The digital-only edition arrives September 18 via Better Noise, while “Calvary Drive” offers an early look at the sessions that shaped the band’s comeback album.
Yellowcard are extending the next chapter of their career with Better Days (Deluxe Edition), a digital-only expanded version of the band’s comeback album scheduled for release September 18 through Better Noise.
The deluxe edition will feature 14 tracks, adding previously unreleased and collaborative material to Better Days. Among the additions is “Calvary Drive,” which is currently available alongside a lyric video and carries particular significance in the album’s development: according to vocalist Ryan Key, it was the first demo Yellowcard worked on with producer Travis Barker and songwriter Nick Long.
“‘Calvary Drive’ was the very first demo we worked on with Travis Barker and our friend Nick Long,” Key said. “We were just getting a feel for working together over a weekend and had no idea that this idea would be the spark for what became Better Days. It’s fun to listen back now and hear where we started, and how much the sound evolved from there.”
That early experiment ultimately developed into a much larger collaboration. Barker produced Better Days and performed drums throughout the record, with what began as a short studio session eventually expanding into weeks of work on the full album.
Barker described the process as “such an easy project and easy group of guys to make music with,” adding that the entire band remained closely involved in the studio.
“Everyone in the band was really active and really a part of everything in the studio,” Barker said.
He recalled that the partnership continued growing naturally as more music emerged.
“Next thing you know it was like we’re getting back in the studio and we were scheduling weeks to work with each other and recorded an entire album.”
The expanded edition also highlights several collaborations connected to the Better Days era. Avril Lavigne appears on “You Broke Me Too,” a pairing that came together after Barker played her material from the Yellowcard sessions.
“My friend Travis [Barker] called me up to say he was producing the new Yellowcard album and I really liked what I heard,” Lavigne said. “When he played me ‘You Broke Me Too,’ I liked how it can be an anthem people can relate to when finding hope after a relationship.”
Other guests on the deluxe track listing include Alkaline Trio’s Matt Skiba on “Love Letters Lost,” Steve Aoki on “Hell With Me,” and Good Charlotte on an alternate version of “Bedroom Posters.” The album closes with an “Asleep Version” of “Better Days.”
The Good Charlotte collaboration previously gave Yellowcard a major milestone during the album cycle. According to the band’s press materials, the collaborative “Bedroom Posters” accumulated 2.6 million Spotify streams and reached No. 1 on Billboard’s Alternative Airplay chart.
Yellowcard also revisited “Bedroom Posters” with Blippi in another cross-generational collaboration, following their earlier work together on “Go Go Go.”
The expanded release continues a comeback period that followed what had once been intended as Yellowcard’s permanent farewell. After ending the band with a farewell tour, the group eventually reunited and embarked on a global tour celebrating the 20th anniversary of Ocean Avenue. That renewed activity ultimately led to Better Days, Yellowcard’s first album in nearly a decade and its first release through Better Noise Music.
The current lineup consists of William Ryan Key on vocals and guitar, Sean Mackin on violin, Ryan Mendez on guitar and Josh Portman on bass.
Yellowcard also have a busy live schedule ahead through the remainder of 2026. Following their August 22 Vans Warped Tour appearance in Montreal, the band is scheduled for performances in Florida and Maryland throughout September. In November, Yellowcard will head overseas for a European and UK run with Good Charlotte, including stops in Stockholm, Munich, Amsterdam, Paris, London and Manchester.
Album Information
Yellowcard — Better Days (Deluxe Edition)
Release Date: September 18, 2026
Format: Digital-only deluxe edition
Label: Better Noise
Track Listing
“Better Days”
“Take What You Want”
“Love Letters Lost” (Feat. Matt Skiba of Alkaline Trio)
“honestly i”
“You Broke Me Too” (Feat. Avril Lavigne)
“City of Angels”
“Bedroom Posters”
“Skin Scraped”
“Barely Alive”
“Big Blue Eyes”
“Calvary Drive”
“Hell With Me” (Feat. Steve Aoki)
“Bedroom Posters” (Feat. Good Charlotte)
“Better Days” (Asleep Version)
Tour Dates
Select Dates
8/22 — Monreal, QC — Vans Warped Tour 2026
9/4 — Clearwater, FL — 97X Next Big Thing Legends
9/6 — Orlando, FL — Eat To The Beat Concert Series
9/7 — Orlando, FL — Eat To The Beat Concert Series
9/25 — Ocean City, MD — Oceans Calling Festival
With Good Charlotte in Europe + the UK
11/8 — Stockholm, Sweden — Hovet
11/11 — Munich, Germany — Zenith
11/13 — Forest, Belgium — Vorst Nationaal/Forest National
11/14 — Dusseldorf, Germany — Mitsubishi Electric Hall
11/16 — Amsterdam, Netherlands — AFAS Live
11/17 — Paris, France — Zenith Paris – La Villette
11/19 — London, UK — The O2
11/20 — Manchester, UK — Co-Op Live
Band Lineup
William Ryan Key — Vocals/Guitar
Sean Mackin — Violin
Ryan Mendez — Guitar
Josh Portman — Bass
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