Did Noah Kahan Just Give Us a Big Clue About His New Album's Release Date?

Noah Kahan has been keeping us on tenterhooks for the best part of four years, with the Vermont native dropping his last original studio album, Stick Season, back in 2022.

Of course, in that time he's been keeping us fed with a host of reimagined renditions of songs from Stick Season - including star-studded duets with the likes of Post Malone and Kacey Musgraves - and his expanded Stick Season (Forever) project.

But we'd be lying if we said we haven't been hankering for a brand new album from Kahan, especially given how Stick Season has completely rewritten the modern folk landscape.

Thankfully, it seems it's almost time for Kahan to drop his new album. The ‘Northern Attitude’ singer-songwriter has been hinting at his next project throughout the past year, sharing and performing unreleased gems such as ‘Porch Light’, ‘The Great Divide’, ‘All Them Horses’, ‘Deny, Deny, Deny’ and many others.

Despite his status as one of the biggest artists in today's music world, Kahan still keeps a refreshingly open flow of communication with his fans via Instagram and TikTok, and he's repeatedly confirmed to his followers that the new album is finished.

But we were still in the dark as to the release date - would it be tonight, a month from now or a year from now? Well, we think Kahan has given us a very big clue as to when we can expect his new album to drop - and it stems from his secret TikTok account, which is called @thelastofthe bugs and was launched in December.

He's shared a handful of cryptic videos on this account, but the first was arguably the most telling. It featured Kahan standing in the heavy snow, with the tantalising caption, “you weren't meant to find this...only the last of the bugs ever do”. Then, he shared a clip with the teasing promise, “Call me when the bugs don’t die”.

Now, fans quickly cottoned on that Kahan's “the last of the bugs” references was a nod to the final song on Stick Season, ‘The View Between Villages’, in which he croons, “Air in my lungs / 'Til the road begins / As the last of the bugs / Leave their homes again”.

He doubled-down on this theme in his New Year's Eve letter, also shared via @thelastofthebugs, “I want to wish you all a happy 2026 and to tell you how excited I am for what we're all gonna do this year. It feels like I'm coming out of hibernation! You know I think about you ALL the time, and I'll see you when the bugs don't die”.

We suspect this all connects together to point towards a Spring 2026 release date. Particularly given Kahan's phrasing about “coming out of hibernation” and “I'll see you when the bugs don't die”, this undoubtedly feels like Spring-related imagery. Also, the line “You know I think about you ALL the time” is a reference to a lyric on ‘The Great Divide’, which Kahan has confirmed is a key song on the album.

Many insects die in the Winter due to the harsh conditions and low temperatures, while a range of animals emerge from hibernation when the Spring finally arrives.

What's more, Kahan's last album revolved around the struggles and despair that Autumn and Winter - or ‘Stick Season, as it's often referred to in New England - bring with it. With ‘The View Between Villages’ being the final song on Stick Season, featuring “the last of the bugs” line, it seems Kahan is hinting at a brighter, warmer era of music for this forthcoming project, one that will be defined by Spring.

In a new Instagram Story shared today (January 13th), the ‘She Calls Me Back’ crooner offers another update on the lengthy creative process behind the record, “It's so hard to not be able to explain why this album took me so long to make or why we all have to wait even though it's done. It's frustrating to not be able to tell you guys more. My only hope is that when it comes out you guys are like “oh I get it now””.

It seems Kahan and his team are waiting a little longer for the right time to drop this album, which again points towards a Spring 2026 release, tied in with a Spring-inspired theme. Spring officially starts on Friday, March 20th 2026 - and, given that most new music drops on Fridays, this could serve as the perfect release date.

With the folk trailblazer debuting another new song at Out of the Blue Festival this past weekend, ‘Haircut’, Kahan has no shortage of unreleased songs that will be jostling for a spot on the project. We're hoping this - coupled with the fact that it's been a while since his last full album - means we're in store for a long tracklist.

Either way, we trust Kahan and his camp to deliver the goods when the time comes - and we have no doubt that this eagerly anticipated new album will be well worth the wait...

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