what “old” music can do.

“Sweater Weather” by The Neighbourhood deserves its own moment here. Released in December 2012, it’s sitting at No. 3 with 4.503 billion streams. That’s a song that took years to fully explode, driven almost entirely by playlist culture and a generation of listeners who discovered it long after its release. That’s the streaming economy in its purest form.

Then there’s “Every Breath You Take” by The Police at No. 27 with 3.408 billion streams. A song from 1983. On a platform that didn’t exist until 2006. If that doesn’t tell you everything about the power of a genuinely great song, nothing will.

Top 50 Most-Streamed Songs on Spotify (April, 2026):

  1. “Blinding Lights” – The Weeknd – 5.354B
  2. “Shape of You” – Ed Sheeran – 4.847B
  3. “Sweater Weather” – The Neighbourhood – 4.503B
  4. “Starboy” – The Weeknd and Daft Punk – 4.459B
  5. “As It Was” – Harry Styles – 4.337B
  6. “Someone You Loved” – Lewis Capaldi – 4.278B
  7. “Sunflower” – Post Malone and Swae Lee – 4.187B
  8. “One Dance” – Drake with Wizkid and Kyla – 4.144B
  9. “Perfect” – Ed Sheeran – 3.900B
  10. “Stay” – The Kid Laroi with Justin Bieber – 3.847B
  11. “Believer” – Imagine Dragons – 3.799B
  12. “Heat Waves” – Glass Animals – 3.713B
  13. “Lovely” – Billie Eilish and Khalid – 3.709B
  14. “I Wanna Be Yours” – Arctic Monkeys – 3.704B
  15. “Yellow” – Coldplay – 3.681B
  16. “The Night We Met” – Lord Huron – 3.678B
  17. “Closer” – The Chainsmokers and Halsey – 3.665B
  18. “Birds of a Feather” – Billie Eilish – 3.611B
  19. “Riptide” – Vance Joy – 3.589B
  20. “Something Just Like This” – The Chainsmokers and Coldplay – 3.578B
  21. “Die With A Smile” – Lady Gaga and Bruno Mars – 3.570B
  22. “Say You Won’t Let Go” – James Arthur – 3.567B
  23. “Another Love” – Tom Odell – 3.502B
  24. “Dance Monkey” – Tones and I – 3.418B
  25. “Take Me To Church” – Hozier – 3.415B
  26. “Counting Stars” – OneRepublic – 3.409B
  27. “Every Breath You Take” – The Police – 3.408B
  28. “Photograph” – Ed Sheeran – 3.368B
  29. “Rockstar” – Post Malone and 21 Savage – 3.357B
  30. “Cruel Summer” – Taylor Swift – 3.303B
  31. “Señorita” – Shawn Mendes and Camila Cabello – 3.285B
  32. “Can’t Hold Us” – Macklemore and Ryan Lewis with Ray Dalton – 3.272B
  33. “Viva La Vida” – Coldplay – 3.262B
  34. “Iris” – The Goo Goo Dolls – 3.256B
  35. “Watermelon Sugar” – Harry Styles – 3.249B
  36. “Die for You” – The Weeknd – 3.213B
  37. “Just the Way You Are” – Bruno Mars – 3.204B
  38. “Don’t Start Now” – Dua Lipa – 3.195B
  39. “Locked Out Of Heaven” – Bruno Mars – 3.151B
  40. “That’s What I Like” – Bruno Mars – 3.131B
  41. “Circles” – Post Malone – 3.121B
  42. “Love Yourself” – Justin Bieber – 3.120B
  43. “Mr. Brightside” – The Killers – 3.115B
  44. “Bohemian Rhapsody” – Queen – 3.110B
  45. “Lucid Dreams” – Juice WRLD – 3.103B
  46. “Goosebumps” – Travis Scott and Kendrick Lamar – 3.098B
  47. “In The End” – Linkin Park – 3.094B
  48. “When I Was Your Man” – Bruno Mars – 3.086B
  49. “Thinking Out Loud” – Ed Sheeran – 3.079B
  50. “Wake Me Up” – Avicii – 3.058B

Hard Rock Legends Giant Reunite Their Original Lineup at Frontiers Rock Festival

Eric Alper
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0
Hard Rock Legends Giant Reunite Their Original Lineup at Frontiers Rock Festival

Giant’s original lineup is getting back together, and melodic hard rock fans have been waiting a long time for this one. The band will reunite at the Frontiers Rock Festival 2026, running May 1st through 3rd at the Live Club in Trezzo sull’Adda, Milan, Italy. It’s a rare and genuinely significant moment for a band that helped define the genre.

The reunion features Dann Huff on lead guitar, David Huff on drums, and Mike Brignardello on bass, joined by vocalist Bryan Cole, second guitarist Mark Oakley, and Larry Hall on keyboards. The setlist draws heavily from the band’s first two albums, ‘Last Of The Runaways’ from 1989 and ‘Time To Burn’ from 1991, records that remain touchstones for the melodic hard rock world more than three decades on.

Giant’s story has never been a simple one. Originally formed by brothers Dann and David Huff in the late ’80s, the band disbanded in the early ’90s before Frontiers coaxed them back for 2001’s ‘III.’ Subsequent lineups kept the name alive through ‘Promise Land,’ ‘Shifting Time’ in 2022, and their most recent studio album ‘Stand And Deliver,’ released in May 2025. A one-off charity reunion in a Nashville club in 2017 reminded everyone just how much this band still matters to its audience.

