What We’re Listening To: 2/20/2026

Each week, the Live Music Blog team takes stock of what’s been populating their playlists and getting endlessly stuck in their heads from the week that was. These can be new releases, obscure tracks in niche genres, or classic albums dusted off due to nostalgia (or because they’re simply awesome).

Enjoy what we’re listening to this week… and listen along with us if you so choose!

Pageant Material – Kacey Musgraves (2015)

Having long been a proponent of her Christmas album, A Very Kacey Christmas, (her song “Present Without A Bow” is at minimum a top three Christmas song all time), I decided to give the rest of her discography a try starting with her sophomore release (having listened to her debut album a few years ago). I’m extremely happy I did, as listening to this 2015 release, as well as her subsequent albums, confirms that Musgraves is clearly one of the most talented writers of her generation and a top-tier talent richly deserving of her critical acclaim and award-winning pedigree.

The entire track list of Pageant Material is littered with memorable numbers, perhaps none more so than the third track, “Late to the Party.” Those in the know understand that “track threes” are often indicative of the entire direction an album will take, and they often also represent the overall quality of tracks found on their albums. On both counts, “Late to the Party” is a showstopper, with a swooning, gentle melody, deft harmonies, and dynamite lyrics with clever internal rhymes.

Elsewhere, Musgraves shows her cutting wit laced through with folksy charm on “Biscuits,” all topped with a delightful dose of sass: “Mind your own biscuits, and life will be gravy.” The album ends with the double whammy of “Fine”, a powerhouse breakup ballad, and “Are You Sure,” a duet with Willie Nelson covering that decades-old song of his.

An astounding achievement, somehow Musgraves would one-up herself artistically and achieve even greater critical and commercial success with her next album, Golden Hour.

Top Tracks: “Late to the Party,” “Biscuits,” “Somebody to Love,” “High Time,” “Fine”

Listen Next: Golden Hour by Kacey Musgraves, Red by Taylor Swift, Gaslighter by The Chicks, The Weight of These Wings by Miranda Lambert

Marquee Moon – Television (1977)

If you’re in the mood for some angular riffs and muscular post-punk, you’ve come to the right place. A landmark album, Television’s Marquee Moon represented a high-water mark for bands to come out of CBGB in New York as well as the nascent post-punk movement. Why does the album hold so much power? Much of it comes down to the incredible dual lead guitar work of lead singer Tom Verlaine and guitarist Richard Lloyd. This album is a guitarist’s paradise, as each track is stuffed with tremendous lead lines, inventive licks and memorable fills – some of which are as catchy (if not more so) than the actual vocal melodies.

Of course, the title track is likely the one that most music aficionados have at least heard of, as its over-10-minute-long run time gives it a sort of mythical status. And it is well deserved, as the fiery guitar solos come in fast and thick, with each successive one somehow outperforming the one that came prior. An incredibly important album, and one that holds up nearly 50 years after its release.

Top Tracks: “Marquee Moon,” “Elevation,” “See No Evil,” “Friction,” “Torn Curtain”

Listen Next: Adventure by Television, Chairs Missing by Wire, Remain in Light by Talking Heads, Unknown Pleasures by Joy Division

Time Passages – Al Stewart (1978)

While it might have proved impossible to follow up his crowning achievement, Year of the Cat, which is celebrating its 50^th anniversary this year, Al Stewart did his best on 1978’s Time Passages, and he came away with a very strong album that still fails to reach the heights of its predecessor. Still though, the title track is a notable work from the “AOR” era of American radio, and it still contains a highly catchy, hummable melody. Elsewhere, perhaps the album highlight is “Palace of Versailles,” with lyrics that contrast the French Revolution and the rise of Napoleon with the student riots in 1968 France and a powerful, eminently memorable keyboard figure that harkens back to Baroque composers.

Top Tracks: “Time Passages,” “Valentina Way,” “The Palace of Versailles,” “A Man for All Seasons,” “Almost Lucy”

Listen Next: Year of the Cat by Al Stewart, Blue Jays by Justin Hayward & John Lodge, The Pretender by Jackson Browne, Comes a Time by Neil Young

“Somethin’ ‘Bout A Woman” – Thomas Rhett feat. Teddy Swims

Having heard this song somewhere (a commercial or my wife’s social media, perhaps?) last year, it’s been in heavy rotation ever since. While ostensibly country, the heavy, booming drum sound and soulful melody combined with bluesy guitar kicks make this more of a genre mash-up than anything else. And what a delectable gumbo it is!

This song cannot just be listened to once, as it goes down ultra-smooth, like a shot of good whiskey, and the presence of Teddy Swims ensures the vocals are powerful and suffused with heart. And I’m not just saying that because we’re from the same hometown (Conyers, Georgia). While we don’t normally include songs by themselves here, this song has been on repeat for me this week, so I simply had to include it.

What Was in Your Rotation?

Catch us next week for the next edition of What We’re Listening To. In the meantime, what have you been vibing to this week? What new releases have caught your ears, or what classic albums have been in your heavy rotation? Let us know in the comments!

^{Header Photo Courtesy BruceC007/Wikimedia Commons}