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100 Favorite Albums of 2025: 25-1

We did, the home stretch. Proud of everyone for getting through what was, well, yet another difficult year. Regardless where you’re reading this from, it’s probably been difficult there, and I empathize with you. Luckily, music always has our backs. I’m almost always drawn to the heavier, faster, darker bands, and that’s especially true in years like this. You’ll find a lot of that in my top 25 – but not exclusively. I’m jetlagged from a flight and you’re tired of reading top lists, so let’s just get on with it.

#25. PinkPantheress – Fancy That

Without intending to, I listened to a lot more electronic and dance music this year than normal. Sometimes, I need an album that’s just fast and fun. This seriously scratched that itch, a 9-song, 20-minute mini-album that drops big beats relentlessly, alongside PinkPantheress’s bouncy vocals. Whiplash pop music mixed with UK rave music. I don’t make a lot of concessions to “England” but they really got the electronic music scene on lock. This hearkens back to the 90s club scene but also sounds completely 2025. Good music to turn your brain off and dance to. 

#24. Billy Woods – Golliwog

Another perennial favorite of mine, his presence on this list shouldn’t be surprising at all. It’s also one of the most acclaimed albums of the year in general. The indie rap hotshot has already released a number of great records both solo and as a member of Armand Hammer, but this is his magnum opus. A tough record about a tough life, an autobiography the artist’s fascinating life and his experiences in NYC. Sure, that album’s been done a million times, but if it’s earnest then it’s justifiable. This is not only earnest, it’s raw, nervous, and at times still redacted, as if Woods immediately regrets telling the listener something. 

#23. Smerz – Big city life

It’s rare in today’s music melting pot that you hear something that sounds totally new. This sounds totally new. The best I can surmise Smerz is that they are trip-hop indie, with a little extra -hop, and some jazz. Short, funky blasts that sound like the coolest thing this side of Jon Spencer. I’ve already deep-dived their previous albums – their two prior full-lengths are ones where they serve as a backing band for an indie-pop singer, and an avant-garde choir. This band is hitting originality on all fronts. 

#22. Sudan Archives – THE BPM 

I was already extremely partial to Sudan Archives, a one-woman showcase that blends indie, R&B and electro music into one. But for her third album, she roped in a significant amount of house influence, and it’s her best album to date. This is blistering and unapologetic dance music. It’s got the fast tempos and big beats that the title implies, and the heart and personality of her other albums. It’s one of the most outwardly fun albums on this list, best played after midnight. 

#21. Paris Texas – They Left Me With A Gun

You may be noticing a trend in the rap that I like the most; intense but vibrant indie-rap is my go-to. Thankfully Denzel Curry didn’t release anything this year or it would’ve been overload. The new Paris Texas release is just an EP, and I’m always hesitant on ranking EP’s against LP’s, but when something is this good it’s worth it. A quick, nonstop collection of fast rhythms and big beats, and all without the boisterousness of top 40 rap.

#20. Bad Bunny – Debí Tirar Más Fotos

The biggest album in my top 100 by far. I pity the people who don’t listen to music in languages they don’t speak. I don’t understand a word of this album and, as a pasty white man in Boston, I’m not exactly the target audience. But Bad Bunny has such an inherent skill at taking reggaeton – a genre where the biggest critique is repetition – and making every song feel important and special. Reggaeton, rap, R&B, pop, there’s a touch of everything popular here. And even at 62 minutes, it doesn’t feel overstuffed or tedious. Put this on at a party – any party – and you’ll get everyone moving in no time. Can’t wait to once turn on the Super Bowl at halftime. Eat shit, Stephen Miller.

#19. Ela Minus – DIA

I went into this one totally blind, having heard one song from it many weeks prior. Obviously, I was floored. I was expecting some light-electro indie, and probably “just another indie album” like the influx I’ve already heard this year. It’s electro-indie, for sure, but it’s very experimental and not afraid to take risks. Pop songs are meshed with ambient drone, and enough dense electronica to make Dave Gahan smile. It’s a truly unpredictable album and had me clapping my hands like a seal. 

