The Best "Best of 2025" Lists
Our sixth annual list of lists recapping the year in music!
It’s the most wonderful time of year: music list season! Since I started this newsletter in 2020, I’ve used the last issue as a year-end “list of lists” — compiling all my favorite tastemakers and critics into one handy guide, and spotlighting standout songs and albums that caught my ear. (With a focus on artists I haven’t featured yet.)
Thanks for reading (and listening) with me all year long, and see you in 2026!
Follow the Hear Hear playlist to stream along, with selections from all the music referenced below.
2 lists for the year’s essential albums
The New Yorker’s Best Albums of 2025 from Amanda Petrusich: Surveying the landscape with her stellar taste, Petrusich highlighted 15 albums that “kept her afloat” throughout this heavy year, and I especially loved her top five:
Cover The Mirrors, Ben Kweller: “While animated by the cognitive dissonance of grief, it’s also an explosive, occasionally ecstatic rock record.”
LUX, ROSALÍA: “Her vision of what global pop music can be comes across as cerebral and expansive. In some ways, her closest contemporary is Björk, who is featured on the thorny, operatic single ‘Berghain.’”
Baby, Dijon: “Easily the most compelling experimental R&B record since Frank Ocean’s Blonde—these are deep, haunted, romantic songs about devotion, sacrifice, and time.”
New Threats From The Soul, Ryan Davis & the Roadhouse Band: “Tuneful, funny music that’s vaguely rooted in country and indie-rock, but also leaves room for hard left turns, including unforeseeable breakbeats.”
Getting Killed, Geese: “This (very) young Brooklyn band (very) occasionally sounds like other bands (Radiohead, Anohni and the Johnsons, Suicide), but mostly Geese sounds unlike anything I’ve ever heard before — in part because of the front man Cameron Winter’s tense, singular, supernatural warble.”
A few more notable picks from her top 15: The “mid-seventies, Laurel Canyon groove” of Hannah Cohen, the “strange and beautiful album” from electronic composer Oneohtrix Point Never, and a solo LP from Paramore frontwoman Hayley Williams.
The New York Times’ Best Albums of 2025 from critics Lindsay Zoladz and Jon Caramanica: While both critics shared a personal list, their three overlaps neatly capture a few consensus picks — and personal favorites of mine.
DeBÍ TiRAR MáS FOToS, Bad Bunny: “Is to Puerto Rican musical history what Beyoncé’s two most recent albums have been to electronic music and country: sprawling, studious statements that make sharp connections between past traditions and present trends but are way too much fun to ever feel like homework.”
SABLE, fABLE, Bon Iver: “Justin Vernon’s music sounds more direct, vulnerable and — thanks to contributions from artists like Dijon, Danielle Haim and Flock of Dimes’ Jenn Wasner — collaborative than it ever has before.”
It’s a Beautiful Place, Water From Your Eyes: “The Brooklyn-based project centered around the vocalist Rachel Brown (thanks for coming) and the guitarist Nate Amos (This Is Lorelei) levels up on this pointed, pummeling seventh album.”
1 list capturing the sounds of the moment
Gorilla vs. Bear’s Songs of 2025: Without fail, this stalwart blog keeps me on the pulse of modern, genre-fluid sounds that foreshadow where music is headed. You’ve already heard their #1 and #2 songs of the year in this newsletter…
“Max Potential,” Nourished by Time // Doreen St. Félix coined the singular sound of Baltimore artist Marcus Brown as “lush pain music” — I won’t do better than that!
“You got time and I got money,” Smerz // The standout single from this Norwegian postmodern pop duo is “zonked but graceful,” writes Chris DeVille for Stereogum.
Rounding out GvB’s top five are three more artists to keep an eye on…
“Play,” james K // New York producer Jamie Krasner creates shape-shifting music; on this track she “swims through trip-hop, dream-pop, drum ‘n’ bass, jungle, and grunge”
“Everyone Falls Asleep In Their Own Time,” Sophia Stel // A Canadian alt-pop artist that Dazed calls “the sonic lovechild of Ethel Cain and 070 Shake”
“obvious,” Oklou // A quieter, subtler song from this “French electronic pop darling”
1 list to find your new favorite band
No Expectations’ 100 Best Albums of 2025: I’m always overwhelmed by Chicago critic Josh Terry’s lists because I find so much overlap with his taste. Naturally, his year-end recap acquainted me with tons of exciting artists I haven’t yet featured…
Billie Marten: A 26-year-old UK singer-songwriter with “winsome and warm melodies”
Cash Langdon: “Channeling the anthemic choruses of Summerteeth-era Wilco, the frantic energy of Ty Segall, and the melodic prowess of the late Adam Schlesinger.”