The Frontiers Rock Festival Platinum VIP Experience includes a Q&A session with Giant, offering fans a rare and intimate look at the band’s history and legacy. It’s the kind of access that makes an already exceptional event genuinely memorable for anyone who grew up with these records.

Ella Langley Takes ‘Dandelion’ on the Road With a 16-Date Arena Headline Tour

Eric Alper
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Ella Langley Takes ‘Dandelion’ on the Road With a 16-Date Arena Headline Tour

Ella Langley has an album out now and a tour to match. ‘Dandelion,’ released April 10th via Columbia Nashville and executive produced alongside Miranda Lambert and Ben West, is her most personal record to date. It’s rooted in growth, lived-in storytelling, and a balance of raw honesty and genuine warmth that hits exactly where it’s aimed.

The album includes “Choosin’ Texas,” which climbed to No. 1 on the Billboard Streaming Songs chart, making Langley just the fourth country woman to top that chart in its 13-year history. It also hit the top spot on both the U.S. Spotify Chart and Apple Music U.S. Songs Chart. Those aren’t footnotes. That’s a legitimate moment for a career that’s been building steadily for years.

“The Dandelion Tour” kicks off May 7th in Toledo and runs through August 15th in Fort Worth across 16 arena dates. Support across various dates comes from Kameron Marlowe, Dylan Marlowe, Kaitlin Butts, Gabriella Rose, and Laci Kaye Booth. Langley’s headline tours have sold out consistently, and these rooms reflect where she stands as a live performer right now.

Beyond the headline run, Langley’s 2026 calendar also includes dates supporting Eric Church’s Free The Machine Tour, additional dates on Morgan Wallen’s Still The Problem Tour, and festival appearances. It’s a full year by any measure, and she’s more than earned it.

Ella Langley 2026 The Dandelion Tour Dates:

May 7 – Toledo, OH @ Huntington Center

May 8 – St. Louis, MO @ Chaifetz Arena

May 14 – Estero, FL @ Hertz Arena

May 15 – Savannah, GA @ Enmarket Arena

June 18 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Zoo Amphitheatre

June 19 – Independence, MO @ Cable Dahmer Arena

June 25 – Salem, VA @ Salem Civic Center

June 26 – Wilmington, NC @ Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park

July 23 – Pikeville, KY @ Appalachian Wireless Arena

July 24 – Cary, NC @ Koka Booth Amphitheatre

July 25 – North Charleston, SC @ North Charleston Coliseum

July 30 – Gilford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion

July 31 – Canandaigua, NY @ CMAC

Aug 13 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center

Aug 14 – Corpus Christi, TX @ Hilliard Center

Aug 15 – Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena

Gov’t Mule and Joe Bonamassa Are Hitting the Road Together This Summer

Eric Alper
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Gov’t Mule and Joe Bonamassa Are Hitting the Road Together This Summer

Gov’t Mule has been one of the most relentlessly active live bands in rock for decades, and 2026 is no exception. The band’s spring headlining run is well underway, and the dates ahead make a strong case for clearing your calendar between now and August.

Coming up on May 1st, Warren Haynes and Gov’t Mule headline The Orpheum Theater in New Orleans for the second night of a two-night venue takeover. The night before, Haynes performs with the Warren Haynes Band for one of their Dreams & Songs Symphonic Experience shows alongside The Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra. Two nights, two very different contexts, both worth the trip.

This summer, Gov’t Mule teams up with blues-rock titan Joe Bonamassa for an eight-show co-headlining run from July 29th through August 16th. Two guitarists at the top of their respective games sharing a stage for eight nights is exactly as good as it sounds. That pairing alone makes this one of the more compelling rock tours of the year.

The remaining dates stretch across Toledo, St. Louis, Florida, Georgia, Oklahoma, and deep into the South and Northeast before wrapping in Fort Worth in August. Tickets and VIP Experiences are on sale now for all shows.

Gov’t Mule 2026 Tour Dates:

May 1 – New Orleans, LA @ The Orpheum Theater

May 7 – Toledo, OH @ Huntington Center

May 8 – St. Louis, MO @ Chaifetz Arena

May 14 – Estero, FL @ Hertz Arena

May 15 – Savannah, GA @ Enmarket Arena

June 18 – Oklahoma City, OK @ Zoo Amphitheatre

June 19 – Independence, MO @ Cable Dahmer Arena

June 25 – Salem, VA @ Salem Civic Center

June 26 – Wilmington, NC @ Live Oak Bank Pavilion at Riverfront Park

July 23 – Pikeville, KY @ Appalachian Wireless Arena

July 24 – Cary, NC @ Koka Booth Amphitheatre

July 25 – North Charleston, SC @ North Charleston Coliseum

July 29 – Aug 16 – Co-headlining dates with Joe Bonamassa (8 shows)

July 30 – Gilford, NH @ BankNH Pavilion

July 31 – Canandaigua, NY @ CMAC

Aug 13 – Austin, TX @ Moody Center

Aug 14 – Corpus Christi, TX @ Hilliard Center

Aug 15 – Fort Worth, TX @ Dickies Arena

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That Eric Alper

Eric Alper is a 6-time nominee for Publicist of the Year during Canadian Music Week and has overseen the publicity campaigns for over 183 JUNO Award-nominated albums (and 16 in 2025), 45 Grammy-nominated albums, including 47 JUNO Award, 58 Canadian Folk Music Award, 126 Maple Blues Award-winning albums and is also truly honoured to work with some of the biggest and most important artists of our time.

Contact me: eric@thatericalper.com

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