#18. Songs By Jonas – The “Everything Is Wrong” Album

I know nothing about this artist, but this was a whirlwind of bedroom emo and experimental noise. Most songs are short and acoustic, and make clever use of double-tracking to make it sound like a full band instead of one person. But there’s plenty of fuzz and glitch, too – it’s wildly unpredictable. There’s a litany of songs here that worked more than I thought they would from the start. I can’t wait to dig into this catalog more. This one kind of slipped through the cracks – it just missed the cutoff for my mid-year post, and I never got a chance to go back to it. 2026 gives me a great chance to listen to the other songs by Jonas.

#17. Wednesday – Bleeds

I have to chalk this one up as a major disappointment. The Asheville Americana rockers are coming off their album Rat Saw God – my pick for #1 in 2023 and subsequently, my pick for Album of the Decade So Far. Truthfully, nothing would live up to that behemoth, but this is still damn good. We’ve got the most country the band has ever sounded in lead single “Elderberry Wine,” and we have some of their heaviest, grungiest songs to date as well, like the leadoff song posted below. It’s an expansion of their capabilities, and there are plenty of all-time gems here. It takes a few listens to get into, as it is not as immediately striking as Rat, but it’s still unstoppable. They’re the best band in America right now. Surely someone has shown Neil Young this album, right? 

#16. Jehnny Beth – You Heartbreaker, You

I’ll be honest, I just tossed this on at work. I remain a diehard fan of the two Savages records, but Beth’s first solo album left me a tad lukewarm. This demolished my expectations. It’s a ripping rock record, not out of league of the post-hardcore/post-punk albums with Savages that put her on the map. Nearly every song grabs you by the throat with boundless energy and urgent emotions, often resembling a cry for help. It’s abrasive, but never uncomfortably so. It isn’t the most melodic album, opting instead more for pummeling songs that don’t sacrifice honesty. Beth has never been afraid to put her real self across her art, and this is real. This barely feels like art, more like raw human feelings on display. 

#15. ameokama – i will be clouds in the morning and rain in the evening

The first a few regional Boston* discs to make the list, this is another entry in the “wildly unpredictable” canon. But instead of sticking in the world of electro-indie, this cements itself in black metal. ameokama, who also previously sang for the metal group A Constant Knowledge of Death and just last month joined Crippling Alcoholism, explores every boundary of black metal and pushes past them. She’s confrontational at points, atmospheric at others. The defining focus of this album is existing as something you can get lost in. You know how Deafheaven went from black metal to ambient? Imagine all of that across one album (ahem, more on them later). There’s still time for some doom and shoegaze elements too, because it simply can’t stay contained. 

*- She dropped this album and promptly moved away, but it counts as a Boston album.

#14. Little Simz – Lotus

It’s always a safe assumption that Little Simz will make my lists whenever she releases something, but Lotus is excellent even on a grading curve. After the monumental, unexpected success of her album Sometimes I Might Be Introvert, she stepped away a bit and released some cold, confrontational albums. But Lotus is plain old fun. The UK rapper sounds like she’s having a blast, with big beats and bouncy rhythms. It’s a different and somewhat relieving direction, as it sounds like Simz has learned to leverage her platform (a guest appearance on last year’s Coldplay album hinted at this too). As expected, there’s a lot of quick, flowing ideas and most of them work very well. 

#13. mclusky – the world is still here and so are we

And thank your god for that. Often, I want artists to stretch their own boundaries and explore new territory, especially if they are coming back from a break. But would we want mclusky to give us anything they haven’t given us before? Hell no. The band’s first album in 21 years picks up exactly where they left off, and why shouldn’t it? The things they satirized so heavily in the early 2000’s have only gotten worse! This is full of short, heavy post-hardcore songs that could easily get mistaken as punk. And as expected, the lyrics range from corny and silly to deeply political and courageously specific. I was a huge fan of Future Of The Left, Andy Falkous’ band he formed after mclusky’s initial break-up, but this album scratches a slightly different itch. It’s loose, aggressive, and straight to the point.

I normally post studio versions here, but mclusky live > mclusky studio. Here’s how the song is really meant to sound:

#12. The Croaks – Menagerie

Another favorite Boston band, possibly my actual favorite. Self-described as “wench rock,” this is some Ren Faire indie. A 4-track EP of songs with full minstrel influence, even though some of them go off the rails into punk territory. There’s nothing like this out there anywhere, as far as I can tell. It’s a gimmick, maybe, but it is music that really hooks you in quickly, too. Longtime fans will recognize 2-3 of these songs from live sets, which are always a blast. As far as bassist/vocalist Alli Fuchs goes, more on her later.

