9h • General discussion
2025 Favorites
I do this with some friends every year. They're mostly music producers and artists so I'm putting here as well. I'm a rock, indie pop and singer/songwriter guy but listen to other stuff here and there. Throw yours down below with links if you're feeling it.
My personal faves of 2025. This was a good year for music imo. This is what turned me on, what sounded different or particularly well done. I, like many of you, pay more attention to production and mixing/mastering than the average muggle so some of these picks tilt that way for this audience.
Also noticed that I ended up gravitating to female artists more than male by a count of like 2:1 in my big list. No reason really. The girls were just locked in I guess. I could have put down another 15 or so picks but I have a job.
In no particular order...
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Artist: Daughter of Swords
Album: Alex
Great weekender. Love the production, deceptively minimal, lofi sheen and minimal reverb but harder to pull off than it appears. Great use of negative space. I'm a sucker for "clever" artists. I wore this one out in late summer.
Highlights: Talk to you, Alone together, Morning in Madison
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Artist: Foxwarren
Album: 2
They clearly got a hold of a bunch of royalty free movie clips, sampled them and used as music bed for a lot of the songs. Another very clever record. His voice accent/affect kinda grated on me at first but now I love it. He does surprising things, little turns of his voice, certain notes, jazzy harmonies, catchy lines that just land. If you or I sang them, they wouldn't.
Highlights: Say it, Deadhead, Yvonne, Strange
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Artist: Billie Zizi
Album: Levitate
Tiny, criminally unknown singer songwriter in the Lucinda Williams vein but has a strong Leonard Cohen streak. She sounds like she's ever only barely breaking a sweat. Languid and sad but sorta funny and always sweet. I feel like the production is *almost* but not quite there. Still, it's a great record. Comfort food. Though she has a bandcamp, this one's not on it.
Highlights: Picture of a picture, Levitate, Everything in between
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Artist: LL Burns
Album: Get Me Back In The Game
...Speaking of Leonard Cohen. This guys hard to find. Singles here and there on the internet, some on spotify, some on bandcamp, some on youtube. But no one seems to know much. He's a bit of a ghost. This one isn't actually new and it's just a single but got reissued or something. I just listened to this song a lot this year. Deep noir. The video, which I won't link, is beautiful but, um, edgy.
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Artist: The People's Bowling League
Album: America's Game
Speaking of near complete unknowns, the singer here, Ben Shannon is another criminally overlooked one. Just super talented but like so many, seems pretty disinterested in promotion. Kinda Appalachian protest folk replete with the politics but just a great songwriter, lotsa narrative layers and smartness. Good players laying it down Harvest style over 3 days in a living room in Pennsylvania.
Highlights: Mainstream Psychotic, America's Game, The People's Bowling League
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Artist: Victor Jones
Album: Zookeeper
NO ONE else sounds like this. Dude is nutzzz and lets it fly, god bless him. A mash up of Tom Waits, LCD SS, Idles, the Pixies... but his delivery and rhymes are sometimes more like hip-hop. Except, like, in a stream of consciousness, single take way. Sounds like the vocal reverb is just a cinder block cell he's recording in from like 3 ft away. Somehow works. NSFW, so maybe listen in the buds first.
Highlights: White Fang Safari, We Go to Russia, Zimbabwe Paulie Walnuts
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Artist: Cleo Reed
Album: Cuntry
She's a blender. Hiphop,... folk, darkwave... other stuff. It's just super musical. I kept finding myself putting this back on for a few months straight. I love the messiness of the production, how she throws things away. She's super talented while seemingly not even trying.
Highlights: Salt n' Lime, Always The Horse, Never The Jockey
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Artist: Geese
Album: Getting Killed
These guys are blowing up right now so this one may be on your radar. My daughter sent me the link for this a few months back and it held my attention where others didn't. It's similar to the cover art, you don't see it at first glance. It was the second, third listen before I was in. It's got some Captain Beefheart, Pavement, some 70's AM radio... other stuff. I should mention my wife never got to the second play, hated it. No worries.
Highlights: Taxes, Trinidad,
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Artist: Wednesday
Album: Bleeds
Another band with a lot of buzz. This is one of those records that warms the cockles of this old man's heart. Like, the kids are doing it, we're gonna be alright. Leverages country in the interest of toned down 90's post hardcore. Great songwriting, nuanced pictures and lotsa heart, Maybe a little straight ahead in the delivery but nails that truism that just being great at what you do is different.
Highlights: Townies, Elderberry Wine, Reality TV Arguments
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Artist: Perfume Genius
Album: Glory
I will always stop and listen to anything this kid puts out. He's special. It's an objectively beautiful record but dark of course. Has Sigur Ros & Manchester orchestra vibes. A tortured soul for sure but thanks for it. Just so
Highlights: It's a mirror, Full on, Me & angel
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Artist: Benjamin Booker
Album: Lower
Another one that is on Spotify but not on his Bandcamp page. Probably a record company thing. The kid is consistently ahead of the curve, always mixing elements that don't seem like they should work together. He's another stop-everything-and listen artist. Every record is good so far. Moody lofi. Great rainy day record.
Highlights: LWA in the trailer Park (hit that compressor!), Slow dance in a gay bar, Same kind of lonely
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Artist: Blanco teta
Album: La Debacle de las Divas
No idea what they're going on about but it really matter. Noisey lofi junk rock to pass kidney stones to. I heard Metalera on a playlist and was in there like swimwear. Just caught me in the right mood. Put it on my buds went for a run and had my best 5 miler of the year. Run angry. It's a satisfying record. Another one my wife f'in hates. Definitely not for everyone.
Highlights: Metalera, Subiduki, Deja de lorar
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2025 Favorites
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