CMAT: “Just when you thought the cross-pollination of country textures into marquee pop music was getting stale, Ireland’s Ciara Mary-Alice Thompson releases an unquestionable exception to the played-out trend.”
Dead Gowns: AKA Maine songwriter Geneviève Beaudoin. “Not since Angel Olsen’s 2014 album has an indie rock voice floored me so palpably.”
Dove Ellis: I briefly featured this Irish singer-songwriter last issue, but highlighting again as his debut album Blizzard sounds like the start of something special — with shades of Thom Yorke, Rufus Wainwright, and Jeff Buckley.
Folk Bitch Trio: “I’m not sure why singer-songwriters from Australia are so adept at writing gorgeous melodies, but artists like Julia Jacklin, Maple Glider, and Stella Donnelly are masters at this. So too are Melbourne’s Folk Bitch Trio.”
Hand Habits: “Meg Duffy’s fourth album as Hand Habits is triumphantly self-possessed and calming.”
Junk Drawer: “After the first few songs of Days of Heaven, you’ll think that this Belfast band has one of the best post-punk albums of 2025.”
Lifeguard: “Alongside acts like Friko, Horsegirl, and Free Range, Lifeguard has led the charge of Chicago’s youth indie rock scene.”
Lawn: Part of “a cluster of New Orleans indie rock bands,” Lawn “melds jangle-pop and post-punk” indebted to Wire, Spoon, and The Fall.
Liam Kazar: “A cozy and smooth dose of folk-rock” from an artist who has toured with artists like Tweedy, Waxahatchee, and Kevin Morby.
Maia Friedman: “A touring member of Dirty Projectors who leans on orchestral and timeless folk on her solo albums”
Rose City Band: “Buttery lead guitars, ample twang, and easygoing vocals are this Oregon band’s calling card.”
Plus, 20 artists from Josh’s list that we’ve featured in Hear Hear: Cusp // Water From Your Eyes // Whitney // Moontype // Mamalarky // Prewn // Saba & No ID // Silver Synthetic // Tobacco City // Uwade // Saya Gray // Greg Freeman // Hannah Frances // Horsegirl // Goose // Way Dynamic // with four overlaps from Petrusich’s list: Ryan Davis & The Roadhouse Band // Geese // Hannah Cohen // Wednesday
3 lists to discover hidden gems
While I love showcasing the year’s biggest songs and albums, I’m also drawn to the idiosyncratic discoveries revealed through personal taste…
Bob Boilen’s Favorite Songs & Discoveries of 2025: The former host of NPR’s All Songs Considered now hosts a lovely weekly show on his local radio station, WOWD in Takoma Park, Maryland. (Go Terps.) His year-end broadcasts captured a bunch of wonderful artists who don’t get as much buzz in the music critic world…
Hidden gems from indie darlings: Sharon Van Etten // Lucius // Beirut // Perfume Genius // Hurray For The Riff Raff // Miya Folick // Margaret Glaspy
Quirky tracks from under-the-radar NYC artists: Indie-poppers Daisy the Great // Rubblebucket side-project Tōth // the slightly mysterious collective Crisis Public Relations
Interesting collaborations from icons: Mavis Staples’ excellent cover of Kevin Morby’s “Beautiful Strangers” // a balm from Beatie Wolfe & Brian Eno’s trilogy of ambient dream-pop albums
And Boilen’s top four songs, all featured in Hear Hear, came from: Saya Gray // Snocaps // Wet Leg // Lucy Dacus
Said The Gramophone’s Best Songs of 2025: This annual list from Sean Michaels’ otherwise-dormant music blog is always a reliable source of delightful tunes across genres.
“Stick,” Jim Legxacy: NYT culture reporter Reggie Ugwu named Legxacy’s black british music his album of the year, citing its mix of “silk-shirt R&B, glitch pop, West Indian dancehall, Nigerian afrobeats, British post-punk, The College Dropout, and a few shavings of trap.”
