Here are my favorite songs of the month in synthpop, futurepop, darkwave, and adjacent genres. If you want to follow my music discovery this year, subscribe to my 2026 playlist on Spotify. New songs are added every Friday. Sort by “Date Added” to see new tracks appear at the top of the playlist.
10. EM_LEN — “Half Past Midnight”
New-to-me act EM_LEN, who is San Diego musician Mario Ponce, previews his upcoming fourth album with “Half Past Midnight,” a pounding slice of synthpop inspired by Some Great Reward-era Depeche Mode. Personally, I hear more of TR/ST in the restless electronics, which slide up and down the scale as the tempo shifts and the beat occasionally drops away. The bold vocals add to the agitation, delivering a tale of heartbreak anchored by the refrain: “My heart stopped beating half past midnight.” It’s a disorienting listen that leaves me feeling a little anxious, but I’m eager to hear where EM_LEN goes next.
9. AYRIA — “Overturn”
For more than two decades, Canadian act Ayria has been one of the most recognizable female voices in industrial electronic music. “Overturn” from her latest album creeps along at a sinister mid-tempo pace, punctuated by crackling hi-hats, an echoey synth refrain, and an infrequent but impactful sonar ping. Jennifer Parkin coos her vocals with an almost sensual quality, but there’s defiance beneath the surface as she confronts an unnamed antagonist: “You’ve been coming for me / Since the dawn of time.”
8. LLUMEN — “The Leftovers”
Belgian electro act Llumen returned this month with the first taste of their next album, Winter Eden, due out in October. “The Leftovers” (presumably not named after the excellent HBO series) is a club thumper with a roiling beat, layered electronic programming, and heavy vocals that confront systems of control and conformity. Cyber-tinged lines like “we are the glitch they can’t contain” turn the song into a defiant anthem for those who refuse to fit the code.
7. SYNTHNOTER — “So I Say”
The last time we heard from Danish newcomers Synthnoter, they crammed three songs into one epic 13-minute track. Their latest release takes a more traditional approach with three individual songs, and “So I Say” is the best of the bunch. A pumping beat provides the backbone for rapid-fire, staccato synth riffs that pile on top, creating a cold, mechanical energy that contrasts with deep, deliberate male vocals. Around the midway point, an unexpected female backing vocal swoops in and nearly steals the song. It’s a potent combination that leaves me feeling energized, slightly anxious, and a bit sexy.
6. TANIA CASSETTE — “The Death of Me”
California musician Tania Cassette, the former singer of defunct synthpop duo Glass Spells, embarked on a solo project this year and has released a handful of singles, including the lovely “The Flame.” Her debut album arrived in September, and its best song is the title track, “The Death of Me,” which glows with easygoing ’80s gloss while wallowing in heartbreaking melancholy. It’s light and effervescent, and Tania’s voice lilts with equal measures of beauty and ache.
5. THE SOUND VEIL SOCIETY — “Nothing to Say”
The Sound Veil Society, Synthpop Fanatic’s best new act of 2025, finally released their debut album, and it lives up to my lofty expectations. They make a sort of wide-eyed, organic-sounding synthpop that few other bands can pull off quite so well. Of the previously unreleased album cuts, “Nothing to Say” stands out for its elegant power and deceptively simple lyrics, with line after line resolving on rhymes like “say,” “way,” and “today.” The repetition gives the song a natural momentum that builds into something with real gravitas.
4. MIND.IN.A.BOX — “Stoke the Fire”
Retaliation, the eighth album in mind.in.a.box’s ongoing cyberpunk narrative, is by far the best of their post-R.E.T.R.O. era, as they’ve perfected the art of turning lyricist Josh Kreger’s massive exposition dumps into proper songs. Gently fluttering electronics bubble with world-building charm while miab’s trademark vocal manipulations move in and out of the story. The female character takes a larger role this chapter, leading to a welcome return of the female voices. Stefan Poiss has perfected those too. There’s still a hint of digitized effects on “Stoke the Fire,” my favorite song from the set, but you’d never know that’s Stev singing if you didn’t know better. Detailed verses unspool the story while a hypnotic chorus transcends the narrative, allowing the song to stand on its own. So a line like “The fire which burns inside of you / It is the greatest fire through and through” lands with genuine emotional force.
3. KONTRAVOID — “Chances”
I’ve long described masked techno provocateur Kontravoid as the sound of Berlin’s underground club scene (not that I’ve ever been to Berghain). New song “Chances” from his Sound of the Void album finds him taking a dramatic detour deep into synthpop territory. It’s a welcome fit. The pounding rhythms and menacing textures we’re used to have been replaced by bright melodies, melancholic vocals, and an irresistible pop hook. It still feels authentically Kontravoid—a natural evolution from pop-leaning songs he’s done in the past, like 2024’s “Losing Game” with Nuovo Testament’s Chelsey Crowley.
2. GRENDEL — “Dominion”
The one-time aggrotech project Grendel returns with their first new song since 2019’s Ascending the Abyss. “Dominion” continues in the direction of that album and its predecessor, the era-defining Age of the Disposable Body, with explosive beats, a banging synth melody, and incisive lyrics about the state of things. JD Tucker unleashes a powerful vocal performance that topples over the sound mix, with charged lyrics like “no kings, no gods, just interface” and “we built a world of ghost machines” that lament the cost of being perpetually online.
1. DISMANTLED — “Zero”
Gary Zon’s genre-defying Dismantled project returns with “Zero,” the first taste of a long-awaited new album that was teased as far back as 2021. It finally arrives in November. I love how the song mutates across its running time, introducing new sounds, media samples, and Zon’s vocal manipulations. Best of all are the bubbling keys that emerge around the midway point, adding another unexpected texture to an already restless track. All that sonic experimentation offers a bleak sense of being reduced to nothing, captured in the devastating line: “I’m not a person, just another tragedy.”
