Welcome back to For the Sake of the Song, our periodic survey of the best new releases in folk. This seasonal roundup continues my quest to cover as wide a spectrum as possible under the banner of folk, which includes everything from an excavation of Harry Smith’s archive of non-American folk recordings to dissonant instrumental meditations on Appalachia and innovative permutations of Arabic and Brazilian folk. Open your mind and enjoy the best folk albums of spring 2026.