#11. TAKAAT – Is Noise, Vol. 1 & Is Noise, Vol. 2

Remember when I said I always debate whether to include EP’s? This is the same boat. But let me say that this is the exact type of thing I’m into. These two 4-tracks represent the first music released by the band, but you may be familiar with them already – it’s African indie-rocker Mdou Moctar’s backing band, without Moctar himself. These songs mix African rhythms with dense, heavy noise production to make something wholly unique and separate from the artist they’re associated with. I saw these guys play a very early show and they managed to stretch the initial four songs into an hour-long set, it was face-melting stuff. I can’t wait for more. 

#10. Agriculture – The Spiritual Sound

Agriculture were already promising themselves to be one of the most exciting and unique bands in all of metal. But their second record blows everything out of the water. The band’s black metalish music is riveting, intense, not for the faint of heart. Black metal is kind of tough to mess up – a wall of guitars and some screaming can do wonders if done well. But The Spiritual Sound is not a relentless nor repetitive record. There are a ton of fresh ideas and genre twists, all sewed into traditional black metal heaviness. This feels the same as Deafheaven did in 2013, unparalleled and exciting within a genre that has hardly evolved over three decades. This record has a maximum audience, but for those it appeals to, it is a stone-cold masterpiece. Challenge your senses. 

#9. UNIVERSITY – McCartney, It’ll Be OK & YES

Two-fer. Deal with it. At the time of writing, I don’t know anything about this band, nothing at all. The covers of their album and singles invoke the same artwork as Dinosaur Jr.’s You’re Living All Over Me, and my brain makes a false connection between the two bands. But not that false – this is probably what the Dino guys would sound like if they were young today. It’s alternative, but it takes frequent detours into straight noise. Obscenely loud, this is one of the boldest debut albums I’ve ever heard. So rarely does a band come out of the gate with a unique sound. These folks are not afraid to put a wall of guitars and screaming in the middle of an indie song, and not afraid to stretch a tune to 11 minutes as they do on their follow-up EP YES. The only thing that’s predictable here, besides the unpredictability, is that it will be chaotic. Not for the faint of heart. 

#8. Deafheaven – Lonely People With Power

The kings reclaim the throne. Deafheaven’s Sunbather is arguably the best metal album of the last 20 years, whether you like it or not, and they’ve been on a tear ever since then. But where each subsequent album has explored a different facet of their sound, Lonely People With Power combines everything into one. It’s their best since Sunbather. Pulverizing black metal, blissful ambient, riffs, beautiful lyrics completely lost through guttural screaming, and occasionally just…rock music? Also these are shorter songs than normal, which gives the band more branches to show themselves off. It’s like a Greatest Hits of all new tracks. Bring earplugs. 

#7. nurse joy – can i say something…?

Not the first nor the last Boston band to grace this section of the list. I caught nurse joy by chance at a festival last year when I had downtime, and their midday set in a cramped Rockwell was a damn party. Their debut and final full-length is a dance-punk whirlwind, a bunch of raucous loose anthems that transcend genre but never stray too far from being -punk. It’s fun as hell. In some ways it sounds like a record pulled from 2007 or so, but the basement sweatiness of it can only exist in 2025. Thankfully, I got to see nurse joy three more times before they split up in September.

#6. Backxwash – Only Dust Remains

Another shoo-in, every Backxwash album I’ve listened to has made my best-of lists. There was never any doubt here. The Zambian-Canadian rapper is freed from her now-concluded trilogy of dark, religious albums, but Dust isn’t a whole lot different. We do see some varied and more experimental sides of her, making this her most well-rounded album to date. But it’s also dark, heavy, conscious and sometimes just plain nasty. This isn’t something for everyone, it’s deliberately off-putting at points; but it’s yet another triumph in a catalog full of them. 

