The Academy Is… Drops New Single ‘L Train’ Before Album Release

Chicago alt rock favorites The Academy Is… is back with a new song ‘L Train’. This comes as the bands final single before the reason of ‘Almost There‘, arriving on March 27, 2026, via I Surrender Records.

“‘L Train’ is a song about those nights where you’re stuck in your own head; alone in a crowded room, surrounded by social ghosts,” the band explains. “The song is dreamy, but there’s a haunting, nervous energy running through it. It’s our lens into a midwest mind trip where you’re replaying memories over and over…”

The first new The Academy Is… studio album in over 18 years, Almost There, was heralded by the release of the urgent and melodic lead single “2005,” available now on all digital platforms. The news was shared exclusively via Rolling Stone and eagerly welcomed by fans and tastemaking outlets such as Alternative Press, Brooklyn Vegan, The Needle Drop, and more. Bursting with shimmering guitars, driving rhythms, and one of Beckett’s most emotionally direct vocal performances to date, the first single captures the band’s ability to fuse youthful immediacy with hard-won perspective. An official music video is now on YouTube. Last month, the band shared “Miracle.” The song sways between intense, driving guitars and reflective moments underlined by glimmering tones. The band throws themselves into the iridescence headfirst, as William Beckett sings, “I need to love again/Turn me on my head/I need to feel the warmth/Tell me I’m not dead.”

“Almost Here was the beginning. Almost There is the reflection,” Beckett says. “It’s about checking in with who you thought you’d be twenty years later, seeing what changed, what stuck, and what still feels like home.”

THE ACADEMY IS… 

ALMOST HERE 20TH ANNIVERSARY TOUR 2026

APRIL

10 – Buffalo, NY – Town Ballroom

11 – Toronto, ON – Danforth Music Hall

15 – Atlanta, GA – Buckhead Theatre

16 – Nashville, TN – Brooklyn Bowl Nashville

18 – Tampa, FL – The Ritz Ybor

19 – Orlando, FL – House of Blues Orlando

24 – Austin, TX – Emo’s

25 – Dallas, TX – The Echo

26 – Houston, TX – House of Blues Houston

MAY

1 – Portland, OR – Roseland Theater

2 – Seattle, WA – Showbox at The Market

7 – Sacramento, CA – Ace of Spades

8 – Berkeley, CA – The UC Theatre

9 – San Diego, CA – The Observatory North Park

23 – Mexico City, MX – Pabellón del Palacio de los Deportes

JUNE

13-14 – Washington, DC – Festival Grounds at RFK Campus †

JULY

25-26 – Long Beach, CA – Shoreline Waterfront †

† – Warped Tour