We close off the 2025 chapter!

This post concludes our 2025 recap, which means we return to our normal programming. Hopefully this year I’ll be able to deliver these lists more on time. I know I made y’all wait too long, but we learn from it and move on.

Let’s not waste any more time – here’s the ranking of my top albums of 2025. Below each albums, I’ve included a brief description and why I thought it deserved a spot. Hope you enjoy!

Deftones!? Haven’t heard of them in a while. In all honesty, there hasn’t been much hype surrounding them since the early 2000s. Their releases in between weren’t bad, but it felt the world just forgot about the Sacramento-based band. With the current political climate, there couldn’t be a better time for them to resurface.

private music is the perfect doomgaze record – a poetic soundtrack for the end of times. It has it all: rage, introspection, and nostalgia for longtime Deftones fans. It’s also the perfect album if you’ve never dipped your toes into post-rock or metal. It’s impressive to see a band stick together for more than three decades – and even more impressive that they’re still dropping solid music

Favorite songs: souvenir, milk of the madonna, and ~metal dream

First Turnstile record I’ve ever listened to, and I’ve got to say I was definitely impressed. If you ever go to the beach, queue this up at least once. It’s a fusion of hard-rock and pop, with blink-182 vibes – but Turnstile have found an identity of their own. The record seamlessly weaving distorted guitars with dreamy, ambient melodies.

Fun fact: I found this record on clearance at Target. It only cost me $9 – an absolute steal.

Favorite songs: NEVER ENOUGH and SEEIN’ STARS

As if Dijon didn’t make us wait enough. All eyes have been on the singer, songwriter, and producer since he dropped his 2021 record Absolutely. Looking back, the wait was worth it. Baby is a fever-dream. Baby is beautiful.

Nobody is doing it like Dijon – a true innovator in the R&B scene. This record perfectly encapsulates the feeling of change and domesticity through glitchy textures and harmonized vocals. Also, I just learned that Dijon literally named his baby Baby. How poetic.

Favorite songs: Another Baby!, HIGHER!, Yamaha, (Referee), and Kindalove

If serving cunt was an album, this would be it. Amaarae literally portrays herself as the star of the Ghanaian flag. It’s the perfect record to play at the club, packed with head-boppers. The production is trippy and futuristic influenced by Afropop and R&B.

BLACK STAR is more than a dance record – it’s a statement on how far Amaarae has come in her career. She’s now making the music she wants without needing to impress anyone, paying tribute to her home country while showing people how to have a good time.

Favorite Songs: Starkilla and Girlie-Pop!

Cameron Winter (lead singer of Geese) somehow has two albums that could be considered records of the year: his solo record Heavy Metal and Geese’s Getting Killed. Don’t get me wrong, I loved Heavy Metal, but I found myself enjoying Getting Killed more. The Kenny Beats produced record is a true mixed bag – it’s confusing and cohesive at the same time.

You could call it art rock, but that subgenre doesn’t do it justice. The album was recorded in just over a week, and it sounds completely improvised, like they magically spawned these tracks and accidentally made a banger. You’ll have to listen for yourself to get it.

Favorite songs: Trinidad, 100 Horses, Au Pays du Cocaine, Bow Down, and Taxes

A beautiful love-letter to Bad Bunny’s homeland of Puerto Rico. This album makes you feel welcomed, no matter where you’re from. It’s a fun, heartfelt record that doesn’t shy away from tackling political issues like immigration, gentrification, and neocolonialism. DeBI TiRAR MaS FOToS has personally rekindled my connection to my own Mexican roots.

What’s really impressive is the person behind the record. Bad Bunny doesn’t have to make albums like this – he’s breaking streaming records every day – but this one shows his genuine passion for his home and for music. Top-class act in my books.

Favorite songs: NUEVAYoL, BAILE INoLVIDABLE, WELTiTA, KLOuFRENS, TURiSTA, CAFe CON RON, and DtMF

Do you need an escape? Erika de Casier has you covered. Perfect for relaxing or tuning out the world. Lifetime embraces the sound of 90s trip-hop and R&B. Think Janet Jackson or Aaliyah floating over a Portishead instrumental – futuristic nostalgia.

It’s no surprise Erika can sing, but it’s really the production that elevates this record. If you’ve got thirty minutes to spare, look no further.

Favorite songs: Miss, You Got It!, and Delusional

This might be the first time you’re hearing about Nourished by Time, and I don’t blame you – I just learned about Marcus Brown myself. Like Dijon, Nourished by Time is another great example of how R&B is evolving. On The Passionate Ones, Marcus Brown gets ambitious, crafting a psychedelic R&B record with a hypnagogic vocal delivery. Both elements compliment each other perfectly, and Marcus adds his own charm to make it feel unique.

It’s a record that sounds like a love note to the end of the world. This list seems to have a common theme – I swear I didn’t mean it.

Favorite songs: Idiot In The Park, Max Potential, It’s Time, and 9 2 5

Another throwback on this list: Clipse is back. This was an unprecedented return – both Pusha-T Malice had taken very different paths, and it seemed the Clipse project had come to an end. But they reunited, dropped an album, and delivered.

It’s a hard-hitting record with even gnarlier lyrics. You know how Pusha-T rolls, and Malice doesn’t miss on a single verse with his crafty wordplay and punchy rhymes. The amount of hate put into this record will have you gasping – they’re some real haters. The big question leading up to this record was: how would it sound? While The Neptunes no longer exist, Pharrell is still behind the board. None of the thirteen tracks drag – zero skips. Clipse can still hang in today’s hip-hop landscape.

Favorite songs: The Birds Don’t Sing, Chains & Whips, P.O.V., Ace Trumpets, M.T.B.T.T.F., F.I.C.O., Inglorious Bastards, and By The Grace Of God

It’s no secret the band went through major changes when former lead singer Isaac Wood left. An album and a US tour were canceled as a result days prior. Out of respect, the remaining members stopped performing any songs that included the former bandmate. Forever Howlong is a result of the band’s new direction – spoiler alert, it does not disappoint.

Before Wood left, the band’s music had more male perspective, with most lyrics and vocals having a male influence. Post Isaac Wood, Tyler Hyde, Georgia Ellery, and May Kershaw took the forefront. Noticeably, Forever Howlong focuses more on their vocals, the record sounds folky and holistic. Exploring vulnerable themes of love, loneliness, change, and sisterhood to name a few. Overall, it’s gentle, weird, and beautiful – another must listen. Despite Black Country, New Road practically starting over, the English-based band executed flawlessly. Considering everything, it was easily my favorite album of 2025.

Favorite songs: Besties, Socks, Salem Sisters, Mary, Happy Birthday, Forever Howlong, and Goodbye (Don’t Tell Me)