#5. Deftones – private music

It seems that the kids these days have become nostalgic for the 2000s, a time they just missed out on. It’s bewildering – that era was worse in almost every way. But one thing the kids have gifted on us is a Deftones revival. I saw Deftones for the first (and so far only) time in 2022, at Agganis Arena, a midsize venue mostly housed by BU sports teams. This January, they played TD Garden. Other luminaries who play TD Garden? Kendrick Lamar, Charli XCX, the Boston Celtics. Now, in order to maintain this sudden second career, they had to stick the landing on their new album. They did so with room to spare – this is their best album since their original late-90s heyday. Blisteringly heavy, riff-filled, and equal parts melodic and noisy. It’s been obvious that the band members are starting to move in different directions, but this album captures them blending these differing ambitions beautifully. Deftones should’ve been a “legacy band.” Instead, they’re leaders of a whole new metal revolution.

#4. Laura Stevenson – Late Great

Laura Stevenson’s classic “Master Of Art” is my all-time favorite song. She’s got one of the best singing voice I’ve ever heard. It’s not necessarily a given that she shows up on these lists, but it’s likely – and Late Great is her best album in a long while. Touching, gorgeous indie songs that can stretch into “fun” or “haunting” territory real quick. Stevenson is excellent at making tunes that are drawn-out and dense, and following it up with something minimalistic and catchy. While her music is never exactly uplifting or optimistic, Late Great was spurned by divorce, which only adds extra gravity to the always emotional music. Everything is all under the guise of Stevenson’s beautiful vocals. She’s one of my favorite artists and she’s back even stronger than she has been in many years.

#3. Paper Lady – Idle Fate

The final local release on this list, this album is nuts. Another debut full-length, this one is somewhere in the realm of heavy alternative/shoegaze, even just rock music. These tunes are dense and unpredictable, sometimes putting everything upfront and other times opting for a slow-burning bruiser. Their live show is feral even as the songs are patient. If you’ve been missing some heavy alternative, then have no fear, Paper Lady is here. The band features Croaks bassist/vocalist Alli Fuchs as a frontwoman, and she puts everything forward. Without fact-checking, I believe billy woods is the only other person to make two separate appearances in my top 100. I hope you like guitars.

#2. Bartees Strange – Horror

I’ve been a fan of Bartees for a while, but I never predicted that he would put out a record this good. Horror does indeed dig into the macabre, adding yet another element to his already-stewing melting pot. The indie/rock/rapper delivers a chaotic album of high-speed rap, pretty R&B and catchy indie songs. It’s fun, wildly so, and delivers from start to finish. It’s easy to see an influence of TV On The Radio here, although the more macabre parts come from elsewhere darker. Some of these songs absolutely boom, but not all of them do, it’s a very well-rounded affair. Fun as hell. Pair with a follow-up EP he released in October, Shy Bairns Get Nowt, which sees Bartees dig deeper into specific genres like rap and blues. 

#1. Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory – Sharon Van Etten & the Attachment Theory

Time to get the tissues out. I mentioned my all-time favorite song already, but SVE’s “Seventeen” is close behind it, and the song guaranteed to make me to weep immediately. SVE’s first album crediting her backing band is her best in a long while. It’s apparent that the band were more involved in the songwriting, as these tunes are more complex and more instrumental. Guitars are largely ditched for synthesizers, itself a big change for her traditionally folk-inspired indie (and usually a kiss of death for me). But her gorgeous voice still prevails and makes these songs vulnerable, shakeable. Remarkably beautiful indie record. I wasn’t sure on this at #1, I had Bartees there most of the year. You’ll notice the two swapped spots from the midyear post. This isn’t necessarily an Earth-shattering #1, but I think it’s one that will have staying power. I can see myself coming back to this one ins forthcoming years.

And that’s a wrap. May we wish for a 2026 as plentiful musically as 2025 was. I’m sure it will be. As always, I hope these posts or even this top 25 can give you one new gem to discover. Or at least it validated your own personal opinions. This wraps up my year-end 2025 coverage, although I may post a little about films watched in 2025 too.

I always highlight some releases that didn’t quite make the cut, so here’s five more in no order: Liam Peroyea – Burn | Freckle – Freckle | Valerie June – Owls, Omens and Oracles | Golomb – The Beat Goes On | AFI – Silver Bleeds the Black Sun

100 Best Albums of 2023: 100-76

Jump to: Songs | 75-51 | 50-26 | 25-1

I apologize in advance because I went sicko mode this year. But looking down at the list of albums & songs this year, how could I not. 2023, just like nearly every year, delivered an incredible amount of excellent music, with hundreds of albums not getting the national coverage they deserve. So I had to go to the extreme and talk about 100 albums.

