Empty Hands (album)


Empty Hands is the seventh studio album by American singer Poppy. It was released through Sumerian Records on January 23, 2026. The album was preceded by three singles: "Unravel", "Bruised Sky", and "Guardian".

Background

On September 2, 2025, Poppy premiered the song "Bruised Sky" at her concert in Worcester, Massachusetts. The same month, she collaborated with Courtney LaPlante of Spiritbox and Amy Lee of Evanescence on the stand-alone single "End of You". In October 2025, she released "Unravel" as the album's lead single, and also announced the Constantly Nowhere tour. The tour commenced in Brisbane, Australia on January 20, 2026.
Empty Hands was announced on November 12, 2025, along with the release of its second single, "Bruised Sky". The album features 13 tracks that were produced and co-written by Jordan Fish, who had previously worked with Poppy on her sixth album Negative Spaces. On December 4, the third single, "Guardian", was released. On the same day as the album release, a music video was released for the album's fourth single, "Time Will Tell".

Composition

Empty Hands has been primarily described as metalcore, alternative metal, industrial metal, nu metal, and djent. In a press release announcing the album, Empty Hands was said to feature elements of industrial music and pop sensibilities, with "moments that call back to Poppy's surrealist roots with her signature uncanny, machine-like voice". Critics have noted elements of speed metal, punk rock, electronic rock, alternative rock, grunge, stoner metal and black metal. All of the album's songs are co-written by Poppy and Fish, with additional contributions made by House of Protection guitarist Stephen Harrison and Julian Gargiulo.

Critical reception

Empty Hands received generally positive reviews from critics. According to Anne Rickson of Blabbermouth, "'Empty Hands' sounds like Poppy doing exactly what she wants, without overthinking it. When she's fired up and emotionally invested, her music hits on another level, and this album captures that energy from start to finish." Joe Edwards of Boolin Tunes wrote, " missing that key element that has always made Poppy an act worth following – experimentation, and dabbling in new sounds." Shannon Garner of Clash noted on the continued "evolution" of Poppy's musical style and the "confrontational" tone of the album. Emily Wilkes of Kerrang! called it "her most chameleonic, creative body of work to date." Ixora Cook of New Noise Magazine complemented the albums' lyrical themes of romantic grief, loss, and betrayal by stating, "the lyrics are...filled with some of the most vitriolic things I've ever heard Poppy say, they're some of the most vivid, specific feelings we've ever heard her extrapolate upon."
Roman Kamshin of Showbiz by PS wrote, "Empty Hands isn’t a bad album; it’s just far too safe for an artist as multifaceted as Poppy." Trevor Zaple of Spectrum Culture praised Poppy's vocal performance, but felt that "her own concepts take a backseat to shiny radio metal necessities." Ryan P of Sputnikmusic wrote that Poppy's "vocal chops are really up to par, both harsh and clean," but also noted that the album is "sidetracked by...unimaginative industrial/electronic bits... into the trap that plagues a lot of modern, accessible metal." Will Marshall of Stereoboard wrote, "For all the fun to be had with ‘Empty Hands’ it simply doesn’t feel as experimental...as Poppy can be." Georgia Haskins, writing for Wall of Sound, called it "her most assertive and self-assured work to date."

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.