“Coffee In The Morning,” Wet: “Eighty-three sun-flecked seconds, just a morning’s first blinks all diffused and reassembling, and the healing chords of a piano.”
“Don’t Want to Know,” World News: “A dazzle of melody (and golden guitars)” from this London post-punk band.
Plus gems from Basia Bulat // Mereba // Esther Rose // Westside Cowboy
NPR Music’s 12 Best Albums of the Year: “Each of a dozen people on our team made a list of their top 10 albums of 2025 and then singled out one we’d recommend to anyone who came calling.” Two standouts from these personal picks…
Super Pedestrian, Annie DiRusso: “A brash, big-hearted album full of blustery, hook-forward rock jams.”
Son of Spergy, Daniel Caesar: “There’s always been a gospel influence incorporated into Caesar’s music, but this time he courageously removes the R&B disguise, going straight to the pulpit.”
2 lesser-hyped lists from top-tier music sites
Stereogum’s Staff Picks: The trusty team at Stereogum selected ten tracks each that didn’t make the site’s main list, including…
A highlight from Tyler Childers’ rollicking, Rick Rubin-produced country-rock record // a song from NY quartet My Wonderful Boyfriend that’s “equal parts ‘Just What I Needed’ by the Cars and ‘All My Friends’ by LCD Soundsystem” // a “bleary and euphoric power-pop banger” from Webbed Wing // the ragged retro energy of Columbus trio Golomb // the glitchy emo-pop of quickly, quickly
Pitchfork’s 30 Best Rock Albums of 2025: A nice survey of today’s “indie rock” landscape that surfaces a few familiar favorites alongside some welcome curveballs.
A few artists I’ve featured: Wet Leg, proving they’re more than just a two-hit wonder with great tunes like “mangetout” and “davina mccall” // strong records from Alex G & Panda Bear // prodigal 21-year-old artist Kai Slater aka Sharp Pins, who released not one but two albums of delightful retro power-pop
A few I haven’t covered yet: Neko Case’s first solo album in seven years // London band caroline’s “sprawling, cinematic blend of post-rock and avant-folk” // First Day Back “bringing Midwest emo into the modern day”
A few notable overlaps with this personal year-end list from Ratboys lead singer Julia Steiner, who has unsurprisingly great taste: hooky emo revival from Algernon Cadwallader // New Zealand power-pop experts The Beths // New York-via-Chicago indie rockers Horsegirl [I also appreciated Steiner’s inclusion of Beach Bunny, who continue their streak of polished indie pop]
Some personal picks from me…
There are a few faves of mine that I didn’t catch on any prominent year-end lists, so while you’ve heard me shout about them a bunch I want to give another boost to…
Born Ruffians’ ninth studio album of addicting rock-and-roll // Dominic Fike’s collage of alt-pop earworms // The Walkmen’s frontman-gone-solo Hamilton Leithauser
Cult leaders in the pop-punk scene Walter Mitty and His Makeshift Orchestra // king of the short song Tony Molina // songwriter extraordinaire Laura Stevenson // plus reliable pop-rock from Del Water Gap & Runnner
And while these two MSG-headlining artists don’t really need a spotlight at this point, I loved spinning albums from Tyler, The Creator & HAIM all year long
Finally, the real critical consensus
Rob Mitchum’s public-service spreadsheet aggregates nearly every year-end list out there, distilling the critical consensus into one definitive ranking. Unsurprisingly, Geese takes the top spot, with ROSALÍA and Wednesday close behind.
Rounding out the top 10…
FKA Twigs, who has never fully clicked for me [although I do like “Striptease”]
Clipse’s first album in sixteen years — aka the duo of Pusha T and Malice, buoyed by stellar collaborations, from the John Legend-fueled opening track to a sharp Kendrick Lamar feature.
Turnstile, purveyors of accessible hardcore rock
and, fittingly: Hayley Williams, Oklou, Bad Bunny, and Dijon [who just played SNL!]
Great stuff Dove Ellis was my favourite album of the year and Folk Bitch Trio were in my top 10.
Can’t wait to dive in! Mine has been delayed by a nasty virus that’s left me depleted…but it’s coming!