The year started off cold. There were a number of albums from both big-name veterans and personal favorites that disappointed. New releases from Miley Cyrus and Metallica were dead on impact. Damon Albarn went 0-2 with a disappointing Gorillaz album and a disappointing Blur album. The Dirty Nil, a band I’ve previously called the best band in music, released one of the worst albums of the year. It was a dire start which, thankfully, was a red herring for the rest of the year. Because when things started to tick up, they really ticked up.

I really wanted to write about so many more albums than what’s already here. My final tally was 346 new releases, with another 100 still on my list. I also manipulated the list a bit, which originally included Bad Bunny and Peter Gabriel towards the bottom – but do they really need more coverage? I am already sacrificing tons of under-the-bubble groups. You know whether or not you like Bad Bunny & Peter Gabriel.

From experimental bedroom pop, to French indie, to a dozen hardcore albums, bluegrass, new wave, indie veterans, bubblegum pop, religious black metal and a handful of the loudest noise records ever produced – it’s all here.

#100. HEALTH – RAT WARS

One of the very last albums I listened to (somehow I missed the release) sneaks in at the bottom. Ever since I saw HEALTH for the first time in 2019, they’ve been one of my favorite bands. They’re still chasing the highs of their best album, but this industrial-heavy album comes damn close. This is heavy, pounding music, always offset by the distant, high vocals. There is more of a sweaty club vibe on this one which really aids the slower tracks. Rarely does a band capture the 80’s industrial intensity as consistently and successfully as HEALTH does.

RIYL: Nine Inch Nails, Author & Punisher, getting into a fight at the sex club

#99. Slaughter Beach, Dog – Crying, Laughing, Waving, Smiling

The trajectory into slightly Americana-based indie is simply not what I would’ve predicted for Jake Ewald. When Modern Baseball split – the pop-punk group beloved by all, even me who does not like pop-punk – Ewald ramped up his side project. Now a decade later, he’s doing folksy indie, and this album is his best SB,D work yet. These are songs with rich characters and storied histories, with love and tenderness inserted each time. While these songs are not upbeat, there is a consistent engaging quality to them, one that nags at the listener. This is Ewald’s best songwriting to date! 

RIYL: Real Estate, Grizzly Bear, finding your old ripped CBGB’s shirts a decade later

#98. The Beaches – Blame My Ex

I dropped the ball on this one. In advance of Boston Calling, I received a dozen interview requests from the Beaches’ PR person. I passed, not having the time or knowledge of the group. Well now they’re big! And rightfully so. The band’s sophomore album is a spunky, catchy indie-punk record filled with snarl. These songs are built around melodies, but they come straight from the heart. The amount of energy and earnestness across this record is apparent immediately, especially on the aptly-named opener “Blame Brett.” They have hooks for days.

RIYL: Beach Bunny, Clairo, knowing your break-up will end in a defamatory radio hit

#97. Suzie True – Sentimental Scum

This is the first of a handful of blisteringly fun, feminine indie-punk records on this list. Suzie True does fast and heavy songs, loud enough to be punk and catchy enough to be indie, all wrapped up in compact records. The overly girly imagery of the group matches with the old-school punk riffs in just the right way to piss off some old gatekeepers. Listen closely for what I believe is an uncredited Sean Bonnette on vocals (from AJJ – more on them later). Fast, fun, angsty, loud – perfect for 2023. 

RIYL: Teenage Halloween, Oceanator, reading your old diary

#96. Speedy Ortiz – Rabbit Rabbit

Rabbit Rabbit. It’s what Sadie Depuis tweets on the first day of every month. A new start, a new beginning. The first Speedy Ortiz album in five years (following an excellent Sadie solo release) is kind of more of the same, kind of not. A great indie-punk album, it’s got some of the fiery energy of old Ortiz tunes, with a lot of maturity and patience thrown in. This is maybe the most well-rounded Speedy album yet, and they’ve always had a handle on complete packages. I was not anticipating another Speedy Ortiz release, so this was a delightful surprise.

