Arriving hot on the heels of last year’s acclaimed Top 30 effort ‘Light A Bigger Fire’, ‘DAGGER’ is IST IST’s fifth full-length studio album from Manchester’s finest dark post punk pop groovers. 2026 could well be the year that IST IST finally move up on the festival bill ladder and reach into many more ears with their brand of post punk with the Depeche Mode synths and Joy Division darkness mixed in with the norther working class grit that eminates from the songs they sing (a reral identity is coursing through these songs and it would come as no suprise they’re Manchesters finest) IST IST have come of age and found their sound and made it accessable for everyone whilst keeping true to the spirit of where they’ve come from.  

The album’s opening is helped by the epic production and the instruments’ spatial awareness, whilst everyone working on the songs is not trying to be niche or cool, just writing great songs. ‘I Am The Fear’ begins with a twitching adjit synth that breaks out into a sprightly thumping bass groove before the guitars and Bass collide to create a huge sound. The oscillating synth throughout is like the best club anthem you’ve never heard, capturing a real moment as it builds towards the chorus that is a majestic earworm you won’t shake for the rest of the day ‘I Am The Fear’ indeed. Great stuff. To follow that with a louder, more anthemic song might be asking too much, but the danceable ‘Makes No Difference’ has touches of New Order but with The Cure playing the instruments, but again the chorus elevates the whole song. A really good tempo as the vocals whisper into your ear before the volume rises on the chorus.  

‘Warning Signs’ is classic Goth with a solid tempo, the band sound like they’re in a groove and sync up together and the chiming guitars sound cathedral-sized but always playing for the benefit of the song rather than trying to be cool because the end result is they hit all kinds of cool anyway. As the album lurches in tempo from solid toe tapper to a more measured groove like the excellent ‘Burning’, the band shifts through the gears effortlessly. The use of synths and live instruments is huge with regards to the bands identity, that throbbing Bassline is the core that anchors their sound whist the vocal style of Adam Houghton is a dark softly spoken vocal at the best of times when he needs to raise his voice it adds gravitas to proceedings and makes you want to listen intently as to what he’s saying.  

I’ve been lucky enough to have this in my ears for several months, and it’s become my go-to album so far in 2026. If you’re looking for highlights, look no further than the opener and the epic ‘Encouragement’ that builds into some cinematic beast with all the elements of the bands go to styles vying for the limelight, and it takes two minutes before a word is uttered. Awesome stuff.  

For all the modern technology on display, the stripped-back ‘I Remember Everything’ is also a standout, maybe due to its slow burn and subtle melody that wins you over. As the album descends to its finale, ‘Obligations’ showcases that thumping Bass again, sounding like darkness has stolen the torch from early Duran Duran through post punk leanings, and it really works. Leaving the penultimate offering ‘Song For Someone’ to bring the darkness and bleak Gothic romanticism before the album signs off with ‘Ambition,’ something the band clearly has, and it’s paying off big time here as ‘Dagger’ is brought to an end, kicking and screaming and the most complete and elevated album from the band thus far. They deserve success and a platform to reach more an dmore peole becuase this record has the receipts and the X factor to bring them everything they desire. Buy this album its a beautiful thing.  

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Author: Dom Daley