RIYL: Hop Along, Charly Bliss, getting too old for street punk shows

#95. Deerhoof – Miracle-Level

I will not claim to be remotely knowledgeable about the experimental group Deerhoof or their approximately 100 albums. But I know fun experimental indie when I hear it, and that’s exactly what they provide on Miracle-Level. It’s unpredictable stuff, often manic, but without the abrasive unpleasantness of a lot of experimental rock stuff. This is their first album to be sung entirely in Japanese, further removing it from any curious normie audiences. But it’s a celebratory album, a joy in a scary world.

RIYL: Xiu Xiu, Battles, getting hypnotized 

#94. Chris Farren – Doom Singer

Chris Farren the person is a hysterical and respectful guy I’ve always loved, especially as a lifelong friend of Jeff Rosenstock (more on him later). Chris Farren the musician has never really done it for me, his brand of smooth pop-punk/indie has chronically been a bit soft for my taste. So imagine my surprise when his newest – which doesn’t really deviate from the formula! – grabbed me. It’s a high-energy and just fun indie-punk record. Farren’s voice is always smooth and his production clean, resulting in a brisk listen and a nice antidote to much of the depressive music on this list. It’s fun!

RIYL: Chumped, Lemuria, living in Brooklyn baby

#93. Wilco – Cousin

Wilco might be considered one of the premier dad bands, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t still have the juice. Wilco’s 13th album sees them hand off the production reins for once, to test themselves. We’re in a creative boom for Wilco, too – following last year’s excellent country double-album Cruel Country, we’re now getting the most experimental Wilco album in over a decade. Now it’s nothing like Yankee Hotel of course, but these songs pack a lot of little punches. There are a lot of intricate details here, aided by Cate le Bon on production. Wilco could easily be producing “another Wilco album” but they’re still finding ways to stay fresh, instead. 

RIYL: Arcade Fire, Spoon, being the cool uncle

#92. Body Void – Atrocity Machine

Finally music that really answers the question, what would body horror sound like? In a list filled with abrasive and off-putting metal, this is one of the most intense records. It also purposely refuses alignment with any specific metal subgenre, incorporating elements of doom metal, black metal and industrial. While the songs are lengthy, they’re also completely unpredictable. There’s something for nearly all metal fans in here (except power metal, thankfully). Add in body horror lyrical concepts and you’ve got yourself one of the wildest metal releases of 2023. 

RIYL: Full of Hell, Primitive Man, scaring your neighbors

#91. Joanna Sternberg – I’ve Got Me

Folk music should always be honest and vulnerable. Sternberg’s sophomore album, written during COVID, as they pulled away from substances and from a manipulative music industry, is chock full of it. This is a painful record, with heartfelt grief sessions peppered in frequently. But don’t think it’s a sob session, because many of these songs are fun, too. Complex emotions with layered lyrics and uppity acoustic guitar make for a well-rounded folk record. There’s never any certainty to what the next song holds. And what’s more like life than that?

RIYL: Julie Byrne, Cassandra Jenkins, having a breakthrough at therapy

#90. Agriculture – Agriculture

One of the last albums I listened to in prep for this list, this one left me blindsided. I’ve never heard something like this. This is black metal, but with roots tied in experimental music. It is beyond heavy and extreme, with raging guitars and screamed vocals, all meshing together in lieu of a sense of melody. Sometimes. Other times, it’s got steel guitar and harmonies. It’s totally unpredictable and thrilling, something wholly new even in the black metal world. I mean, the band is called Agriculture. Black metal bands are normally named like Sancti Stigmata or Festering Gushes or something. Anyways, this is sick as hell.

RIYL: Vile Creature, Mizmor, black metal that pisses off Nazis 

#89. Capra – Errors

You’ll notice a trend on this list – boundary-pushing hardcore. There were a great number of hardcore albums this year that pushed out of genre barriers, usually in the form of sheer intensity. Capra is a little more standard, but they’re still very unique. Errors is a fiercely intense hardcore punk record, one that comes with some variations and some scant outside influences. It sounds closer to Gouge Away, with songs that balance volume and heaviness with leveled tempos and mature rhythms. And all of this comes with rough, rough vocals that give the group a lot of credibility. 

RIYL: Ithaca, Gouge Away, slamdancing in a 100-degree church basement 

#88. Cattle Decapitation – Terrasite

Cattle Decap has been a band for a very long time and I’ve always considered them one of many interchangeable, not particularly interesting death metal-adjacent groups. But when I heard a single on the radio, it caught my attention. These are some of the most well-written metal jams of the year, all crafted with a graceful touch and ceaseless brutality. Not to mention, the production is immaculate. This goes beyond death metal into deathgrind territory, but the nomenclature doesn’t matter. What does matter is riffs, headbangers, and songs called “Scourge of the Offspring,” and this one delivers on all fronts.

RIYL: Cannibal Corpse, Aborted, earplugs

#87. Alex Lahey – The Answer is Always Yes

There’s a couple albums on this list that blend indie and punk, which is Lahey’s specialty. These songs are a little too energized to be indie, but a little too patient to be punk. Really, this album – more so than similar ones on the list – are the advancement of the more memorable emo bands of the mid-10’s. These songs are emotional, but often affirming, and mix rhythmic melodies with just enough oomph to be bangers. There were a few great emo-punk albums on this list – this one should not get lost in the shuffle. This is a special collection of songs that are both fun and deeply personal.

RIYL: Camp Cope, Swearin’, smiling through the pain

#86. Squitch – Tumbledown Mountain

RIP Squitch long live Squitch. The final offering from one of the best local indie bands is a delightful and emotional journey. Despite the opening track “Not The End,” this is definitively the final album, and the band is going out on top with their best record. The guitar-based songs here are both catchy and complex, drawing on strong vocals, dense production and heart-on-sleeve emotions. It might be the end, but there’s still time to get Squitch on your radars.

RIYL: Puppy Problems, Real Estate, a little cry in a comfy bed

#85. Worriers – Trust Your Gut & Warm Blanket

Similar to Squitch, Worriers have always occupied a space in indie that hints at punk edges but never truly explores them. While classified as punk, Worriers – mostly the solo project of Lauren Denitzio – craft intricate and vulnerable singer-songwriter tunes. Much of the lyrical material here is derived from small interactions, misunderstandings, and hurt feelings, and not any grand, vague scopes, which helps give these songs a raw earnesty. It was a busy year for Denitzio, releasing two great albums. “Gut” is a bit edgier than the very low-key “Blanket,” but they play off of each other very well.

RIYL: The Menzingers, the Gaslight Anthem, sneaking liquor into a poetry reading

#84. Be Your Own Pet – Mommy

One of my favorite bands, and it’s a marvel they reunited. They split up in 2008 as quietly as they had lived, a garage punk that was always bubbling a little too under the radar to make an impact. But they’re back – at the request of Jack White! – and they haven’t missed a beat. I was concerned that they would be too mature these days, and while these songs don’t necessarily have the same unfiltered chaotic energy of the band’s debut, there is still a healthy amount of inappropriate and loud stuff. I mean, look at the title and cover, not to mention lead single “Worship the Whip.” This borders on the ledge between indie and punk, but it’s meant purely for the latter’s crowd. Long live Be Your Own Pet.

RIYL: Ty Segall, Heavens to Betsy, crashing a wedding for fun

#83. Russkaja – Turbo Polka Party

This is easily the biggest guilty pleasure on this list. It’s the only one that I’ll reckon isn’t “good” but it is fun. A Russian group that blends polka and ska into punk and metal, something that’s loud and laughable. There’s a healthy mix of genuine cultural appreciation via traditional Russian music, and tongue-in-cheek songs about the somewhat ridiculous mix of genres. This is the type of thing I would’ve loved in high school. The band mixes a lot of “uncool” genres, and to double down on that, there’s a genuine cover of “Last Christmas” towards the end (and the album came out in February).

RIYL: Alestorm, Korpiklaani, Weird Al if he had an attitude

#82. Orbit Culture – Descent & The Forgotten

Many of the acts on this list are artists who experiment around and toss genre templates out the window. But in order to appreciate music like this, there has to be a base love of the bands that can do basic templates well. Orbit Culture, a death metal group out of Sweden, play standard death metal songs, they just do them ridiculously well. These songs are heavy and brutal, direct, and all the while insanely catchy. Descent is a proper studio album, while The Forgotten is a follow-up EP with a couple of longer songs. There isn’t a bad track across the two releases, a serious breakout year for the band. If you like your music to be a quick punch to the brain – these guys are for you.

RIYL: Suffocation, Machine Head, throwing your voice out trying to growl along

#81. The Mountain Goats – Jenny From Thebes

After releasing approximately 1001 records that didn’t really have themes, John Darnielle et co. have begun to do conceptual albums. And this album takes on the toughest concept yet – a full album about Jenny, a character who has existed on the fringes of Darnielle’s lyrics dating back to 2003. Whether you’re invested in the intricacies of Darnielle’s lyrics or you just appreciate their gleefully depressive music, then you’ll love this back-to-basics album. This one sounds like it came out in 2004, in Goats lore. The songs are lean and simple, yet super catchy and always tinged with paranoia, American loneliness, and outright depression. The indie-folk legends never left, but in a way, they’re back.

RIYL: Neutral Milk Hotel, the Decembrists, crying in a hotel room alone

#80. Ragana – Desolation’s Flower

Black metal for the sake of black metal can be excellent on its own. But black metal with a message can be powerful. Ragana have always held this to be true, and their new record is downright stunning. A queer duo, Ragana bring antifascist politics to a genre that is historically, well, fascist. This record is visceral, complex and angry, with lengthy and relentless metal songs. But the band puts on the brakes frequently, knowing the power of somber bridges and interludes. In fact, a lot of this album rests, and it makes the metal songs all the more powerful. Think this is the only queer black metal album on the list? Think again.

RIYL: Mount Eerie, Thou, the film “The VVitch” 

#79. Year of the Knife – No Love Lost

Grindcore albums shouldn’t be long. This one is 9 songs and 20 minutes, a blissfully short blast of sonic warfare. I know little about this band, only discovering this one on a metal station shortly before I began writing these entries – but on this mini-album, the group is joined by insane heavy-hitters like Full of Hell and Sangusiugabogg, two bands who both narrowly missed this same list. This is super intense, super abrasive and super quick stuff. Not for the faint of heart, but also not the same song 9 times over. There’s care put into separating these songs, even the ones that are under a minute. Brutal, brutal things are afoot.

RIYL: Nails, The Locust, getting 13 songs into your 15 minute set

#78. Dreamwell – In My Saddest Dreams, I Am Beside You

Hardcore often gets more interesting when bands don’t stick to a rote one-two-one-two formula. Dreamwell, a group from my neck of the woods, don’t so much follow a new path as they do take the hardcore formula and set it on fire. They are a deeply original and thrilling group, channeling the best days of Fucked Up (more on them later). The band explores so many territories that it no longer feels like hardcore, but Keziah Staska’s consistent growled vocals always bring things back home. 

RIYL: Converge, Deafheaven, trying to get your friends into metal

#77. Squirrel Flower – Tomorrow’s Fire

Another local artist, at least formerly so. Squirrel Flower has always made great guitar-based bedroom indie, but this is her finest work yet. Ella Williams is always one to keep things honest, and this record is emotions on full display. It’s still the indie rock that fans expect, but things are a little bit darker, a little bit heavier. Many tracks move away from the folksy influences and into a heavier rock atmosphere. And some don’t – diversity is a strength here. But everything here is unexpectedly grimier than before. Straightforward, but dense and cathartic, it’s a great set of old-school indie rock tunes.

RIYL: Indigo de Souza, Cat Power, pretending you’re Gen X

#76. Palehound – Eye On The Bat

Normally, indie groups that come out of the gate with high-energy, fun tunes eventually settle down into midtempo stuff. But Palehound is only getting more fun. The rest of the album never quite hits the high of the raucous title track, but the whole journey is a blast. El Kempner is always one to wear their heart on their sleeve, and does so here. These songs are earnest and emotional, mostly chronicling the unsteady nature of the last couple years. And yet, it’s an absolute blast to listen to. 

RIYL: Adult Mom, Jay Som, early-00’s goofy indie bands with names like “Structural Integrity in Istanbul”

Thank you for reading! My hope is that you, dear reader, find at least something you’ll like and may have missed. Check back tomorrow for entries 75-51. What can you expect? Some new wave legends, a bit of bubblegum pop, back-to-back folk albums, back-to-back moody rap, and a pop singer getting more honest than ever before.